Have you ever wondered how scientists can make medicine target specific cells in your body, how sunscreen works to protect your skin, or how your phone screen can be so thin and responsive?
That’s where nanotechnology engineers come in handy!
These technologies rely on materials and structures engineered at a tiny scale that you cannot see with your eyes, sometimes 10,000 times smaller than a human hair!
The exciting part is that materials behave differently at the nanoscale! Their color, strength, electrical conductivity and chemical reactivity can change. That gives engineers new ways to solve problems. It also allows engineers to harvest quantum properties that are otherwise unattainable.
They use chemistry, physics, biology, math and apply engineering principles to design materials for new technologies. Nanotechnology engineering is the application of multiple engineering disciplines at the nanoscale.
Nanotechnology engineers may develop lighter and stronger materials for airplanes, improve batteries using nanomaterials, create new electronic components or design tiny sensors to detect harmful substances in water.
Nanotechnology engineering is about understanding and controlling matter at a very small scale to create things that have a big impact on our lives and in society!
Why Nanotechnology Engineering?
Nanotechnology Engineering is a multidisciplinary engineering field which combines concepts from chemical engineering, electrical engineering and chemistry. It also draws from and benefits areas such as materials science, physics, biology, quantum physics and medicine.
In Canada’s leading and first accredited Nanotechnology Engineering program, you will have a broad area of study that covers many subjects, from biology to coding. You will work with materials far too small to see with the naked eye. You will build both theoretical understanding and hands‑on experience through coursework, laboratory work, and co‑op placements. Students will work in a dedicated clean room with multimillion-dollar cutting-edge equipment for hands-on experiential learning.
Nanotechnology engineers are at the forefront of research and development related to a cluster of technologies that harnesses the unique properties and functions of nanoscale systems. Nanotechnology impacts many industries, ranging from medical to pharmaceuticals, electronics to automotive, and communications.
Check out our state-of-the-art labs! Our nanotechnology engineering undergraduate students have exclusive access to our multi-million-dollar clean room!
Where do our graduates work?
Careers that are alumni are engaged in:
- Pixel Development Engineer
- Optical Display Engineer
- Senior Project Manager
- Application Engineer
- Hardware Engineer
- Test and Process Engineer
- Product and Marketing Manager
- Professor
- IP Litigation Lawyer
- Process Development Engineer
Specializations
A specialization is available to interested students but not required. There are four specializations in the Nanotechnology Engineering program.
They are: Nanobiosystems, Nanoelectronics, Nanofabrication, and Nanomaterials.
Sample first-year courses
This is a sample schedule. Courses are subject to change.
| 1A Term | 1B Term |
|---|---|
|
MATH117 - Calculus 1 for Engineering NE100 - Introduction to Nanotechnology Engineering NE109 - Societal and Environmental Impacts of Nanotechnology NE111 - Introduction to Programming for Engineers NE112 - Linear Algebra for Nanotechnology Engineers NE121 - Chemical Principles |
MATH119 - Calculus 2 for Engineering NE110 - Introduction to Nanomaterials Health Risks NE113 - Introduction to Computational Methods NE125 - Introduction to Materials Science and Engineering NE131 - Physics for Nanotechnology Engineering NE140 - Linear Circuits |
Co-op for Nanotechnology Engineering students
Through the University of Waterloo's world-renowned co-op program, you will gain paid work experience relevant to your field of study during your degree. We'll guide you through every step of the employment process—from crafting résumés to preparing for interviews—while giving you the freedom to explore different roles and industries. It’s a practical way to discover what suits you best, strengthen your professional skills, and connect your coursework to real-world practice. Altogether, it sets you up with a meaningful edge when you graduate.
From your very first year, you’ll typically rotate between academic terms and four‑month work placements, blending classroom learning with on‑the‑job experience. You can choose to return to the same employer for multiple terms to deepen your expertise and take on more responsibility, or you can branch out and work with different organizations to broaden your perspective.
| Year | September to December (Fall) | January to April (Winter) | May to August (Spring) |
|---|---|---|---|
| First | Study | Study | Co-op |
| Second | Study | Co-op | Study |
| Third | Co-op | Co-op | Study |
| Fourth | Study | Co-op | Co-op |
| Fifth | Study | Study | - |
Your first work term will be at the end of first year. Learn more about co-op.
News
NE alumna Kiara Bruggeman uses nanotechnology to create groundbreaking stroke treatments
NE alumna Kiara Bruggeman (NE BASc and CHEM BSc ’12, double degree) is engineering groundbreaking treatments that could help stroke victims essentially regrow parts of their brains. Her research team at Australian National University (ANU) is creating materials that can be used to tell stem cells to start behaving like brain cells in order to replace stroke-damaged tissue.
NE Alumni Profile: Alisha Bhanji, Class of 2020
Just last spring, Alisha Bhanji (BASc 2020) was working with her Capstone Design team to finalize the liquid crystal technology behind their fourth-year design project. Now, as Co-Founder & Chief Engineering Officer of Scope Photonics, Alisha and her colleagues are taking it to market via their startup company.
Their camera lenses can instantly, and without digital cropping or physical movement, adjust their optical behaviour to take the perfect photo in any condition. With a potential market that stretches far beyond smartphones, their technology shows great promise. They’ve accomplished a rapid series of exciting achievements, including several big-name awards and unique opportunities, that have them poised for success.
NE alumni win global runner-up prize in James Dyson Award competition
NE alumni startup Scope won the International Runner-up prize in the 2020 James Dyson Award, a global competition for student inventors.
