In our last commentary, we defined categories as a means to identify nano companies. But general talk of science and its applications are all well and good as appetizers. We're Foolish investors, so let's have a look at the entrees.
We'll focus on some of the companies and name three from each sector: one an up-and-coming pure-play nanotech, another an established mega cap incorporating nano solutions into an existing business, and the last a nano pretender.
Nano biotechnology
Four years ago, Advanced Magnetics
Three years ago, Elan
Altair Nanotechnologies
Nano materials
NEC
Alternatively Nanophase Technologies
And again we have Altair Nanotechnologies. Previously, the company was a titanium pigment manufacturer, even though it didn't sell very much of the material. When Altair scientists discovered that the fine residue from processing titanium was of a nanoparticulate size, the company called itself a nanotechnology company. Still, it has not made much of an impact on sales.
Nano electronics
It might seem disingenuous to call Intel
On the other hand, semiconductor wafer maker Kopin
Then there's NVE
Nano tools
Pure plays, mega caps, and even pretenders in the nanotech tool market are hard to discern. For instance, only those in the advanced microscopy industry with atomic-force microscopes are equipped with the necessary tools to read surfaces at the nano level. To date, no single company dominates this field.
Since 2000, Veeco Instruments
Nano miscellany
With some 700 nano patents, IBM
Accelrys Software
These companies represent only a fraction of those involved in nanotechnology. We highlight them here to spark further interest into the nano sector's investment opportunities. As always, there's no substitute for your own due diligence.
Do you dream of a nanotech world, or just the profits this nascent science can reap? Share your views with other Fools on the Nanotechnology discussion board.
Fool contributor Carl Wherrett owns shares of Nanophase Technologies, but John Yelovich has no stake in any of the companies mentioned in this article. You can reach them by email. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.