May 10, 2022 (Nanowerk Spotlight) In nature, wood, shells, and other structural materials are lightweight, strong, and tough. These multiscale structures enable a series of outstanding performances using a limited number of constituent materials with ordinary properties. While natural creatures are able to fabricate these complex structures through bio-controlled assembly,...
Self-driving microscopes discover shortcuts to new materials
May 10, 2022 (Nanowerk News) Researchers at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory are teaching microscopes to drive discoveries with an intuitive algorithm, developed at the lab’s Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences, that could guide breakthroughs in new materials for energy technologies, sensing and computing. “There are so...
Ultrafast ‘camera’ captures hidden behavior of potential neuromorphic material
May 10, 2022 (Nanowerk News) Imagine a computer that can think as fast as the human brain while using very little energy. That’s the goal of scientists seeking to discover or develop materials that can send and process signals as easily as the brain’s neurons and synapses. Identifying quantum materials...
High-performance hysteresis-free perovskite transistors
May 10, 2022 (Nanowerk News) Robot vacuums, a major household appliance that make life easier, are convenient but they often stumble on door thresholds that are not even very high. A similar threshold voltage exists in a transistor through which current flows. As long as the voltage exceeds the threshold...
Astronomers find ‘gold standard’ star in Milky Way
May 10, 2022 (Nanowerk News) In our sun’s neighborhood of the Milky Way Galaxy is a relatively bright star, and in it, astronomers have been able to identify the widest range of elements in a star beyond our solar system yet. The study, led by University of Michigan astronomer Ian...
Researchers use light for thermomagnetic recording on silicon waveguide
May 10, 2022 (Nanowerk News) Researchers have demonstrated, for the first time, light-induced thermomagnetic recording in a magnetic thin-film on silicon waveguides. The new writing technique is poised to enable miniature high-performance magneto-optical memories that donât require bulky optics or mechanical rotation. Magneto-optical storage devices combine magnetic and optical recording...
Study finds cells take out the trash before they divide
May 10, 2022 (Nanowerk News) MIT researchers have discovered that before cells start to divide, they do a little cleanup, tossing out molecules that they appear not to need anymore. Using a new method they developed for measuring the dry mass of cells, the researchers found that cells lose about...
Nature-inspired self-sensing materials could lead to new developments in engineering
May 10, 2022 (Nanowerk News) The cellular forms of natural materials are the inspiration behind a new lightweight, 3D printed smart architected material developed by an international team of engineers. The team, led by engineers from the University of Glasgow, mixed a common form of industrial plastic with carbon nanotubes...
Apply now for free access to nano-surface and membrane up-scaling and test facilities
May 10, 2022 (Nanowerk News) The NewSkin Open Innovation Test Bed has opened its second call for access to nano-surface and membrane up-scaling and test facilities. The EU-funded project is offering unique pilot scale prototyping, upscaling, and testing facilities as well as route to market services and access to investors...
How an atom-thin insulator helps transport spins
May 10, 2022 (Nanowerk News) An intermediate layer consisting of a few atoms is helping to improve the transport of spin currents from one material to another. Until now, this process involves significant losses. A team from Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (MLU), the Max Planck Institute (MPI) for Microstructure Physics,...