Paul K. Hansma

Paul K. Hansma begins the interview by describing his childhood and early interest in building projects. After obtaining his undergraduate degree from New College, Hansma enrolled in the University of California at Berkeley to study condensed matter physics under Gene Rochlin. Upon completing his thesis on externally shunted Josephson Junctions, Hansma accepted a faculty position at the University of California at Santa Barbara and worked on squeezable electron tunneling junctions. It was at that time Hansma heard a lecture by Gerd Binnig on a new technique called scanning tunneling microscopy (STM). Frustrated by the lengthy time requirements to set up each trial, Hansma began to move away from ultra-high vacuum equipment into STMs that would function in air and liquids. Hansma divided the labor between graduate students, technician Barney Drake, and himself and began building STMs, including the first one to achieve atomic resolution in water. Then, a conference at Cancun, Mexico served as a major impetus for information exchange and helped many groups to achieve atomic resolution. Soon after, at the request of colleague, Calvin Quate, Hansma reviewed a paper on atomic force microscopy (AFM). The concept intrigued Hansma and he began to shift his research from STM to AFM. After building many iterations of AFMs, Hansma set up a research agreement with Digital Instruments' founder Virgil Elings to receive prototype instruments in exchange for consultation. Hansma concludes the interview by offering insights on the impact of the UCSB Materials Research Laboratory; thoughts on the nanotechnology community; and his current research on bone diagnostic instruments.

University of California, Santa Barbara

1972 - 1976 Assistant Professor, Physics Department

University of California, Santa Barbara

1976 - 1980 Associate Professor, Physics Department

University of California, Santa Barbara

1980 - Present Professor, Physics Department

University of California, Santa Barbara

1994 - 1997 Co-Chair of Physics Department

Nanotechnology

1989 - Present Editorial Board Member

Arizona State University

1997 - Present Advisory Board for Interactive Nano-visualization in Science and Engineering Education (INVSEE) program

Review of Scientific Instruments

1999 - Present Editorial Board member

Cyrus Mody

Cyrus Mody is an assistant professor of history at Rice University. Prior to that position he was the manager of the Nanotechnology and Innovation Studies programs in the Center for Contemporary History and Policy at the Chemical Heritage Foundation. He has a bachelor’s degree in mechanical and materials engineering from Harvard University and a Ph.D. in science and technology studies from Cornell. He was the 2004–2005 Gordon Cain Fellow at CHF before becoming a program manager. Mody has published widely on the history and sociology of materials science, instrumentation, and nanotechnology.