Nanoelectromechanical systems or NEMS are similar to Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) but smaller. They hold promise to improve abilities to measure small displacements and forces at a molecular scale, and are related to nanotechnology and nanomechanics.

There are two approaches most researchers accept as standard paths to NEMS. The top-down approach can be summarized as “a set of tools designed to build a smaller set of tools”. For example, a millimeter sized factory that builds micrometer sized factories which in turn can build nanometer sized devices. The other approach is the bottom-up approach, and can be thought of as putting together single atoms or molecules until a desired level of complexity and functionality has been achieved in a device. Such an approach may utilize molecular self-assembly or mimic molecular biology systems.

In 2000, the first Very Large Scale Integration (VLSI) NEMS device was demonstrated by researchers from IBM . Its premise was an array of AFM tips which can heat/sense a deformable substrate in order to function as a memory device. In 2007, the International Technical Roadmap for Semiconductors (ITRS contains NEMS Memory as a new entry for the Emerging Research Devices section; an indication that the semiconductor industry is actively considering the technology for implementation in the near (15 years) future.

A combination of these approaches may also be used, in which nanoscale molecules are integrated into a top-down framework. One such example is the carbon nanotube nanomotor.