Wearables Sweat the Small Stuff
When people sweat, they unknowingly release a wide range of chemicals that can noninvasively inform clinicians on anything from stress hormone levels to glucose. But it’s hard for researchers to glean this information — unless you sweat a lot. Emerging wearable devices using stimulant gels have provided a way to induce sweat locally on the…
Molecular Evolution: How the Building Blocks of Life May Form in Space
In a laboratory experiment that mimics astrophysical conditions, with cryogenic temperatures in an ultrahigh vacuum, scientists used an electron gun to irradiate thin sheets of ice covered in basic molecules of methane, ammonia and carbon dioxide. These simple molecules are ingredients for the building blocks of life. The experiment tested how the combination of electrons…
Researchers Study “Mismatch” Between Lab-Designed Nanomaterials and Nature’s Complexity
Cells and the machinery they encase are soft matter — shape-shifting multicomponent systems with an overwhelming richness of forms. But, these squishy packages are hard targets for potential therapeutic and diagnostic applications that exploit nanomaterials, from quantum dots that light up specific tissues to nanocages carrying drug payloads. The problem, according to a team of…
Course Set to Overcome Mismatch Between Lab-Designed Nanomaterials and Nature’s Complexity
Diamonds Feel the Heat
When power generators like windmills and solar panels transfer electricity to homes, businesses and the power grid, they lose almost 10 percent of the generated power. To address this problem, scientists are researching new diamond semiconductor circuits to make power conversion systems more efficient. A team of researchers from Japan successfully fabricated a key circuit…
A Peek at the Thermoelectric Properties of Tin Selenide Nanostructures
Single crystal tin selenide (SnSe) is a semiconductor and an ideal thermoelectric material; it can directly convert waste heat to electrical energy or be used for cooling. When a group of researchers from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio, saw the graphene-like layered crystal structure of SnSe, they had one of those magical “aha!”…
The View From Inside Supersonic Combustion
In a jet engine, the flow of air is slowed down to increase the temperature and pressure for combustion — burning fuel with the right ratio of fuel and air to conquer drag allows for acceleration. But in supersonic engines achieving the right flow speed, producing the right ratio of evaporated fuel and causing ignition…
An Organ-On-A-Chip Device That Models Heart Disease
When studying diseases or testing potential drug therapies, researchers usually turn to cultured cells on Petri dishes or experiments with lab animals, but recently, researchers have been developing a different approach: small, organ-on-a-chip devices that mimic the functions of human organs, serving as potentially cheaper and more effective tools. Now, researchers have built a new…
Quantum Dots: So Excited, and They Just Can’t Hide It
Quantum dots are rapidly taking center stage in emerging applications and research developments, from enhanced LCD TVs and thin-film solar cells, to high-speed data transfer and fluorescent labeling in biomedical applications. Researchers are still studying how to precisely control the growth of these nanoscale particles and their underlying quantum behavior. For instance, defects form during…
Diamonds Are a Spintronic Device’s Best Friend
Conventional electronics rely on controlling electric charge. Recently, researchers have been exploring the potential for a new technology, called spintronics, which relies on detecting and controlling a particle’s spin. This technology could lead to new types of more efficient and powerful devices. In a paper published in Applied Physics Letters, from AIP Publishing, researchers measured…
Oxide and Semiconductor Combo Holds Promise for New Electronic Devices
Insulating oxides are oxygen containing compounds that do not conduct electricity, but can sometimes form conductive interfaces when they’re layered together precisely. The conducting electrons at the interface form a two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) which boasts exotic quantum properties that make the system potentially useful in electronics and photonics applications. Researchers at Yale University have…
Excitons Lured to the Dark Side
To build tomorrow’s quantum computers, some researchers are turning to dark excitons, which are bound pairs of an electron and the absence of an electron called a hole. As a promising quantum bit, or qubit, it can store information in its spin state, analogous to how a regular, classical bit stores information in its off…
Using the Dark Side of Excitons for Quantum Computing
To build tomorrow’s quantum computers, some researchers are turning to dark excitons, which are bound pairs of an electron and the absence of an electron called a hole. As a promising quantum bit, or qubit, it can store information in its spin state, analogous to how a regular, classical bit stores information in its off…
Diamond-Based Detector Controls Dose of Radiation Down to a Single Particle
Depending on the dose and the target, radiation can cause incredible damage to healthy cells or it can be used to treat cancer and other diseases. To understand how cells respond to different doses of radiation, scientists need to direct precise amounts of energy to specific areas of the cell. Measuring dosage can be challenging,…
Hybrid Electrolyte Enhances Supercapacitance in Vertical Graphene Nanosheets
Going Swimmingly: Biotemplates Breakthrough Paves Way for Cheaper Nanobots
A feature of science fiction stories for decades, nanorobot potential ranges from cancer diagnosis and drug delivery to tissue repair and more. A major hurdle to these endeavors, however, is finding a way to cheaply make a propulsion system for these devices. New developments may now propel nanoswimmers from science fiction to reality thanks to…
Strain-Free Epitaxy of Germanium Film on Mica
Germanium, an elemental semiconductor, was the material of choice in the early history of electronic devices, before it was largely replaced by silicon. But due to its high charge carrier mobility — higher than silicon by threefold — the semiconductor is making a comeback. Germanium (Ge) is generally grown on expensive single-crystal substrates, adding another…
Improving Sensor Accuracy to Prevent Electrical Grid Overload
Quantum Dots Visualize Tiny Vibrational Resonances
Origami Lattice Paves Way for New Noise-Dampening Barriers on the Road
Managing traffic noise pollution has vexed researchers in large part because of the broad range of frequencies we encounter on the road. Currently, only heavy, wall-like barriers can effectively dampen all of these various sounds. Researchers at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor have brought a new method into the fold, demonstrating an origami…
New Portable Blood Analyzer Could Improve Anemia Detection Worldwide
Tungsten Offers Nano-Interconnects a Path of Least Resistance
As microchips become ever smaller and therefore faster, the shrinking size of their copper interconnects leads to increased electrical resistivity at the nanoscale. Finding a solution to this impending technical bottleneck is a major problem for the semiconductor industry. One promising possibility involves reducing the resistivity size effect by altering the crystalline orientation of interconnect…
Tungsten Takes the Path of Least Resistance
As microchips become ever smaller and therefore faster, the shrinking size of their copper interconnects leads to increased electrical resistivity at the nanoscale. Finding a solution to this impending technical bottleneck is a major problem for the semiconductor industry. One promising possibility involves reducing the resistivity size effect by altering the crystalline orientation of interconnect…
Small Scale Energy Harvesters Make a Big Impact
The production of nano-scale devices has drastically increased with the rise in technological applications, yet a major drawback to the functionality of nano-sized systems is the need for an equally small energy resource. To address this need, Hamid Foruzande, Ali Hajnayeb, and Amin Yaghootian from the Shahid Charmran University of Ahvaz in Iran have been…