Jan 21, 2026 Solar Orbiter reveals that major solar flares arise from cascading weak magnetic disturbances, producing avalanche-like reconnection and rain of plasma blobs. (Nanowerk News) Just as avalanches on snowy mountains start with the movement of a small quantity of snow, the ESA-led Solar Orbiter spacecraft has discovered that...
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A self-assembling shortcut to better organic solar cells
Jan 20, 2026 New molecular architecture enables the natural formation of built-in p/n junctions essential for efficient light-to-electricity conversion. (Nanowerk News) Osaka Metropolitan University scientists have created a molecule that naturally forms p/n junctions, structures that are vital for converting sunlight into electricity. Their findings offer a promising shortcut to...
Defect engineered MoS2 films boost solar CO2 conversion
Jan 20, 2026 Ultrathin vanadium alloyed MoS2 grown by capped VLS forms vacancy active sites that raise solar driven CO2 to CO photocatalysis efficiency. (Nanowerk News) CO2 reduction to storable fuels or valuable chemical products provides a carbon-neutral cycle that can mitigate the rapid consumption of fossil fuels and increasing...
Novel Raman method monitors beer fermentation at single-cell level
Jan 20, 2026 Scientists introduce a single-cell Raman method that monitors beer fermentation in real time, capturing metabolic variation and predicting key process metrics accurately. (Nanowerk News) Breweries typically monitor fermentation by analyzing broth composition. Alcohols, esters, acids and residual sugars are quantified via chromatography-based assays. While reliable, these tests...
Nanoparticles that shrink over time deliver eye drugs to the retina without injections
Jan 20, 2026 Eye drop nanoparticles that shrink over time overcome the eye's natural defenses, delivering protein drugs to the retina and matching the effectiveness of direct injection in mice. (Nanowerk Spotlight) Every year, millions of people worldwide submit to needle injections directly into their eyes. The procedure, called intravitreal...
Near field sum frequency spectroscopy reaches ten nanometre resolution
Jan 20, 2026 Plasmonic nanogap confinement extends sum frequency vibrational spectroscopy to the nanoscale, enabling direct imaging of molecular orientation at interfaces. (Nanowerk News) Sum-frequency generation (SFG) is a powerful vibrational spectroscopy that can selectively probe molecular structures at surfaces and interfaces, but its spatial resolution has been limited to...
Trapped helium nanodroplets enable seconds long ultracold studies
Jan 20, 2026 Researchers succeeded for the first time in storing electrically charged helium nanodroplets in an ion trap for up to one minute. This extends the time window for experiments with these extremely cold 'mini-laboratories' by a factor of 10,000 compared to previous methods. (Nanowerk News) Helium nanodroplets are...
Physicists bridge two fundamental domains of modern quantum physisc
Jan 20, 2026 Scientists developed a theory linking mobile and static behaviors of a particle in a Fermi sea, explaining quasiparticles and quantum states. (Nanowerk News) A new unified theory connects two fundamental domains of modern quantum physics: It joins two opposite views of how a single exotic particle behaves...
Spin size determines how the Kondo effect behaves
Jan 20, 2026 Quantum effects in Kondo lattices can determine whether a system behaves magnetically or non-magnetically, opening new avenues for designing future quantum materials and technologies. (Nanowerk News) Collective behavior is an unusual phenomenon in condensed-matter physics. When quantum spins interact together as a system, they produce unique effects...
Turning retired wind turbine blades into high-performance lithium-ion battery anodes
Jan 20, 2026 Glass fibers from retired wind turbine blades can be converted into high-capacity silicon-carbon battery anodes, turning a growing waste problem into valuable energy storage materials. (Nanowerk Spotlight) Wind turbines have become a defining symbol of the global transition away from fossil fuels. Their sleek white blades, rotating...