Jan 19, 2022 (Nanowerk News) Researchers have developed an adaptive liquid lens based on a new electrically responsive fluid called dibutyl adipate (DBA) that changes focal length when a voltage is applied. The lens is lightweight, compact and simple to fabricate, which makes it ideal for mobile phone cameras, endoscopes,...
When graphene speaks, scientists can now listen (w/video)
Jan 19, 2022 (Nanowerk News) It may be true that seeing is believing, but sometimes hearing can be better. Case in point: Two brothers in a Rice University laboratory heard something unusual while making graphene. Ultimately, they determined the sound itself could give them valuable data about the product. The...
Camels’ noses inspire a new humidity sensor
Jan 19, 2022 (Nanowerk News) Camels have a renowned ability to survive on little water. They are also adept at finding something to drink in the vast desert, using noses that are exquisite moisture detectors. In a new study in ACS Nano ("A Camel Nose-Inspired Highly Durable Neuromorphic Humidity Sensor...
Researchers track the lifespan and myriad functions of mRNA
Jan 19, 2022 (Nanowerk News) It took a global pandemic, but the critical role of messenger RNA in all of life’s functions has taken center stage in the past year with the successful rollout of mRNA vaccines to combat the SARS-Cov-2 virus. In two new papers, the lab of Yale’s...
Hubble finds a black hole igniting star formation In a dwarf galaxy
Jan 19, 2022 (Nanowerk News) Often portrayed as destructive monsters that hold light captive, black holes take on a less villainous role in the latest research from NASA's Hubble Space Telescope. A black hole at the heart of the dwarf galaxy Henize 2-10 is creating stars rather than gobbling them...
Solving a crystal’s structure when you’ve only got powder
Jan 19, 2022 (Nanowerk News) Crystals reveal the hidden geometry of molecules to the naked eye. Scientists use crystals to figure out the atomic structure of new materials, but many can’t be grown large enough. Now, a team of researchers report a new technique in Nature that can discover the...
Scientists uncover evidence for an internal ocean in small Saturn moon
Jan 19, 2022 (Nanowerk News) A Southwest Research Institute scientist set out to prove that the tiny, innermost moon of Saturn was a frozen inert satellite and instead discovered compelling evidence that Mimas has a liquid internal ocean. In the waning days of NASA’s Cassini mission, the spacecraft identified a...
Large-scale synthesis of graphene and other 2D materials
Jan 19, 2022 (Nanowerk Spotlight) Since its first demonstration in 2004, the large-scale commercial production of graphene has proven difficult and costly ('large scale' usually defined as weights more than 200 mg or films larger than 200 cm2). For instance, at an estimated cost of $50 000 to $200 000...
Unexpected energy storage capability where water meets metal nanoparticle surfaces
Jan 19, 2022 (Nanowerk News) Researchers from the RESOLV Cluster of Excellence at Ruhr-Universität Bochum (RUB) have used current and voltage measurements on individual nanoparticles to determine that the capacitively stored charge at platinum interfaces can be significantly higher than previously assumed. They attribute this to a special arrangement and...
New p-type near-infrared transparent conducting thin films developed with better performance
Jan 19, 2022 (Nanowerk News) A group of scientists at the Hefei Institutes of Physical Sciences of the Chinese Academy of Sciences has developed new p-type (positive hole) near infrared (NIR) transparent conducting (TC) films with ultra-high conductivity, unveiling a new transparent conducting material (Advanced Optical Materials, "p-Type Near-Infrared Transparent...