Research & Development World

By Karen McNulty Walsh The search is on to discover new states of matter, and possibly new ways of encoding, manipulating and transporting information. One goal is to harness materials’ quantum properties for communications that go beyond what’s possible with conventional electronics. Topological insulators — materials that act mostly as insulators but carry electric current…

by Avery Luedtke, Ph.D., Senior Scientist, MilliporeSigma, 6000 N. Teutonia Ave., Milwaukee, WI 53209 Perovskite Solar Cells Perovskite solar cells (PSCs) are photovoltaic (PV) devices containing a light-absorbing layer that has the general formula AMX3,[1] and a crystal structure similar to the mineral perovskite (CaTiO3). The advantageous electronic and optical properties of perovskites have contributed…

Brain aneurysms affect about one in every 50 Americans and can lead to serious medical emergencies, including stroke, brain damage and death if they burst. Existing treatment options are limited, and often invasive, and surgical outcomes can vary widely from person to person. But medical practitioners may be able to improve existing treatment methods and…

By varying the energy and dose of tightly focused electron beams, researchers have demonstrated the ability to both etch away and deposit high-resolution nanoscale patterns on two-dimensional layers of graphene oxide. The 3D additive/subtractive “sculpting” can be done without changing the chemistry of the electron beam deposition chamber, providing the foundation for building a new…

Superclean Glass has developed a new technology that has potential to reduce the cost of solar energy: New generation of electrostatic based self-cleaning technology for increasing energy yield from dusty solar panels. The original concept was used by NASA to prevent Martian dust deposition on solar panels of the Mars rovers, where the screen of…

Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Ames Laboratory have discovered a metal-free carbon-based catalyst that has the potential to be much less expensive and more efficient for many industrial concerns, including manufacturing of bio and fossil fuels, electrocatalysis and fuel cells. At their most fundamental, these industry processes involve splitting strong chemical bonds, like…

Superclean Glass has developed a new technology that has potential to reduce the cost of solar energy: New generation of electrostatic based self-cleaning technology for increasing energy yield from dusty solar panels. The original concept was used by NASA to prevent Martian dust deposition on solar panels of the Mars rovers, where the screen of…

By Karen K Dunlap Scientists at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the University of Tennessee designed and demonstrated a method to make carbon-based materials that can be used as electrodes compatible with a specific semiconductor circuitry. The work bridges nanoscale 3D printing and widely available processes for complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor, or CMOS, technologies to enable biosensors…

The U.S. Air Force awarded Southwest Research Institute a $12 million contract to redesign a critical B-1B Lancer system to help extend the aircraft’s service life. The B-1B is a long-range, supersonic bomber, which has served the Air Force since 1986. SwRI engineers will redesign the aircraft’s Fuel Center of Gravity Management System (FCGMS), which…