Dec 16, 2025 When gas falls onto a compact object, such as a neutron star or black hole, due to its strong gravity (a process called accretion), it emits electromagnetic waves. High-sensitivity observations have discovered objects with extremely high X-ray luminosities. One possible explanation for the ultraluminosity is that an...
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Electric rays inspire a self-powered generator that needs no external stimulus
Dec 16, 2025 A solid-state ionic bilayer generates stable electricity for over 60 hours through spontaneous ion migration alone, eliminating the need for mechanical, thermal, or environmental triggers. (Nanowerk Spotlight) The search for reliable, self-sustaining power sources has intensified as wearable electronics, medical sensors, and distributed Internet of Things networks...
Raw materials from CO2
Dec 16, 2025 A research team has developed an enzyme that robustly and efficiently reduces formate to formaldehyde. This synthetic metabolic pathway is an important route for the sustainable conversion of CO2 into raw materials. (Nanowerk News) For a carbon-neutral bioeconomy, processes are needed that can efficiently capture CO2 and...
A one-nanometer gap and half a volt bypass a fundamental rule of chemistry
Dec 16, 2025 A nanoscale junction forces molecules into reactive configurations, allowing a small voltage to catalyze a chemical transformation that normally requires ultraviolet light. (Nanowerk Spotlight) Chemical reactions follow rules. One of the most fundamental is that molecular orbital symmetry must be conserved when molecules transform from one form...
Physicists have created a new ‘time crystal’
Dec 16, 2025 Physicists used liquid crystals to build a near-perpetual clock-like system, demonstrating a 'time crystal' phase where components move continuously without external power. (Nanowerk News) Imagine a clock that doesn’t have electricity, but its hands and gears spin on their own for all eternity. In a new study,...
Cool satellites and flexible electronics
Dec 16, 2025 Aluminum-coated polymer satellite insulation gains durability via ultrathin 5-nanometer interlayer, with potential uses in flexible electronics and medical sensors. (Nanowerk News) The picture that pops up before our inner eye when we hear the word "satellite" is probably this: Two extended solar “wings” and a compact body...
Researchers find way to image nanoscale objects without shrinking the sensor
Dec 16, 2025 Scientists use acoustic waves and condensed matter physics to detect proteins and cancer cells, sidestepping the limits of traditional miniaturization. (Nanowerk News) At the heart of every camera is a sensor, whether that sensor is a collection of light-detecting pixels or a strip of 35-millimeter film. But...
High-speed platform mass-produces insect-inspired nanostructures
Dec 15, 2025 A new self-assembly platform produces synthetic brochosomes at over 100,000 per second, enabling scalable antireflective, sensing and camouflage materials. (Nanowerk News) When most people see a leafhopper in their backyard garden, they notice little more than a tiny green or striped insect flicking from leaf to leaf....
Scientists put nanomotors in motion in artificial cells
Dec 15, 2025 Researchers used Listeria's movement as a model to build nanomotors inside artificial cells, giving them lifelike mobility and functions usually seen only in living cells. (Nanowerk News) No one has yet created a fully functioning artificial cell. But a research team at Aarhus University has taken a...
World’s smallest programmable robots perform tasks
Dec 15, 2025 Microscale swimming bots take in sensory information, process it and carry out tasks, opening new possibilities in manufacturing and medicine. (Nanowerk News) The world’s smallest fully programmable, autonomous robots have debuted at the University of Pennsylvania, sporting a brain developed at the University of Michigan. These microscopic...