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A critical issue to homeland security and defense is the development of broad range collectors and detectors of weapons of mass destruction. Nanoscience and nanotechnology are increasingly important in the area of such separation and detection. This article presents an overview of the research at the Forensic Science Center at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory to develop nanostructured materials for applications to forensics and homeland security. Among the many types of nanomaterials reviewed are silica-based materials, molecular imprinted polymers, and silicon platforms. The main aim of the article is to optimize these new classes of materials for the collection concentration and detection of chemical weapons or other related compounds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]