May 07, 2026 Most massive black holes detected via spacetime ripples likely grew from repeated violent collisions in dense star clusters, not direct star collapse. (Nanowerk News) The most massive black holes in the Universe detected by the ripples they make in space time were not born directly from collapsing...
Bottled water nanoplastics are not simple bottle fragments
May 07, 2026 Single-particle infrared imaging reveals bottled-water nanoplastics differ in source, shape, and molecular structure beyond what particle counts can show. (Nanowerk Spotlight) A bottle of water can look clean while carrying particles that differ in size, shape, source, and molecular structure. A count can show that contamination exists,...
Researchers steer electron spin ballistically in graphene
May 07, 2026 Researchers have shown that electrons in ultra-clean graphene can be steered with high precision while keeping their spin information intact, a key requirement for future low power electronics and quantum devices. (Nanowerk News) In a new study published in Physical Review X ("Ballistic Spin Valve in Graphene...
Probing the mind-boggling properties of a superconductor that shouldn’t exist
May 07, 2026 Uranium ditelluride loses superconductivity at low magnetic fields and regains it at extreme ones. A new technique reveals the magnetic glue behind the comeback. (Nanowerk News) The material UTe2 exhibits multiple forms of zero electrical resistance—a phenomenon known as superconductivity—and displays several puzzling properties. After UTe2 loses...
Researchers separate colloidal particles according to size and guide them on different paths
May 07, 2026 Researchers developed a magnetic checkerboard method to steer colloidal particles by size, enabling precise lab-on-chip control and smart materials. (Nanowerk News) A team of researchers from the Universities of Tübingen, Bayreuth, and Kassel, and the Polish Academy of Sciences has developed a method for precisely controlling the...
Parallel 3D bioprinting builds tissue model arrays in minutes
May 07, 2026 A slippery droplet microarray enables parallel 3D bioprinting of separated, immersed hydrogel models, cutting array fabrication time from hours to minutes. (Nanowerk Spotlight) Testing many biological samples at once requires separation. Standard well plates solve that problem with walls: each well keeps its own cells, liquid, and...
Stacking 2D materials on bulk semiconductors yields smarter, faster photodetectors
May 07, 2026 A review details how stacking 2D materials on bulk semiconductors yields photodetectors with record sensitivity, gigahertz speed, and built-in neural computing. (Nanowerk News) A new review maps out how pairing atomically thin materials with conventional bulk semiconductors can produce photodetectors that not only outperform traditional devices but...
Scientists program materials just by spinning them
May 07, 2026 Engineers have designed a rotating platform whose controlled spin can make flexible beams snap between two stable states. The simple, fast method can encode binary information directly into materials without electronics. (Nanowerk News) There is something universally appealing about the slap bracelet, and the way a simple...
Tiny material interfaces make a big difference
May 06, 2026 Dynamic catalyst interfaces offer a smarter route for converting CO2 into formic acid. (Nanowerk News) Electroreduction offers a promising route for converting CO2 into value-added chemicals using renewable electricity. Among the possible products, formic acid is particularly attractive because it is an important chemical feedstock and a...
A new way to read the Universe
May 06, 2026 Scientists have developed a new method that could significantly improve our understanding of the expansion of the Universe and the nature of dark energy. (Nanowerk News) The study, published in Nature Astronomy ("CIGaRS I: combined simulation-based inference from type Ia supernovae and host photometry"), presents a powerful...