May 12, 2026 Gravitational waves emitted by colliding black holes may bear imprints of dark matter, which physicists could detect with a new model. (Nanowerk News) Dark matter is thought to make up most of the matter in the universe, but the only way it interacts with its surroundings is...
How dried mRNA vaccines could bypass cold chain storage requirements
May 12, 2026 Dried mRNA vaccines can match standard injection without cold storage when a polymer matrix at the right ratio prevents the structural failures that destroy lipid nanoparticles during drying. (Nanowerk Spotlight) Some medicines are easy to make and hard to keep. The active ingredients degrade within hours at...
Modular photonics alignment system for fiber-optics applications with higher loads
May 12, 2026 Integrated 3- to 6-axis nanopositioning platform with ACS motion control accelerates active alignment processes. (Nanowerk News) Physik Instrumente (PI), a global leader in precision motion control and nanopositioning systems, introduces the F-572 High-Performance 3- to 6-Axis Photonics Alignment System, designed for high-throughput active alignment applications in photonics...
Powerful shrinking technique could enable devices that compute with light
May 12, 2026 Researchers created tiny 3D photonic devices with features small enough to channel visible light. (Nanowerk News) Using a new technique that can create vacancies at any site across a material and then shrink it to about 1/2,000 of its original volume, MIT researchers have designed nanotechnology devices...
Atoms vibrate on circular paths
May 12, 2026 For the first time, researchers observe and control how angular momentum is transferred between vibrations of a crystal lattice. (Nanowerk News) An international team of researchers, including scientists from the Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR) and the Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society, for the first time...
Metabolism-inspired hydrogels replicate heartbeat-like motion and photosynthesis
May 12, 2026 Scientists design polymer networks that enable hydrogels to self-oscillate or convert light into chemical energy. (Nanowerk News) Living organisms sustain themselves through intricate metabolic processes that continuously convert energy and materials into useful functions. Inspired by these biological systems, researchers are now engineering synthetic materials that can...
Sunlight triggered crystal lattice harvests drinking water from air and stores it
May 12, 2026 Chemists have designed a light activated metal organic framework (MOF) that pulls water from the air and stores it in cavities triggered by sunlight alone. (Nanowerk News) In a new study (Journal of the American Chemical Society, "Photo Capture of Water by Single Crystals of a Nonporous...
Machine learning proves that graphene is hydrophobic
May 11, 2026 Machine-learning molecular simulations show pristine graphene is intrinsically hydrophobic and that water trapped beneath the sheet caused earlier conflicting results. (Nanowerk News) Graphene, the single-atom-thick carbon sheet valued for its strength and electrical conductivity, has confused researchers with contradictory wetting behavior. Some experiments showed water droplets beading...
Researchers develop body-compatible dermal electrode
May 11, 2026 Researchers develop a bio-implant with virtually no immune response at the cellular and tissue level. (Nanowerk News) A research team at POSTECH has developed a novel electrode that the human body does not reject. This breakthrough addresses a fundamental limitation of current wearable technology and is attracting...