Feature Channels: Nanotechnology

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In the first-ever experiment of its kind, researchers have demonstrated that clean energy hydrogen can be produced from water splitting by using very small metal particles that are exposed to sunlight. In the article, “Outstanding activity of sub-nm Au clusters for photocatalytic hydrogen production,” published in the journal Applied Catalysis B: Environmental, Alexander Orlov, PhD, an Assistant Professor of Materials Science & Engineering at Stony Brook University, and his colleagues from Stony Brook and Brookhaven National Laboratory, found that the use of gold particles smaller than one nanometer resulted in greater hydrogen production than other co-catalysts tested.

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By fabricating graphene structures atop nanometer-scale “steps” etched into silicon carbide, researchers have for the first time created a substantial electronic bandgap in the material suitable for room-temperature electronics.

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Small floating objects change the dynamics of the surface they are on. This is an effect every serious student of breakfast has seen as rafts of floating cereal o’s arrange and rearrange themselves into patterns on the milk. Now scientists have suggested that this process may offer insight into nanoscale engineering processes.

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ORNL researcher combined theoretical and experimental studies to understand and control the self-assembly of insulating barium zirconium oxide nanodots and nanorods within barium-copper-oxide superconducting films.

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Researchers here have taken a new look at butterfly wings and rice leaves, and learned things about their microscopic texture that could improve a variety of products.

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A workshop on safe use of nanomaterials in environmental remediation will be held at Southeastern Louisiana University June 5-7, 2013. The event is one of the first of its kind in the Southeast and has been designed to provide involved parties to share perspectives, pose questions and develop ideas for guidelines for best practices that support safe nano-enabled environmental remediation.

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Surprising findings could influence material choices in nanoelectronics.

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Using a new method for precisely controlling the deposition of carbon, researchers have demonstrated a technique for connecting multi-walled carbon nanotubes to the metallic pads of integrated circuits without the high interface resistance produced by traditional fabrication techniques.

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A research team at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) has developed a novel system for examining and measuring nanoscale thermal conductance at the interface between two materials.

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Researchers are using a layering technique developed for microchip manufacturing to build nanoscale “bowls” that protect miniature metal catalysts from the harsh conditions of biofuel refining.

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A multidisciplinary team from the University of California, San Diego, is developing an alternate means of precisely tagging breast cancer tumors for removal or targeted destruction.

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There are thousands of silver artifacts in museum collections around the world, and keeping them shiny is a constant challenge. A team of researchers is investigating less labor-intensive ways to protect silver artifacts from tarnishing.

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A sailor who won a silver medal at this summer’s London Paralympics describes in a new book how cutting-edge medical technology from the Cleveland Functional Electrical Stimulation Center allowed her to resume an active life after being paralyzed 14 years ago.

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Researchers from Johns Hopkins and Northwestern universities have discovered how to control the shape of nanoparticles that move DNA through the body and have shown that the shapes of these carriers may make a big difference in how well they work in treating cancer and other diseases.

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Device uses nanotechnology to detect and measure nitric oxide in breath.

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Novel, biocompatible nanoparticles glow through more than 3 centimeters of biological tissue, demonstrating the promise of nanotechnology in biomedical imaging.

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Battery materials on the nano-scale reveal how nickel forms a physical barrier that impedes the shuttling of lithium ions in the electrode, reducing how fast the materials charge and discharge.

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In a study that could lead to advances in the emerging fields of optical computing and nanomaterials, researchers at Missouri University of Science and Technology report that a new class of nanoscale slot waveguides pack 100 to 1,000 times more transverse optical force than conventional silicon slot waveguides.

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A team led by Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s Ho Nyung Lee has discovered a strain relaxation phenomenon in cobaltites that has eluded researchers for decades and may lead to advances in fuel cells, magnetic sensors and a host of energy-related materials.

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In August 2007, the I-35W Bridge over the Mississippi River in Minneapolis collapsed, killing 13 people and injuring 145. The collapse was attributed to a design deficiency that resulted in a gusset plate failing during ongoing construction work. Now, an interdisciplinary team of researchers at the University of Delaware is developing a novel structural health monitoring system that could avert such disasters in the future.

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Imagine a computer chip that can assemble itself. According to Eric M. Furst, professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering at the University of Delaware, engineers and scientists are closer to making this and other scalable forms of nanotechnology a reality as a result of new milestones in using nanoparticles as building blocks in functional materials.

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Adah Almutairi, PhD, associate professor at the Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, the Department of NanoEngineering, and the Materials Science and Engineering Program at the University of California, San Diego, and colleagues have developed the first degradable polymer that is extremely sensitive to low but biologically relevant concentrations of hydrogen peroxide.

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A University of Arkansas researcher and his colleagues have developed a better understanding of how these graphene-metal interfaces affect the movement of electrons through two-terminal junctions.

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The brain is a notoriously difficult organ to treat, but Johns Hopkins researchers report they are one step closer to having a drug-delivery system flexible enough to overcome some key challenges posed by brain cancer and perhaps other maladies affecting that organ.

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The injection of a tiny capsule containing heat-generating cells into the abdomens of mice led those animals to burn abdominal fat and initially lose about 20 percent of belly fat after 80 days of treatment.

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A new study by University of Kentucky researchers shows promise for developing ultrastable RNA nanoparticles that may help treat cancer and viral infections by regulating cell function and binding to cancers without harming surrounding tissue.

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A new synthetic protein can pinpoint cancer and other diseases in the body by finding nearby damaged collagen.

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A group of engineers from Drexel University and the University of Pennsylvania are working to improve dye-sensitized solar panels with the help of mathematical modeling and the addition of nanotubes and a polymer substrate.

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The same type of microwave oven technology that most people use to heat up leftover food has found an important application in the solar energy industry, providing a new way to make thin-film photovoltaic products with less energy, expense and environmental concerns.

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Engineering researchers at Rensselaer made a sheet of paper from the world’s thinnest material, graphene, and then zapped the paper with a laser or camera flash to blemish it with countless cracks, pores, and other imperfections. The result is a graphene anode material that can be charged or discharged 10 times faster than conventional graphite anodes used in today’s lithium (Li)-ion batteries.

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Researchers have developed a self-charging power cell that directly converts mechanical energy to chemical energy, storing the power until it is released as electrical current. The development eliminates the need to convert mechanical energy to electrical energy for charging a battery.

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Researchers have developed and validated a new technology in which composite nanofibrous scaffolds provide a loose enough structure for cells to colonize without impediment, but still can instruct cells how to lay down new tissue.

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Sanjeevi Sivasankar of Iowa State University and the Ames Laboratory is leading a research team that has developed new microscope technology to study single biological molecules with unprecedented accuracy and precision.

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Chinese scientists use silica nanoparticles resembling raspberries to create a water-repellent, fog-free, self-cleaning finish for glass and other transparent surfaces.

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Researchers trying to herd tiny particles into useful ordered formations have found an unlikely ally: entropy, a tendency generally described as "disorder."

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It's been a good week forHIV/AIDS breakthroughs. Tuesday, the FDA approved Truvada. Now, a research team has developed a long-lasting injection that could someday replace the daily regimen of pills faced by patients.

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Inspired by nature, an international research team has created synthetic pores that mimic the activity of cellular ion channels, which play a vital role in human health by severely restricting the types of materials allowed to enter cells.

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Researchers who are studying a new magnetic effect that converts heat to electricity have discovered how to amplify it a thousand times over - a first step in making the technology more practical.

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Researchers have discovered yet another way to harvest small amounts of electricity from motion in the world around us – this time by capturing the electrical charge produced when two different kinds of plastic materials rub against one another.

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After more than a decade of research advances, we are learning to measure and manipulate matter to create fundamentally different electronic devices. Three experts discuss what makes those devices unique, how nanotechnology is likely to affect computing, and whether we have the research infrastructure necessary to commercialize today's latest nanoelectronic findings.

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An interdisciplinary team of scientists have successfully tagged a protein that regulates the neurotransmitter serotonin with tiny fluorescent beads, allowing them to track the movements of individual molecules for the first time. This capability makes it possible to study the manner in which serotonin regulates mood, appetite and sleep at a new level of detail.

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Differentiation of stem cells into bone nodules is greatly accelerated by nanomolecular scaffolds developed at the University of South Carolina.

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A new catalyst material developed at UW-Milwaukee could dramatically reduce the cost of producing microbial fuel cells.

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Using a nanowire substrate to anchor advanced photovoltaic materials, researchers are able to alleviate strains betwen materials that otherwise would shorten life spans for photovoltaic products.

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Researchers at the University of California, San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering have developed a technique that enables metallic nanocrystals to self-assemble into larger, complex materials for next-generation antennas and lenses.

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Engineers have found an easy way to sort microscopic particles and bits of biological matter, including circulating tumor cells.

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A newly developed carbon nanotube material could help lower the cost of fuel cells, catalytic converters and similar energy-related technologies by delivering a substitute for expensive platinum catalysts.

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Enabling bioengineers to design new molecular machines for nanotechnology applications is one of the possible outcomes of a study by University of Montreal researchers that was published in Nature Structural and Molecular Biology today. The scientists have developed a new approach to visualize how proteins assemble, which may also significantly aid our understanding of diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, which are caused by errors in assembly.

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A pair of new papers by scientists at The Methodist Hospital Research Institute (TMHRI) and six other institutions suggests these microscopic workhorses ought to be disc-shaped, not spherical or rod-shaped, when targeting cancers at or near blood vessels.

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An international team of mathematicians has devised an amplifier that can boost light, sound or other waves while hiding them inside an invisible container.