Molecular communication options for long range nanonetworks

Nanotechnology is an emerging field of science devoted to provide new opportunities in a vast range of areas. In this paper, different techniques are proposed to enable the long range interconnection of nano-machines, deployed over distances from a few centimeters up to several meters. Long range nano-communications will enable the development of applications that could not be implemented using other techniques. The usage of both short-range nano techniques and long range micro techniques are not practical or are unfeasible for a huge application scope. Biologically inspired research provides promising features to long range communication, such as very low power consumption and biocompatibility. In this paper, several bio-inspired techniques are discussed following a twofold taxonomy divided according to whether a fixed physical link is required for signal propagation or not, i.e., either wired or wireless communication. In the first group, pheromones, spores, pollen and light transduction are discussed. In the second group, neuron-based communication techniques and capillaries flow circuit are explored. All proposed techniques offer a good framework for long-range molecular communication, and their components and test-beds can benefit from different research expertise, e.g., entomology for pheromones, mycology for spores, neuroscience for axons, and biochemistry for capillaries.