Nanotechnology News – Latest Headlines

The onset of electrical resistance

Researchers at the Max-Born-Institute, Berlin, Germany, observed the extremely fast onset of electrical resistance in a semiconductor by following electron motions in real-time.

December 16, 2011 Read more

NIST announces broad call for research grant proposals in science and engineering

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has announced that it is accepting proposals for funding for a broad range of potential research projects and related activities that support the institute's measurement science and engineering programs.

December 16, 2011 Read more

Fifth issue of Nanotech Insights newsletter available

The October 2011 issue of Nanotech Insights, a quarterly newsletter dedicated to the field of nanoscience and nanotechnology, is now available from CKMNT.

December 16, 2011 Read more

Free podcasts on DNA nanotechnology

Boise State University recently began a campaign, Beyond The Blue, to bring deserved awareness to their excellent academic programs. As part of this campaign, the University has launched a series of podcasts discussing many fascinating topics and updates on current work. Here are a few examples of BSU faculty's work on DNA nanotechnology.

December 16, 2011 Read more

Discovery of a 'dark state' could mean a brighter future for solar energy

The efficiency of conventional solar cells could be significantly increased, according to new research on the mechanisms of solar energy conversion.

December 15, 2011 Read more

Nanotechnology single-cell monitoring technique helps understanding how cancer spreads

A technique that lets researchers monitor single cancer cells in real time as they float in liquid could help doctors study the breakaway tumor cells that cause metastasis. Metastasis is the process of the disease spreading through the body.

December 15, 2011 Read more

Researchers demonstrate an almost noiseless nanomechanical microwave amplifier

Physicists at Aalto University, Finland, have shown how a nanomechanical oscillator can be used for detection and amplification of feeble radio waves or microwaves. A measurement using such a tiny device, resembling a miniaturized guitar string, can be performed with the least possible disturbance.

December 15, 2011 Read more

Adjustable protein microlenses made by femtosecond laser direct writing

Researchers from Jilin University (China) have described a new approach to the production of adjustable microlenses made from protein gels.

December 15, 2011 Read more

Imec, Polyera and Solvay set 8.3% efficiency record for organic solar cell with inverted device architecture

Imec, Polyera and international chemical group Solvay have achieved a new world-record efficiency of 8.3% for polymer-based single junction organic solar cells in an inverted device stack. These excellent performance results represent a crucial step towards successful commercialization of organic photovoltaic cells.

December 15, 2011 Read more

Surprising discovery of a new way to tune and enhance thermal conductivity

The surprising discovery of a new way to tune and enhance thermal conductivity - a basic property generally considered to be fixed for a given material - gives engineers a new tool for managing thermal effects in smart phones and computers, lasers and a number of other powered devices.

December 14, 2011 Read more

Optical fiber innovation could make future optical computers a 'SNAP'

'Whispering gallery' stores tiny packets of light for possible optical computing applications.

December 14, 2011 Read more

Breaking the far-field diffraction limit in optical nanopatterning

New advance could lead to even smaller features in the constant quest for more compact, faster microchips.

December 14, 2011 Read more

Nanotechnologien im Alltag - kleine Teilchen, grosse Fragen

Am 1. Dezember 2011 fand in Stuttgart ein Kongress zu Verbraucheraspekten im Umgang mit Nanotechnologien stat: Nano-Dialog Baden-Wuerttemberg - kleine Teilchen, grosse Fragen.

December 14, 2011 Read more

Twisting molecules by brute force: A top-down approach

Some molecules have unique and technologically useful optical properties; the medicinal properties of drugs depend on the direction of the twist; and within us twisted DNA can interact with different proteins. This twisting is called chirality and researchers at Case Western Reserve University have found they can use a macroscopic brute force to impose and induce a twist in an otherwise non-chiral molecule.

December 14, 2011 Read more

Cotton fabric cleans itself when exposed to ordinary sunlight

Scientists are reporting development of a new cotton fabric that does clean itself of stains and bacteria when exposed to ordinary sunlight.

December 14, 2011 Read more

Elektronen sichtbar gemacht: Physikern gelingt Einblick in molekulare Halbleiter

Einem Team von Physikern ist der Nachweis gelungen, dass auch die Elektronen in grossen Molekuelen - beispielsweise in organischen Halbleitern - mit hoher Praezision durch einzelne Orbitale beschrieben werden koennen.

December 14, 2011 Read more