Below is a syllabus template that includes WSU's required syllabus elements. Please complete all items highlighted in yellow. 

 

Title of Course: Nanoscale Materials and Nanotechnology

Prefix and Number: MSE/ME 431

Semester and Year: Spring 2027

Number of Credit Hours:3

Prerequisites: None

Course Details

Day and Time: 3 hour lecture

Meeting Location: [tbd]

 

Instructor Contact Information

Instructor Name: [tbd]

Instructor Contact Information: [office location, phone, email] [tbd]

Instructor Office Hours: [click here for best practices] [tbd]

 

TA Name: [tbd]

TA Contact Information: [office location, phone, email]: [tbd]

TA Office Hours: [click here for best practices] [tbd]

 

Course Description

This elective course provides a broad and accessible introduction to nanoscience, nanoscale materials, and modern nanotechnology. Students will learn how nanoscale structure, surface effects, and size-dependent properties influence material behavior, and how nanomaterials and nanosystems are fabricated, characterized, and applied in medicine, biotechnology, energy, environmental monitoring, and next-generation devices.

 

Course Materials 

Books: Recommended:

1. Chris Binns, Introduction to Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Wiley, 2022.
2. Yuehe Lin, Handbook of Electrochemical Nanotechnology, American Scientific Publishers, Vols. 1-2, 2009.
3. Guozhong Cao, Nanostructures and Nanomaterials: Synthesis, Properties and Applications, 2nd Edition, Imperial College Press, 2011.

Other Materials: 

1. Recent journal articles and review papers will be assigned as reading materials during selected classes.

Students may obtain books from WSU Students Book Corporation, Crimson & Gray, Amazon, or other booksellers. Yuehe Lin has 10 sets of Handbook of Electrochemical Nanotechnology available for students to borrow.

Fees: N/A

Student Learning Outcomes (SLOs) [add more lines if necessary]

Course Learning Outcomes (students will be able to:)	Activities Supporting the Learning Outcomes	Assessment of the Learning Outcomes
1. Understand the basic concepts of nanoscience and nanotechnology.	Exams, Homeworks, quizzes	Midterm exams, homework, quiz
2. Describe the structure, properties, synthesis, and characterization of nanoengineered materials.	Exams, Presentation, in class discussion, term paper, Homeworks	Midterm exams, homework, group discussion, in-class presentation, term paper
3. Explain important applications of nanomaterials in energy, environment, biotechnology, and medicine.	Exams, Presentation, in class discussion, term paper	Midterm exams, in-class presentation, term paper
4. Develop technical presentation, discussion, literature review, and scientific writing skills.	Individual presentation and term paper and in-class group discussion.	Group discussion, in-class presentation, term paper

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Course Schedule

[Please note that a WSU semester is 15 weeks + Thanksgiving/Spring Break. The schedule below does not include the break.]

Dates	Lesson Topic	Assignment	Assessment
Week 1 [dates]	Introduction to Nanoscience and Nanotechnology	N/A	N/A
Week 2 [dates]	Introduction to Nanoscience and Nanotechnology	Homework1: Search and summarize one commercial Nano product	Homework 1 grading
Week 3 [dates]	Structure of Nanoscale Materials I: 0-Dimensional Nanostructures	Quiz 1: 0-D Nanostructure	Quiz grading
Week 4 [dates]	Structure of Nanoscale Materials II: One and two-Dimensional Nanostructures	Homework 2: Nanostructures	Homework 2 grading
Week 5 [dates]	Structure of Nanoscale Materials III : Three-Dimensional Nanostructures and Nanocomposites	Quiz 2: Nanostructures	Quiz grading
Week 6 [dates]	Properties of Nanomaterials I: Surface Area, Surface Effects, and Mechanical Properties	Homework 3:Nano Properties	Homework 3 grading
Week 7 [dates]	Properties of Nanomaterials II: Electronic, Magnetic, Thermal, and Optical Properties	Exam I	Exam I grading
Week 8 [dates]	Fabrication of Nanomaterials and Nanosystems I: General Strategies, Bottom-Up vs. Top-Down Approaches, and Size/Shape Control	Presentation/In-class discussions	Grading on presentation
Week 9 [dates]	Fabrication of Nanomaterials and Nanosystems II: CVD, ALD, Sol-Gel Synthesis, Self-Assembly, Electrospinning, and 3D Printing	Quiz 3: nanofabrication	Quiz Grading
Week 10 [dates]	Characterization of Nanomaterials I: Structural Characterization	N/A	N/A
Week 11 [dates]	Characterization of Nanomaterials I: Structural Characterization	Quiz 4: Nano Characterization	Quiz Grading
Week 12 [dates]	Nanotechnology in Medicine and Biotechnology I: Nanodevices for Molecular Diagnostics and Nanosensors. Flexible Electronics and Wearable Biosensors	Homework 4: Nanobio	Homework grading
Week 13 [dates]	Nanotechnology in Medicine and Biotechnology II: Nanomedicine for Cancer Imaging and Therapy	Quiz 5: NanoBio Application	Quiz grading
Week 14 [dates]	Nanotechnology in Environmental and Energy Applications.	Exam II	Exam II grading
Week 15 [dates]	Final Paper	Final term paper	Term paper grading

 

 

Expectations for Student Effort 

For each hour of lecture equivalent, students should expect to spend a minimum of two hours working outside class on reading, homework, literature review, discussion preparation, and the term paper.

 

Grading [add more lines if necessary]

Assignment Breakdown

Type of Assignment (tests, papers, etc)	Points	Percent of Overall Grade
Midterm exams	200	40
Homework and group discussion	100	20
Term paper	100	25
Quizzes	50	15
Total	450	100
Bonus: active participation in class discussion		Up to +10%

 

Grading Schema

Grade	Percent	Grade	Percent
A	93-100	C	73-76
A-	90-92	C-	70-72
B+	87-89	D+	65-69
B	83-86	D	60-64
B-	80-82	F	0-59
C+	77-79

[Provide information about how grades will be rounded (eg, if 89% earns a B+ and 90% earns an A-, what grade is given to a student with an 89.5?]

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Attendance and Make-Up Policy 

Students are expected to make every reasonable effort to attend all class meetings. If a student is unable to attend class, the student should notify the instructor as soon as possible, explain the reason for the absence, and provide documentation when appropriate. Students are responsible for completing any missed coursework within a reasonable time, if make-up work is permitted. Excessive absences may affect participation/discussion credit.

EXAM MAKE-UP POLICY

Make-up exams will be allowed only in accordance with WSU policies. Make-up exams require documented, university-recognized, or extraordinary circumstances and must be communicated to the instructor as early as possible. When the need for an absence is known in advance, students should notify the instructor preferably at least 7 days before the scheduled exam.

LATE ASSIGNMENT POLICY

Late submission of the term paper or homework will be allowed within 3 days of the due date with a penalty of 10% per day for up to 3 days from the assignment score, unless prior approval is granted by the instructor or university policy applies.

 

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Academic Integrity Statement

You are responsible for reading WSU’s Academic Integrity Policy, which is based on Washington State law. If you cheat in your work in this class you will: 

·         Fail the course.

·         Be reported to the Center for Community Standards.

·         Have the right to appeal the instructor’s decision.

·         Not be able to drop the course or withdraw from the course until the appeals process is finished.  

If you have any questions about what you can and cannot do, consult the instructor.

If you want to ask for a change in the instructor’s decision about academic integrity, use the form at the Center for Community Standards website. You must submit this request within 21 calendar days of the decision.

AI STATEMENT

Students are allowed and encouraged to use modern artificial intelligence (AI) tools such as ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot, Claude, Grok, and related tools during the preparation of assignments, provided that they disclose such use in each assignment. Students remain responsible for the accuracy, originality, and integrity of their submitted work.