Nanotechnology News – Latest Headlines

The drive toward hydrogen vehicles just got shorter

Researchers have revealed a new single-stage method for recharging the hydrogen storage compound ammonia borane. The breakthrough makes hydrogen a more attractive fuel for vehicles and other transportation modes.

March 21, 2011 Read more

Open-source software designed to minimize synthetic biology risks is released

A software package designed to minimize the potential risks of synthetic biology for the nation's defense and security is now available to the gene synthesis industry and synthetic biology community in an open-source format.

March 21, 2011 Read more

Light harvesting offers new vision

Bounce light around in a small enough space and you can magnify its intensity a thousand-fold, maybe more. The secret, says Professor Saulius Juodkazis, is having the right 'landscape' for the lightwaves to bounce around in. This is the principle behind Professor Juodkazis's research, which aims to develop the next generation of super sensors. It's something like catching dust motes in a beam of sunlight, shrunk down to nanoscale and magnified many times over.

March 21, 2011 Read more

Sound makes nanowires blink

When made from semiconductors these nanowires not only transport electric current along their axis but also can very efficiently emit light. Researchers have now combined these two fundamental properties.

March 21, 2011 Read more

New imaging technique provides rapid, high-definition chemistry

With intensity a million times brighter than sunlight, a new synchrotron-based imaging technique offers high-resolution pictures of the molecular composition of tissues with unprecedented speed and quality.

March 20, 2011 Read more

Batteries charge quickly and retain capacity, thanks to new nanostructure

The batteries in Illinois professor Paul Braun's lab look like any others, but they pack a surprise inside. Braun's group developed a three-dimensional nanostructure for battery cathodes that allows for dramatically faster charging and discharging without sacrificing energy storage capacity.

March 20, 2011 Read more

New nanoparticle with unique and versatile structure could potentially change the way tumors are treated

A team of scientists from Princess Margaret Hospital have created an organic nanoparticle that is completely non-toxic, biodegradable and nimble in the way it uses light and heat to treat cancer and deliver drugs.

March 20, 2011 Read more

Graphene study raises question: Is space like a chessboard?

Physicists at UCLA set out to design a better transistor and ended up discovering a new way to think about the structure of space.

March 18, 2011 Read more

Nanotechnology: Engines On

Controlling climate change, abandoning dependency on fossil fuels, and creating the conditions for sustainable development will require as great a transformation as our ancestors accomplished over tens of thousands of years in moving from agrarian to urban societies. "Nanotechnology: Engines On" is a new book about how Nanotechnology is contributing to solve this vital challenges.

March 18, 2011 Read more

Researchers find enhanced and controllable magnetization in unique bismuth ferrite films

Researchers at Berkeley Lab have been able to enhance spontaneous magnetization in special versions of the popular multiferroic material bismuth ferrite. What's more, they can turn this magnetization "on/off" through the application of an external electric field, a critical ability for the advancement of spintronic technology.

March 18, 2011 Read more

New blood analysis chip could lead to disease diagnosis in minutes

A major milestone in microfluidics could soon lead to stand-alone, self-powered chips that can diagnose diseases within minutes. The device, developed by an international team of researchers from the University of California, Berkeley, Dublin City University in Ireland and Universidad de Valparaiso Chile, is able to process whole blood samples without the use of external tubing and extra components.

March 18, 2011 Read more

'Seeding' the next generation of smart materials

Scientists at CSIRO have developed a simple but effective technique for growing and adding value to an exciting new group of smart materials which could be used in areas such as optical sensing and drug storage and delivery.

March 18, 2011 Read more

Electrodeionization technology to reduce cost to process biomass-based chemicals, fuels and treat water

Argonne National Laboratory and Nalco Company, with headquarters in Naperville, Ill., have reached a licensing agreement for an electrodeionization technology that will help significantly reduce the cost of producing clean energy and of the chemicals and water used in industry. The separations technology can process biomass-based feedstocks into biofuels and chemicals.

March 18, 2011 Read more

Scientists use light to join nanoparticles into new materials

Researchers at Argonne National Laboratory shined a low-power laser - similar in intensity to ones used in office laser pointers - into a solution of gold and carbon nanoparticles suspended in water. Unexpectedly, they found that the carbon nanoparticles decomposed or deformed to create a kind of "glue" that enabled the creation of long gold and carbon chains that assembled continuously wherever the laser was pointed.

March 18, 2011 Read more

Greener Nano - Advancing applications and reducing risk

GN11 will address challenges and opportunities for nanotechnology, and delineate how companies can incorporate green nanotechnology into its products and processes. The meeting will focus on two key research areas where reduction to practice has the most potential to significantly advance the field. It will highlight state-of-the-art in materials and characterization challenges, and biological impacts of nanotechnology.

March 18, 2011 Read more

The past, present and future of cancer

Researchers gather to discuss the state of their field and the potential for new treatments.

March 18, 2011 Read more