https://phys.org/nanotech-news/nano-materials en-us The latest science news on nanomaterials, nanotechnology, nanoparticles and nanoscience. Graphene is well-known for its high electrical conductivity, mechanical strength, and flexibility. Stacking two layers of graphene with atomic layer thickness produces bilayer graphene, which possesses excellent electrical, mechanical, and optical properties. As such, bilayer graphene has attracted significant attention and is being utilized in a host of next-generation devices, including quantum computers. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-high-speed-electrical-readout-method-graphene.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Fri, 20 Oct 2023 09:17:55 EDT news617012271 Ordinary pencil lead holds extraordinary properties when shaved down to layers as thin as an atom. A single, atom-thin sheet of graphite, known as graphene, is just a tiny fraction of the width of a human hair. Under a microscope, the material resembles a chicken-wire of carbon atoms linked in a hexagonal lattice. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-five-layer-graphene-sandwich-rare-electronic.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Wed, 18 Oct 2023 11:00:02 EDT news616836772 Recent studies have found that Gires-Tournois (GT) biosensors, a type of nanophotonic resonator, can detect minuscule virus particles and produce colorful micrographs (images taken through a microscope) of viral loads. But they suffer from visual artifacts and non-reproducibility, limiting their utilization. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-scientists-deep-learning-based-biosensing-platform.html Bio & Medicine Nanomaterials Tue, 17 Oct 2023 11:37:01 EDT news616761418 Wave energy technology is a proven source of power generation, but there is power inherent in every molecule of liquid on Earth, even when the liquid is at rest. At the molecular scale, atoms and ions are always moving. If this nanoscale movement can be harvested, it could be a big source of energy. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-harnessing-molecular-power-electricity-generation.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Tue, 17 Oct 2023 11:00:01 EDT news616752318 New research from Flinders University and UNSW Sydney, published in the ACS Nano journal, explores switchable polarization in a new class of silicon compatible metal oxides and paves the way for the development of advanced devices including high-density data storage, ultra low energy electronics, flexible energy harvesting and wearable devices. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-approach-advanced-electronics-storage-ferroelectricity.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Mon, 16 Oct 2023 10:50:02 EDT news616672201 Researchers from Tokyo Metropolitan University have engineered a range of new single-walled transition metal dichalcogenide (TMD) nanotubes with different compositions, chirality, and diameters by templating off boron-nitride nanotubes. They also realized ultra-thin nanotubes grown inside the template, and successfully tailored compositions to create a family of new nanotubes. The ability to synthesize a diverse range of structures offers unique insights into their growth mechanism and novel optical properties. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-carbon-nanotube-family-bigger.html Nanomaterials Mon, 16 Oct 2023 09:49:22 EDT news616668560 A joint research team led by Prof. Dai Qing and Prof. Li Chi from the National Center for Nanoscience and Technology (NCNST) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) has demonstrated the coherent ultrafast photoemission from a single quantized energy level of a carbon nanotube. The study was published in Science Advances on Oct. 12. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-team-coherent-ultrafast-photoemission-carbon.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Mon, 16 Oct 2023 09:36:03 EDT news616667761 In a surprising new study, researchers at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities have found that the electron beam radiation that they previously thought degraded crystals can actually repair cracks in these nanostructures. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-discovery-electron-nanostructures.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Thu, 12 Oct 2023 11:01:11 EDT news616327269 As you watch Morpho butterflies wobble in flight, shimmering in vivid blue color, you're witnessing an uncommon form of structural color that researchers are only beginning to use in lighting technologies such as optical diffusers. Furthermore, imparting a self-cleaning capability to such diffusers would minimize soiling and staining and maximize practical utility. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-morpho-butterfly-nanostructure-technology-bright.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Thu, 12 Oct 2023 09:46:02 EDT news616322760 There is an urgent need to address climate change, making the development of sustainable energy alternatives more important than ever. While proton-exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) have shown great promise for energy production, particularly in the transportation industry, there is a long-standing problem with their durability and cost. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-cobalt-modified-nano-material-fuel-cells.html Nanomaterials Wed, 11 Oct 2023 16:11:05 EDT news616259458 Transition metal dichalcogenide (TMD) semiconductors are special materials that have long fascinated researchers with their unique properties. For one, they are flat, one-atom-thick two-dimensional (2D) materials similar to that of graphene. They are compounds that contain different combinations of the transition metal group (e.g., molybdenum, tungsten) and chalcogen elements (e.g., sulfur, selenium, tellurium). https://phys.org/news/2023-10-scientists-flipping-layers-heterostructures-properties.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Wed, 11 Oct 2023 09:46:03 EDT news616236361 Researchers from the Institute of Process Engineering (IPE) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Kyoto University have proposed a strategy to grow "face-on" and "edge-on" conductive metal-organic frameworks (cMOF) nanofilms on substrates by controlling the "stand-up" behaviors of ligands on various surfaces to overcome the difficulty in the orientation control of such films. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-cmof-nanofilms.html Nanomaterials Mon, 09 Oct 2023 12:30:02 EDT news616070817 Using micro-engineered soil models, researchers at Lund University in Sweden have investigated the effect of tiny polystyrene particles on bacteria and fungi. While these nanoplastics reduced both bacterial and fungal growth, the fungus actually managed to "clean up" their surroundings, thereby easing the effect of the plastics. Their work has been published in Science of The Total Environment. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-vacuum-cleaner-effect-fungi-nanoplastics-bay.html Bio & Medicine Nanomaterials Mon, 09 Oct 2023 11:50:58 EDT news616071055 Two-photon polymerization is a potential method for nanofabrication to integrate nanomaterials based on femtosecond laser-based methods. Challenges in the field of 3D nanoprinting include slow layer-by-layer printing and limited material options as a result of laser-matter interactions. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-free-space-nanoprinting-optical-limits-4d.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Sat, 07 Oct 2023 09:20:02 EDT news615809799 A research group at the Institute for Molecular Science has successfully observed the left and right handedness of material structures at the nanoscale, by illuminating chiral gold nanostructures with circularly polarized light and detecting the optical force acting on a probe near the nanostructures. This result demonstrated that it is possible to analyze the chiral structure of matter at the nanoscale using light. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-chiro-optical-nanoscale.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Fri, 06 Oct 2023 09:26:03 EDT news615803162 Every motor we use needs a magnet. University of Manitoba researcher Rachel Nickel is studying how rust could make those magnets cheaper and easier to produce. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-nanoscale-rust-future-magnets.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Thu, 05 Oct 2023 10:52:02 EDT news615721921 A research team led by Dr. Ho Sang Jung of the Department of Nano-Bio Convergence at the Korea Institute of Materials Science (KIMS), a research institute under the Ministry of Science and ICT, in collaboration with the KOTITI Testing & Research Institute, has developed the world's first technology to rapidly and highly sensitively detect microplastics (MPs), which can cause human and genetic toxicity through environmental pollution and the food chain. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-scientists-microplastics-kit-ai-technology.html Bio & Medicine Nanomaterials Thu, 05 Oct 2023 09:57:03 EDT news615718621 Some of the thinnest materials known to mankind may provide solutions to scientists in their quest to curb the effects of global warming. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-mxene-mbene-compounds-capture-carbon.html Nanomaterials Wed, 04 Oct 2023 14:38:03 EDT news615649081 Quantum dots are tiny crystals that scientists can tune to different colors, giving an extra-vivid pop to next-generation TV screens or illuminating tumors inside bodies so surgeons can hunt them down. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-quantum-dots-tiny-rainbow-crystals.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Wed, 04 Oct 2023 12:45:56 EDT news615642349 A probable early driver of Alzheimer's disease is the accumulation of molecules called amyloid peptides. These cause cell death and are commonly found in the brains of Alzheimer's patients. Researchers at Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden, have now shown that yeast cells that accumulate these misfolded amyloid peptides can recover after being treated with graphene oxide nanoflakes. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-graphene-oxide-nanoflakes-toxicity-alzheimer.html Bio & Medicine Nanomaterials Wed, 04 Oct 2023 10:01:06 EDT news615632462 Australian researchers have developed a molecular-sized, more efficient version of a widely used electronic sensor, in a breakthrough that could bring widespread benefits. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-electronic-sensor-size-molecule-potential.html Bio & Medicine Nanomaterials Tue, 03 Oct 2023 10:10:46 EDT news615546640 Friction, an everyday phenomenon, has perplexed scientists for centuries. Though extensively researched, our understanding remains fragmented, primarily due to the multifaceted interactions that span across varying scales. Achieving an accurate grasp of the precise contact conditions between objects has been a longstanding challenge, a feat recently made possible through advancements in scanning probe microscopy. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-hot-unraveling-mystery-dynamic-friction.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Tue, 03 Oct 2023 10:08:28 EDT news615546505 Scientists at the Materials Research Center (MRC), Indian Institute of Science (IISc), have developed a new type of enzyme mimetic that can degrade toxic chemicals in industrial wastewater effectively in the presence of sunlight. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-scientists-nanozyme-mimetic-degrades-effluents.html Bio & Medicine Nanomaterials Tue, 03 Oct 2023 09:34:05 EDT news615544441 A team of chemical and biological engineers working with a group of nanotechnologists at Northwestern University in Illinois has developed a type of super-strong colloidal crystal metamaterial by gluing together metal nanostructures using strands of DNA. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-dna-nanostructures-ultra-strong-colloidal-crystal.html Bio & Medicine Nanomaterials Mon, 02 Oct 2023 11:30:04 EDT news615464615 Industry has long relied upon energy-intensive processes, such as distillation and crystallization, to separate molecules that ultimately serve as ingredients in medicine, chemicals and other products. https://phys.org/news/2023-09-molecules-requires-lot-energy-nanoporous.html Nanomaterials Sat, 30 Sep 2023 13:10:02 EDT news615124919 In a multi-year project, researchers at Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden have developed plasmonic plastic—a type of composite material with unique optical properties that can be 3D-printed. This research has now resulted in 3D-printed optical hydrogen sensors that could play an important role in the transition to green energy and industry. https://phys.org/news/2023-09-3d-printed-plasmonic-plastic-enables-large-scale.html Nanomaterials Thu, 28 Sep 2023 16:58:04 EDT news615139081 In a recent study published in Science Advances, researchers from the California Institute of Technology, led by Dr. Wei Gao, have developed a machine learning (ML)–powered 3D-printed epifluidic electronic skin for multimodal health surveillance. This wearable platform enables real-time physical and chemical monitoring of health status. https://phys.org/news/2023-09-scientists-3d-printed-epifluidic-electronic-skin.html Bio & Medicine Nanomaterials Thu, 28 Sep 2023 12:51:49 EDT news615124300 Case Western Reserve University physicists are developing ultra-thin optical coatings that could dramatically extend the life of solar panels, as well as improve areas like data storage, or protection against counterfeiting. https://phys.org/news/2023-09-methods-ultra-vibrant-optical-coatingsapplications-solar.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Thu, 28 Sep 2023 10:19:30 EDT news615115161 Stirring can allow the dispersion of substances evenly in liquid. Einstein's tea leaf paradox is a concept that shows how tea leaves can concentrate in a doughnut shape through a secondary flow effect during stirring. In a new study published in Science Advances, Zehui Zhang and colleagues in physics and engineering in China, demonstrated the Einstein's tea leaf paradox (abbreviated as ETLP) induced concentration in nanofluids. https://phys.org/news/2023-09-einstein-tea-leaf-paradox-nanofluids.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Thu, 28 Sep 2023 09:55:55 EDT news615113749 The friction on a graphene surface can be dynamically tuned using external electric fields, according to researchers at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign led by Professor Rosa Espinosa-Marzal of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. The work is detailed in the paper, "Dynamically tuning friction at the graphene interface using the field effect," published September 19, 2023, in the journal Nature Communications. https://phys.org/news/2023-09-dynamically-tune-friction-graphene.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Wed, 27 Sep 2023 17:29:03 EDT news615054541