Shrink Nanotechnology announced today that it has entered into a multi-year development and manufacturing agreement with EV Group, a leader in the nano-imprint lithography process development and equipment manufacturing. The mutually exclusive, two year agreement calls for EV Group and Shrink to develop and manufacture Shrink’s structured substrates for its StemDisc stem cell and cell culturing platform.

“We are pleased to announce Shrink’s relationship with EV Group, a world-class nanotechnology applications developer and equipment manufacturer with a global presence. Over the past two years, Shrink StemDisc product footprint has served as a platform for our entry into the growing cell culturing business. We believe that StemDisc offers unique competitive advantages relative to its peers and are excited as an organization as we roll out our initial products later this year and into the first quarter of next year,” said Mark L. Baum, CEO of Shrink Nanotechnologies, Inc.

Baum added, “Throughout the development process, we have counseled with EV Group and they have assisted us in creating manufacturing solutions that will allow Shrink to move from the prototype stage to the ability make many thousands of devices. As important, our relationship with EV Group has been structured for us to move beyond our initial product, the StemDisc450, as we add new products to the StemDisc family of products.”

Steven Dwyer, EV Group Inc., Vice President and General Manager of North America stated, “Our Agreement with Shrink follows many months of work between Shrink’s StemDisc development group and our staff in Tempe, Arizona. Our team’s dedication to meeting Shrink’s strict fabrication requirements demonstrates the success of our overall effort to develop our process services at our Tempe, AZ facility. This effort will ensure that Shrink has access to many thousands of StemDisc devices as soon as the end of this year, in an efficient and cost effective process, using EV Group’s state-of-the-art Applications Lab This project will hopefully be one of many we work on with Shrink as EV Group leverages its significant intellectual capital in the form of process and equipment development for small and medium sizes business around the world.”

About EV Group

EV Group (EVG) is a world leader in wafer-processing solutions for semiconductor, MEMS and nanotechnology applications. Through close collaboration with its global customers, the company implements its flexible manufacturing model to develop reliable, high-quality, low-cost-of-ownership systems that are easily integrated into customers’ fab lines. Key products include wafer bonding, lithography/nanoimprint lithography (NIL) and metrology equipment, as well as photoresist coaters, cleaners and inspection systems.

In addition to its dominant share of the market for wafer bonders, EVG holds a leading position in NIL and lithography for advanced packaging and MEMS. Along these lines, the company co-founded the EMC-3D consortium in 2006 to create and help drive implementation of a cost-effective through-silicon via (TSV) process for major ICs and MEMS/sensors. Other target semiconductor-related markets include silicon-on-insulator (SOI), compound semiconductor and silicon-based power-device solutions.

Founded in 1980, EVG is headquartered in St. Florian, Austria, and operates via a global customer support network, with subsidiaries in Tempe, Ariz.; Albany, N.Y.; Yokohama and Fukuoka, Japan; Seoul, Korea and Chung-Li, Taiwan. The company’s unique Triple i-approach (invent – innovate – implement) is supported by a vertical integration, allowing EVG to respond quickly to new technology developments, apply the technology to manufacturing challenges and expedite device manufacturing in high volume. More information is available at www.EVGroup.com.

Statements contained herein that are not historical facts may be forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. Forward-looking statements include statements regarding the intent, belief or current expectations of the Company and its management. Such statements are estimates only. Actual results may differ materially from those anticipated in this press release. Such statements reflect management’s current views, are based on certain assumptions and involve risks and uncertainties. Actual results, events, or performance may differ materially from the above forward-looking statements due to a number of important factors, and will be dependent upon a variety of factors, including, but not limited to Shrink’s ability to obtain additional financing and to build and develop markets for Shrink’s biotechnology products such as StemDisc, and specifically those systems and products that are discussed in this press release. These factors should be strongly considered when making a decision to acquire or maintain a financial interest in Shrink, including consulting with a FINRA registered representative prior to making such decision. Shrink undertakes no obligation to publicly update these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that occur after the date hereof or to reflect any change in Shrink’s expectations with regard to these forward-looking statements or the occurrence of unanticipated events. Factors that may impact Shrink’s success are more fully disclosed in Shrink’s most recent public filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Shrink announced today that Shrink’s MetalFluor™ technology was studied, reported on and made the front cover of the November issue of Applied Physics Letters.

Below is a link to the online version of the article:

http://apl.aip.org/resource/1/applab/v97/i20/p203101_s1?isAuthorized=no

The Company’s technology and the work being performed by Dr. Michelle Khine, our scientific founder, continues to gain high praise from leading academic journals. The studies relate to potential commercial applications of this technology. Of note, the article states, “Because we have a range of nanostructure and nanogap sizes, we can ensure that we can achieve huge fluorescent enhancements on our substrate. These advantages show great potential for low-cost biomedical sensing at single molecular levels at physiological concentrations.” The Company believes that this article is further evidence that certain medical diagnostics tests, a multi-billion dollar annual industry in the United States alone, can provide physicians, patients and other medical professionals with better results using lower quantities of specimens using MetalFluor™ technologies.

Shrink intends to soon commercially offer the tools that Dr. Khine has used to achieve the results features in the most recent Applied Physics Letters. The Company intends to provide an additional update next week regarding our initial NanoShrink product and the related NanoShrink line, according to Mark L. Baum, Shrink’s CEO.

About Applied Physic Letters

Applied Physics Letters, published by the American Institute of Physics, features concise, up-to-date reports on significant new findings in applied physics. Emphasizing rapid dissemination of key data and new physical insights, Applied Physics Letters offers prompt publication of new experimental and theoretical papers bearing on applications of physics phenomena to all branches of science, engineering, and modern technology. Content is published online daily, collected into weekly online and printed issues (52 issues per year).

SHRINK NANOTECHNOLOGIES UNVEILS VIDEOS OF STEMDISC 450 PROTOTYPE GROWING HUMAN EMBYRONIC STEM CELLS

– Targets Q1 2011 for Roll-Out of Patent-Pending Biomedical Research Tool–

CARLSBAD, CA – November 5, 2010 – Shrink Nanotechnologies, Inc. (“Shrink”) (OTCBB:INKN), an innovative nanotechnology company developing products and licensing opportunities in the alternative energy industry, medical diagnostics and sensors and biotechnology research and development tools businesses, revealed working videos of its first product offering – the StemDisc450™, a high-yield, low cost, patent-pending cell culturing biomedical research tool. Shrink expects to begin offering this product for sale in the first quarter of 2011 or sooner.

“Tissue engineering and cell culturing are high growth areas of the biotechnology field. This trend is being fueled as the idea of “personalized medicine” – or “therapeutics and treatments made for you” – becomes a reality. And as the personalized medicine movement grows, biotech and pharmaceutical companies are focusing on the promise of novel research, especially new cellular-based therapies, to help combat cancer, spinal cord injuries, diabetes, Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease, and many more. StemDisc is a platform for Shrink to offer a growing suite of products that will address an important spectrum of the needs within cellular and tissue engineering technologies and tools,” stated Mark L. Baum, CEO of Shrink Nanotechnologies, Inc.

“We are pleased to reveal a working StemDisc450 prototype, a device actually developing HESCs (human embryonic stem cells),” added Baum. “Shrink is exploring opportunities with established stem cell R&D companies for potential strategic partnerships for the sale and marketing of StemDisc™ products. Our primary target market is the more than 3,000 stem cell research labs and 15,000 biomedical laboratories operating in the United States.”

The videos are available by following this link:

http://www.shrinknano.com/stem-cell-culturing/

About StemDisc

StemDisc is designed to improve embryoid body (EB) formation of stem cells at a higher rate and efficiency over current EB formation methods. The platform can be used to grow and differentiate human and animal single cells, human embryonic stem cells (HESCs) and induced pluri-potent stem cells (IPSCs). Versions of StemDisc’s unique honeycomb-like well will be offered in different diameter and depth depending on the type of cell and application. Each round bottom “microwell” is capable of making 800 to 1,000 EBs, increasing the flexibility of use for researchers to achieve optimum EB formation with high reliability compared to legacy methods. A unique feature of the StemDisc product line is the optical transparency of the surface that the cells rest in. The StemDisc polymer offers amazing transparency, providing the cell biologist with the ability to see more of what she is doing as she completes her research. StemDisc’s five micron walls between microwells virtually assure a clean transfer of the biological material into a well – in a few easy steps, helping to further lower costs and accelerate the time to publish results of potentially life-saving studies. If you are interested in receiving more information about StemDisc, please contact us by visiting www.shrinknano.com.

About Shrink Nanotechnologies, Inc.
Shrink Nanotechnologies, Inc. is a one-of-a-kind FIGA™ organization, which focuses on leveraging contributions from experts in Finance, Industry, Government and Academia. Operating as a high-technology development-stage company, Shrink owns and develops proprietary and patent-pending nano-sized technologies, components and product systems. The Company’s unique NanoShrink™ material is a pre-stressed polymer which is used in a patent pending manufacturing platform with numerous applications in the solar energy, human and animal diagnostics, and biotechnology research and development tools industries. For more information, please visit www.shrinknano.com.
See also:

http://www.shrinksolar.com/blog/

http://www.shrinknano.com/products/product-tools

http://www.shrinknano.com/products/product-diagnostics

http://www.shrinknano.com/tech

http://www.shrinknano.com/tr35-a-children%E2%80%99s-toy-inspires-a-cheap-easy-production-method-for-high-tech-diagnostic-chips

Contact:
For Shrink Nanotechnologies
Mark L. Baum, Esq.
760-804-8844 x205

Statements contained herein that are not historical facts may be forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. Forward-looking statements include statements regarding the intent, belief or current expectations of the Company and its management. Such statements are estimates only. Actual results may differ materially from those anticipated in this press release. Such statements reflect management’s current views, are based on certain assumptions and involve risks and uncertainties. Actual results, events, or performance may differ materially from the above forward-looking statements due to a number of important factors, and will be dependent upon a variety of factors, including, but not limited to Shrink’s ability to obtain additional financing and to build and develop markets for Shrink’s biotechnology technologies and products. These factors should be strongly considered when making a decision to acquire or maintain a financial interest in Shrink, including consulting with a FINRA registered representative prior to making such decision. Shrink undertakes no obligation to publicly update these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that occur after the date hereof or to reflect any change in Shrink’s expectations with regard to these forward-looking statements or the occurrence of unanticipated events. Factors that may impact Shrink’s success are more fully disclosed in Shrink’s most recent public filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

by David Pescovitz

Scientific American presents four toys that inspired innovations in science and technology. For example, University of Pittsburgh physicist Jeremy Levy had an Etch A Sketch in mind when developing a new way to fabricate nanoscale transistors. And UC Irvine biomedical engineer Michelle Khine used Shrinky Dink technology to make microfluidic systems for “labs on a chip.

From Scientific American:
“Khine knew that when Shrinky Dinks condense, any ink lines on the plastic become raised–and that’s precisely what she sought in a microfluidics mold. She bought Shrinky Dink plastic designed for computer printer use, printed a pattern, and baked it for several minutes in her toaster oven. The results exceeded her expectations. Instead of just making molds, Khine ultimately developed a technique to make microfluidics chips directly from Shrinky Dink plastic. “It actually worked really well,” Khine says, well enough to found a company based on that basic premise. To create products such as stem cell research devices and solar cells, Shrink Nanotechnologies has developed a new material that trumps the toy’s abilities. Says Khine: “Shrinky Dinks shrink by 60 percent, but our new polymer shrinks 95 percent. And the properties shrink more consistently.”

OPTISOL SOLAR CONCENTRATOR BASED ON NANOTECHNOLOGY

Shrink Nanotechnologies Inc., is a publicly traded nanotechnology company (OTCBB: INKN) involved in developing products and licensing opportunities in the medical diagnostics field, solar energy production, environmental sensors and biotechnology research and development tools businesses. The company’s renewable energy subsidiary, Shrink Solar, LLC, has recently formed its renewable energy team. This team includes academic and industry collaborators, including Michelle Khine, the scientific founder of the Shrink nano-technology platform; and Sayantani Ghosh, assistant professor, School of Natural Sciences, University of California.

The renewable energy team will focus on product development and optimization, all in an effort to achieve commercialization of the company’s OptiSol solar concentrator.

The OptiSol solar concentrator is a nanotechnology-based plastic solar concentrator. It falls into a class of devices known as luminescent solar concentrators. It is made from layers of the company’s NanoShrink material, nanocrystal “doped” glass and/or plexiglas (poly(methyl methacrylate) [PMMA]). The company has also worked with environmentally friendly corn-based plastics (polylactic acid [PLA]) and has integrated various types of quantum dot semiconductor nanoparticles into this layered structure. The manufacturing process differs slightly depending on the application. For example, “windows” require transparent panes whereas “siding” can be translucent or opaque. The company has also designed unique light trapping and light wave guiding mechanisms into the Optisol system.

Silicon converts the near infrared wavelengths into electricity more efficiently than the UV-Visible wavelengths. However, sunlight is mostly in the UV-Visible spectral region. Sunlight and silicon do not match perfectly, producing heat. The OptiSol solar concentrator makes them match: regular sunlight enters the concentrator and is shifted, emerging as silicon-optimal light. Certain iterations of the materials are transparent and hence there is possibility of light getting transmitted through the concentrator surface rather than getting reflected. There may be some reflections at the Photo Voltaic (PV) Cell- Concentrator interface but total internal reflection effectively traps and re-circulates the light within the device which indicates the ability of the device to absorb diffused light and off angle light to some degree. As a result, the loss of the total spectrum as heat or reflection is minimized to a great extent.

The device basically works on two principles namely concentration of the incident light onto a small amount of silicon and shifting of sunlight to illuminate the silicon cell with a better spectrum. The concentration of a large amount of incident light onto a large concentrator surface and then transferring it to a small photovoltaic (PV) cell proves to be an optimal solution since the cost of a plastic OptiSol solar concentrator is much less expensive than the cost of a silicon solar cell which drives down the system’s total cost. Silicon has much higher external quantum efficiency for near infrared (NIR) spectral region than for ultraviolet (UV)-visible region. Shifting visible sunlight to NIR allows the optical energy to be converted more efficiently without any changes to the PV cell itself. The OptiSol solar concentrator offers a number of advantages.

Concentrating solar power systems typically use mirrors, lenses and tracking devices to focus sunlight onto a small photovoltaic device. The OptiSol concentrator however does not employ any of these optical elements. It acts more like a fiberoptic “sheet,” trapping and guiding sunlight to a side-mounted PV cell. Since this design can be achieved using plastic rather than glass, the devices tend to be low-cost, lightweight and durable. While the other competing technologies use short-lived fluorescent dyes; and the materials used in this concentrator have very desirable life spans.

Talking to the Technical Insights team, Mark L. Baum, CEO of Shrink Nanotechnologies said, “One of the biggest problems we ran into was the degrading of our photovoltaics. If we did not solve this problem, the lifetime of our concentrator would have been measured in minutes. Thanks to the efforts of our research and development team, that lifetime has been extended almost indefinitely. While the concentrator itself is nearly indestructible under day-to-day conditions, the actual silicon PV cells are rather fragile. While we have resolved this issue, constantly breaking paper-thin panels was frustrating.”

The major application of the concentrator would be in functionalizing nearly every exterior surfaces of a home or building. The roof, windows, doors, siding, and so on, can all be transformed into power generators, with minimal aesthetic impact. Smaller scale applications would cater to consumer electronics, military devices and recreational markets. According to Baum, the largest market Nanotech Alert opportunity is in a roof-top application and it, like the siding applications, would be an opaque product. Their rooftop application can be completely integrated with the underlying ancillary systems required to make a traditional flat panel silicon PV system work. However, the company also envisions a day when the surfaces (windows and other plastic appendages) of a battery powered vehicle will be functionalized, allowing a commuter to re-fuel his or her vehicle with incident solar light during the work day.

Shrink is funding academic laboratories under a licensing and research agreement with the Regents of the University of California (UC). Through agreements with the Regents of the UC, the company holds exclusive license (for all fields of use) to the core patents related it’s solar concentrator technology. Shrink has also developed additional applications based on the original patent applications and is thus continuing to grow its own IP portfolio. In the near future, the company plans to build ultra low-cost, upgradable and flexible solar concentrators, and will integrate products based on this technology into clean buildings and other nonfunctional surfaces, dramatically impacting our dependence on non-renewable sources of energy.

Summary

Oils are extracted from below ground as a feedstock for plastic at the moment, among other things this is a finite resource. Oils extracted from potatoes and algae can be sustained as long as the stock being acquired is not from the food chain. The high price of mineral oil would attract new natural oil producing farmers.

Analysis

If oil does reach a high, (above US $95 a barrel) and continues on an upward spiral there may not be an alternative, other than grow the stock.

Depleting resources will create high prices and this will push innovation. Take plastic, which is used in many applications including food packaging, car parts and building materials, it could be replaced by other material such as ceramics and wood but plastic is an ideal material due to malleable and flexible properties and in some cases its ability to be recycled. So to simply replace one raw material which has been used for years, for another which can be extracted from algae would not be an issue, in fact there would be better control of pricing, due to sustained supply. The other important question is whether there be enough raw material to to produce Bio Plastic, and if the raw material from algae and potatoes can be use in other product such as Bio fuel’s.

Taking algae alone there are many research efforts in the fuel area. The New Biopalstc Association has been launched to catalyze the research and market to the public. Companies such as Shrink Nanotechnologies is one of several companies that is using bioplastics to find a new way of making devices that will minimize the use of increasingly scarce rare metals for its solar concentrator. So the future for bioplastic would be one of organic growth.

Future Tech

Some innovations are well past the drawing board stage, but not quite ready to roll into full production. These are some that should be making the news within the coming year.

Shrink Nanotechnologies, Inc., Carlsbad, California produces a shrinkable plastic film. “One for this film is building PV solar cells, but not the type that are normally envisioned. Our technology involves solar concentrators,” Mark Baum, ceo says.

Ms. Sayantani Ghosh, PhD, assistant professor of Physics at UC Merced and consultant to Shrink Nanotechnologies explains that this technology is a completely unique process.

“In a solar cell you take sunlight, and convert it into electricity,” she says. “What we are doing is taking sunlight and converting it into light of a different colour. This different coloured light then falls onto existing silicon PV. The colour of the light is set to the PV’s preferred colour. It is like straining the sunlight into colours that will enhance the efficiency of the silicon.”

“Think about a window. Instead of glass, the surface of the pane would be a very think solar concentrator between two layers of glass. The light of day will hit that solar concentrator. By using crystalline silicon around the edges of the pane, that silicon would absorb the photons coming off the quantum dots in the film. This would be absorbed into the system and ultimately be turned into electricity that could be used. This same technology can apply to home siding and roof shingles. It’s all about functionalising the surfaces of the buildings that people live and work in,” Baum says.

By Terrence O’Brien

Do you remember Shrinky Dinks? That’s okay. Neither do most of the Switched staffers — the bunch of whippersnappers they are [Ed Note: Not true. We love them.]. The once-popular, plastic arts-and-craft set, which first hit the scene in 1973, allowed children to color and cut out shapes on a thin sheet of plastic. When the shapes were put in the oven, they would shrink to one-third of their original width, becoming thick and rigid. Well, it turns out that making tacky charms is just scratching the surface of this toy’s potential.

Back in 2006, University of California at Irvine assistant professor Michelle Khine couldn’t afford to outfit her lab with the $100,000 worth of equipment needed to create microfluidic chips. Frustrated and impatient, she turned to an updated version of Shrinky Dinks — one that lets you run the aforementioned plastic sheets through a standard inkjet or laser printer. Needing the chips to create medical diagnostic tests, she took a shot in the dark by printing her chip designs on Shrinky Dinks, and then baking them. When the sheets shrunk, the ink clumped together and formed tiny ridges. She then used the minis as molds for the circuits she made out of a flexible polymer called PDMS.

To her (and everybody else’s) surprise, the cheapo chips worked. They’re not as accurate as traditional silicon chips, but, according to Khine, they work for most applications, cost less than your average fast-food combo meal, and take only a few minutes to make. What, a few years ago, was just a quirky experiment has been more successful than anyone could have possibly imagined. Since that fateful day, Khine has successfully used the chips to grow stem cells in heart muscle, and she even hopes to use them in the field to diagnose diseases like HIV.

Encouraged by her success, Khine has started experimenting with the process. She’s tried layering multiple sheets, scratching out designs with a syringe instead of printing with ink, and even printing with metal — which could potentially be used to build cheap and efficient solar panels.

Just remember this the next time you laugh at that one friend who refuses to throw out her Easy-Bake Oven. That cardboard-flavored-brownie maker might just be used to cure cancer.

by Cory Doctrow

CCrawford sez, “Michelle Khine couldn’t afford the $100,000 fabrication gear to make micro-fluidic chips needed for chip-based diagnostic tests. She turned to Shrinky-Dinks and found a new way to solve the problem.”

To test her idea, she whipped up a channel design in AutoCAD, printed it out on Shrinky Dink material using a laser printer, and stuck the result in a toaster oven. As the plastic shrank, the ink particles on its surface clumped together, forming tiny ridges. That was exactly the effect Khine wanted. When she poured a flexible polymer known as PDMS onto the surface of the cooled Shrinky Dink, the ink ridges created tiny channels in the surface of the polymer as it hardened. She pulled the PDMS away from the Shrinky Dink mold, and voilà: a finished microfluidic device that cost less than a fast-food meal.

Khine began using the chips in her experiments, but she didn’t view her toaster-oven hack as a breakthrough right away. “I thought it would be something to hold me over until we got the proper equipment in place,” she says. But when she published a short paper about her technique, she was floored by the response she got from scientists all over the world. “I had no idea people were going to be so interested,” Khine says.

Shana Leonard, Editor

Biomedical engineering isn’t exactly child’s play—unless you’re Michelle Khine. The 32-year-old engineer drew inspiration from a popular low-tech children’s toy to fabricate a sophisticated yet inexpensive microfluidic device that demonstrates the power of creative thinking.

The field of microfluidics has attracted widespread interest in the medical device sector. Following the ubiquitous biomedical trend of miniaturization, microfluidic systems have tremendous potential in next-generation clinical diagnostic and lab-on-a-chip devices. Unfortunately, the diminutive devices can also come with significant overhead.

Primarily employing precision etching or lithography techniques on silicon substrates, microfluidic chip fabrication can require equipment sporting a six-figure price tag. Khine discovered this harsh reality when embarking on microfluidics research in her first lab at the University of California’s Merced campus several years ago. And she realized that she had to get creative if she wanted to pursue her research. Taking a stroll down memory lane led Khine to a toy she enjoyed in her youth: Shrinky Dinks. Consisting of plastic sheets fashioned into shapes, Shrinky Dinks are designed to be decorated and then placed into an oven for two minutes. During that time, the plastic shrinks to roughly 1/3 its original size and becomes nine times thicker.

A seemingly magical miracle to children, the toy could serve, Khine thought, as a simple platform for microfluidic systems. “I thought if I could print out the [designs] at a certain resolution and then make them shrink, I could make channels the right size for microfluidics,” Khine told MIT’s Technology Review, which named her a 2009 Young Innovator.

Her hypothesis was correct. The Shrinky Dinks proved to be a sufficient material on which Khine could print an AutoCADgenerated channel design. When heated in an oven, the ink clumped and formed ridges. Upon cooling of the plastic, Khine poured the polymer PDMS on the surface of the toy. As it hardened, the ink ridges created minute channels in the surface of the flexible polymer. Removing the PMDS from the Shrinky Dink mold yielded the final product. Since her initial prototypes, Khine has moved on to etching the channel design directly in the Shrinky Dink using syringe tips, a technique that produces the narrow but deep channels desired for microfluidics.

Although Khine admits there are some flaws in her method, it is a truly unique and functional approach to microfluidic system design. Using a children’s toy that is sold in packs at the store for typically less than $20, Khine is able to produce—in mere minutes—a unique and functional microfluidic system. This kind of innovative thinking and determination is what spurs true progress. Researchers, designers, and engineers should follow Khine’s example and problem solve using knowledge gleaned outside of the lab as well. After all, inspiration can come from anywhere, and, as cliché as it sounds, it’s important to think outside the box. Unless, like Khine, you find inspiration inside the toy box.