  The detection of low energy neutrinos ($<$ few tens of MeV) via coherent
nuclear scattering remains a holy grail of sorts in neutrino physics. This
uncontroversial mode of interaction is expected to profit from a sizeable
increase in cross section proportional to neutron number squared in the target
nucleus, an advantageous feature in view of the small probability of
interaction via all other channels in this energy region. A coherent neutrino
detector would open the door to many new applications, ranging from the study
of fundamental neutrino properties to true "neutrino technology".
Unfortunately, present-day radiation detectors of sufficiently large mass ($>$
1 kg) are not sensitive to sub-keV nuclear recoils like those expected from
this channel. The advent of Micropattern Gas Detectors (MPGDs), new
technologies originally intended for use in High Energy Physics, may soon put
an end to this impasse. We present first tests of MPGDs fabricated with
radioclean materials and discuss the approach to assessing their sensitivity to
these faint signals. Applications are reviewed, in particular their use as a
safeguard against illegitimate operation of nuclear reactors. A first
industrial mass production of Gas Electron Multipliers (GEMs) is succinctly
described.
