Testing and manufacturing high-tech goods requires stages that can achieve 'nanometers in milliseconds.'
Karl Spanner, Physik Instrumente GmbH
Decades ago, few people believed that industry would ever need to move macroscopic bodies by nanometers. Today it is a necessity.
One example is in data storage. With the constant need for more storage capacity in smaller packages, drive components are shrinking, and structures are becoming denser. Cost-effective manufacturing and testing of these components requires nanopositioning solutions.
Fast nanometer precision exists and is becoming increasingly important. New solutions will require the combination of smart structures and systems, active trajectory control and new control algorithms.