Feb 18, 2026 Researchers developed a polymer alloy capacitor with self-assembled nanostructures that delivers dramatically higher energy density and extreme heat resistance for electronics. (Nanowerk News) In the race to lighter, safer and more efficient electronics — from electric vehicles to transcontinental energy grids — one component literally holds the...
3D-printing platform rapidly produces complex electric machines
Feb 18, 2026 Overcoming challenges of 3D printing with multiple functional materials, researchers fabricated an electric linear motor in hours. (Nanowerk News) A broken motor in an automated machine can bring production on a busy factory floor to a halt. If engineers can’t find a replacement part, they may have...
First recyclable smart textile fibers retain their shape-shifting power after being melted and remade
Feb 18, 2026 Smart textiles from liquid crystal elastomer fibers can now be melted down and reknitted with nearly identical shape-shifting performance. (Nanowerk Spotlight) Smart textiles built from liquid crystal elastomer fibers can contract, bend, twist, and pump. But until now, no one has shown that these textiles can be...
Injectable nanocomposite hemostat speeds blood clotting for trauma care
Feb 18, 2026 Researchers are using clay-derived nanosilicates integrated into an expandable shape-memory nanocomposite to create injectable hemostatic dressings that rapidly accelerate clotting and cut bleeding time in internal hemorrhage models. (Nanowerk News) Traumatic injury is the third leading cause of death in the state of Texas, surpassing strokes, Alzheimer’s...
How an AI-powered ‘Digital Twin’ accelerates chemistry and materials discoveries
Feb 18, 2026 A new AI-accelerated platform creates digital replicas of chemical experiments, enabling real-time optimization and rapid feedback. (Nanowerk News) Understanding what complex chemical measurements reveal about materials and reactions can take weeks or months of analysis. But now, an AI-powered platform developed by researchers at the Department of...
Water droplets connected by ion channels function as brain-like synapses that can learn and compute
Feb 18, 2026 A biomimetic synapse built from water droplets and biological ion channels achieves synaptic plasticity and performs machine learning tasks. (Nanowerk Spotlight) Biological brains compute using ions, not electrons. Every signal between neurons depends on charged atoms passing through protein channels embedded in cell membranes, a system that...
Chemistry-powered ‘breathing’ membrane opens and closes nanopores on Its own
Feb 18, 2026 Researchers shrink solid-state nanopores to sub-nm size via voltage-driven precipitation/dissolution, creating tunable pores that mimic ion channels for studying confined ion transport. (Nanowerk News) Ion channels are narrow passageways that play a pivotal role in many biological processes. To model how ions move through these tight spaces,...
Nanoparticle-based gene editing could expand treatment options for cystic fibrosis
Feb 18, 2026 Researchers have demonstrated that lipid nanoparticles can package and deliver an entire therapeutic gene along with gene-editing machinery - a combination of large, complex components that non-viral carriers haven't been able to handle before. (Nanowerk News) UCLA researchers have developed a lipid nanoparticle-based gene-editing approach capable of...
Researchers reveal magnetism with quantum potential
Feb 17, 2026 Researchers discovered unexpected atomic ordering in a tantalum tungsten selenium crystal, linking self organization and magnetism to spintronic and quantum uses. (Nanowerk News) Researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, working with international partners, have uncovered surprising behavior in a specially engineered crystal. Composed of tantalum, tungsten and...