Researchers have achieved a major breakthrough in the development of methods of information processing in nanomagnets. Using a new trick, they have been able to induce synchronous motion of the domain walls in a ferromagnetic nanowire. This involved applying a pulsed magnetic field that was perpendicular to the plane of the domain walls. ...
Materials scientists have long known that introducing defects into three-dimensional materials can improve their mechanical and electronic properties. Now a new study finds how defects affect two-dimensional crystalline structures, and the results hold information for designing new materials. ...
Nanoengineering researchers have unveiled a potentially scalable method for making one-atom-thick layers of molybdenum diselenide -- a material that is similar to graphene but has better properties for making certain electronic devices like switchable transistors and light-emitting diodes. ...
While exploring the promise of magnetic nanoparticle (mNP) hyperthermia in breast cancer treatment, a researcher reviews preclinical studies and discusses plans for early-phase clinical studies in humans. This evolving treatment approach involves the injection of nanoparticles into the tumor, which are then activated with magnetic energy. Once activated the nanoparticles produce heat inside the cancer...
Carbon nanotubes become reinforcing bars that make two-dimensional graphene much easier to handle in a hybrid material. Chemists set nanotubes into graphene in a way that not only mimics how steel rebar is used in concrete but also preserves and even improves the electrical and mechanical qualities of both. The technique should make large, flexible, conductive and transparent sheets of graphene much...
A fundamental chemical discovery should allow tress to soon play a major role in making high-tech energy storage devices. A method has been discovered to turn cellulose -- the most abundant organic polymer on Earth and a key component of trees –- into the building blocks for supercapacitors. ...
A combined computational and experimental study of self-assembled silver-based structures known as superlattices has revealed an unusual and unexpected behavior: arrays of gear-like molecular-scale machines that rotate in unison when pressure is applied to them. ...
All that's gold does not glitter, thanks to new work that could reduce glare from solar panels and electronic displays and dull dangerous glints on military weapons. ...
Nanostructures half the breadth of a DNA strand could improve the efficiency of light emitting diodes according to new simulations. Nanostructure LEDs made from indium nitride could lead to more natural-looking white lighting while avoiding some of the efficiency loss today's LEDs experience at high power. ...
A novel ultrathin collagen matrix assembly allows for the unprecedented maintenance of liver cell morphology and function in a microscale 'organ-on-a-chip' device that is one example of 3D microtissue engineering. This technology allows researchers to provide cells with the precise extracellular matrix cues that they require to maintain their differentiated form and liverspecific functions, including...
A new type of biomolecular tweezers could help researchers study how mechanical forces affect the biochemical activity of cells and proteins. The devices -- too small to see without a microscope -- use opposing magnetic and electrophoretic forces to precisely stretch the cells and molecules, holding them in position so that the activity of receptors and other biochemical activity can be studied. ...
Researchers are using new nanoscale imaging approaches to shed light on the dynamic activities of rotaviruses, important pathogens that cause life-threatening diarrhea in young children. Once a rotavirus enters a host cell, it sheds its outermost protein layer, leaving behind a double-layered particle (DLP). These DLPs are the form of the virus that produces messenger RNA molecules, which are critical...
Inhalation is an increasingly important route for non-invasive drug delivery for both systemic and local applications. Control of particle size and output plays a critical role in the efficient and effective delivery of often expensive medications to the lung. Drugs designed to treat pulmonary diseases or for systemic absorption through the alveolar capillary bed require optimum particle sizes for...
Physical response of combination materials made of nanotubes with ferroelectric liquid crystals could lead to new applications. Dispersions of carbon nanotubes with liquid crystals have attracted much interest because they pave the way for creating new materials with added functionalities. Now, a new study focuses on the influence of temperature and nanotube concentration on the physical properties...
Quantum chemical simulations reveal an unprecedented relationship between the mechanism of carbon nanotube growth and hydrocarbon combustion processes. Results of these simulations illustrate the importance in the role of carbon chemical bonding and molecular transformations in CNT growth. ...
Researchers have found a convenient way to selectively prepare germanium sulfide nanostructures, including nanosheets and nanowires, that are more active than their bulk counterparts. Germanium monosulfide, GeS, is emerging as one of the most important "IV-VI" semiconductor materials with potential in opto-electronics applications for telecommunications and computing, and as an absorber of light for...
A new mechanism for using light to activate drug-delivering nanoparticles and other targeted therapeutic substances inside the body has been developed by a collaboration of materials scientists, engineers and neurobiologists. This discovery represents a major innovation. Up to now, only a handful of strategies using light-triggered release from nanoparticles have been reported. ...
Researchers have developed a cheap, high-performing silicon anode and sulfur-based cathode for lithium-ion batteries. Lithium-ion batteries are a popular type of rechargeable battery commonly found in portable electronics and electric or hybrid cars. Scientists have developed a cost-effective (and therefore commercially viable) silicon anode nearly three times more powerful and longer lasting than...
Researchers have developed a paper filter, which can remove virus particles with the efficiency matching that of the best industrial virus filters. The paper filter consists of 100 percent high purity cellulose nanofibers, directly derived from nature. Cellulose is one of the most common materials to produce various types of filters because it is inexpensive, disposable, inert and non-toxic. ...
Lithium-ion batteries power a vast array of modern devices, from cell phones, laptops, and laser pointers to thermometers, hearing aids, and pacemakers. Scientists have now discovered a “sticky” conductive material that may improve them while eliminating the need for toxic solvents. ...