Nanotechnology News – Latest Headlines

Molecular modeling may accelerate the development of new organic materials for electronics

Scientists have developed a faster way of creating molecular models by using machine learning. The new models dramatically accelerate the screening of potential new organic materials for electronics and they could also be useful in other areas of materials science research.

Mar 22nd, 2019

Chemicals induce dipoles to damp plasmons

A study finds that molecules alter gold nanoparticles' electronic properties.

Mar 22nd, 2019

Optical tweezers combine with X-rays to enable analysis of crystals in liquids

Scientists have developed a new technique that combines the power of nanoscale 'tractor beams' with high-powered X-rays, enabling them to position and manipulate crystals in solution that are not in contact with substrates.

Mar 22nd, 2019

4D-printed materials can be stiff as wood or soft as sponge

Engineers' unique smart materials change shape as temperatures change.

Mar 22nd, 2019

Nanomembrane could help regrow tissue lost to periodontal disease

Researchers report development of a membrane that helps periodontal tissue regenerate when implanted into the gums of rats.

Mar 21st, 2019

Making solar cells is like buttering bread

Formamidinium lead iodide is a very good material for photovoltaic cells, but getting the correct and stable crystal structure is a challenge. The techniques developed so far have produced rather poor results. Researchers have now cracked it - using a blade and a dipping solution.

Mar 21st, 2019

In a new quantum simulator, light behaves like a magnet

Physicists propose a new 'quantum simulator': a laser-based device that can be used to study a wide range of quantum systems. Studying it, the researchers have found that photons can behave like magnetic dipoles at temperatures close to absolute zero, following the laws of quantum mechanics. The simple simulator can be used to better understand the properties of complex materials under such extreme conditions.

Mar 21st, 2019

Engineers demonstrate metamaterials that can solve equations

This 'photonic calculus' would work by encoding parameters into the properties of an incoming electromagnetic wave and sending it through a metamaterial device; once inside, the device's unique structure would manipulate the wave in such a way that it would exit encoded with the solution to a pre-set integral equation for that arbitrary input.

Mar 21st, 2019

Magnetic micro-boats

Researchers have created magnetic microparticles, with a newly developed method, that could pave the way for building micro-motors or guiding drugs in the human body to a target, like a tumor. The preparation of such structures as well as their remote-control can be regulated using magnetic fields and therefore can find application in an array of domains.

Mar 21st, 2019

Materials could delay frost up to 300 times longer than existing anti-icing coatings

Scientists describe for the first time several unique properties of materials known as phase-switching liquids, or PSLs, that hold promise as next-generation anti-icing materials. PSLs can delay ice and frost formation up to 300 times longer than state-of-the-art coatings being developed in laboratories.