Electromagnetic radiation and mechanical vibrations of matter interact and exchange energy at the nanoscale. The experimental basis to study such interactions with precision is still being established. Researchers have now designed a silicon 1D Optomechanical crystal built up so that it allows to localize in a stable way both phonons and photons.
Jul 21st, 2014
Read more
Applying just the right amount of tension to a chain of carbon atoms can turn it from a metallic conductor to an insulator, according to Rice University scientists.
Jul 21st, 2014
Read more
A nanostructure made from two tiny gold rods reversibly changes its optical properties when specific DNA molecules are added.
Jul 21st, 2014
Read more
The structure - a layer of graphite flakes and an underlying carbon foam - is a porous, insulating material structure that floats on water. When sunlight hits the structure's surface, it creates a hotspot in the graphite, drawing water up through the material's pores, where it evaporates as steam.
Jul 21st, 2014
Read more
A new study from MIT materials scientists reveals that gold nanoparticles enter cells by taking advantage of a route normally used in vesicle-vesicle fusion, a crucial process that allows signal transmission between neurons. They describe in detail the mechanism by which these nanoparticles are able to fuse with a membrane.
Jul 21st, 2014
Read more
New material traps gases from nuclear fuel better and uses less energy than currently available options.
Jul 20th, 2014
Read more
New technology under development at the University of California, Berkeley, could soon give bomb-sniffing dogs some serious competition.
Jul 20th, 2014
Read moreResearchers are working to make a better battery by making the cathode of sulfur instead of today's lithium-cobalt oxide.
Jul 20th, 2014
Read more
Scientists have uncovered the secret to twisting light at will. It is the latest step in the development of photonics, the faster, more compact and less carbon-hungry successor to electronics.
Jul 18th, 2014
Read more
The U.S. Department of Energy selected a University of Alabama start-up company for an approximate $1.5 million award to refine an alternative material to potentially extract uranium from the ocean.
Jul 18th, 2014
Read more
Over a 150 years since it was first described by Darwin, scientists are finally uncovering the secrets behind the super strength of barnacle glue.
Jul 18th, 2014
Read more
Nearly all electronics require devices called oscillators that create precise frequencies - frequencies used to keep time in wristwatches or to transmit reliable signals to radios. For nearly a century, these oscillators have relied upon quartz crystals to provide a frequency reference, much like a tuning fork is used as a reference to tune a piano. A new approach could ultimately replace the quartz crystal frequency reference - technology in use since the 1920s.
Jul 17th, 2014
Read more
Researchers have demonstrated that an array of novel gold, pillar-bowtie nanoantennas can be used like traditional photographic film to record light for distances that are much smaller than the wavelength of light. A standard optical microscope acts as a 'nanocamera' whereas the pillar-bowtie nanoantennas are the analogous film.
Jul 17th, 2014
Read more
Ultrafast X-ray laser research has provided scientists with a snapshot of a fundamental molecular phenomenon. The finding sheds new light on microscopic electron motion in molecules.
Jul 17th, 2014
Read more
Researchers have developed the first ab initio method for characterizing the properties of 'hot carriers' in semiconductors. This should help clear a major road block to the development of new, more efficient solar cells.
Jul 17th, 2014
Read morePhysicists have created a unique combination of computer models, based on the theory of quantum mechanics, and applied them to a previously well characterised protein found in muscle to develop a new picture of how biomolecules transport and store oxygen.
Jul 17th, 2014
Read more
Subscribe to our Nanotechnology Research News feed
Engage with our Nanotechnology News on Facebook