Jul 21, 2022 (Nanowerk News) Graphene consists of carbon atoms that crosslink in a plane to form a flat honeycomb structure. In addition to surprisingly high mechanical stability, the material has exciting electronic properties: The electrons behave like massless particles, which can be clearly demonstrated in spectrometric experiments. Measurements reveal...
Inspired by nature, artificial microtubules can work against a current to transport tiny cargoes
Jul 21, 2022 (Nanowerk News) Like a microscopic bucket brigrade, an artificial microtubule can rapidly transport tiny particles along magnetic stepping stones, delivering them to a precise location even when operating against a strong current. The technology, developed by a team from the University of Pennsylvania and ETH Zürich, may...
First steps towards high-speed motors for fuel cell components
Jul 21, 2022 (Nanowerk News) The transport sector is transforming towards climate-friendly powertrains with significantly reduced CO2 emissions. The electrification of powertrains remains a major challenge not only for trucks, buses, trains, and ships but also for aircraft. These applications cannot be realized in the future with batteries because of...
Why Jupiter doesn’t have rings like Saturn
Jul 21, 2022 (Nanowerk News) Because it’s bigger, Jupiter ought to have larger, more spectacular rings than Saturn has. But new UC Riverside research shows Jupiter’s massive moons prevent that vision from lighting up the night sky. “It’s long bothered me why Jupiter doesn’t have even more amazing rings that...
First electric nanomotor made from DNA material
Jul 21, 2022 (Nanowerk News) A research team led by the Technical University of Munich (TUM) has succeeded for the first time in producing a molecular electric motor using the DNA origami method ("A DNA origami rotary ratchet motor"). The tiny machine made of genetic material self-assembles and converts electrical...
AI-assisted analysis of three-dimensional galaxy distribution in our universe
Jul 21, 2022 (Nanowerk News) By applying a machine-learning technique, a neural network method, to gigantic amounts of simulation data about the formation of cosmic structures in the universe, a team of researchers has developed a very fast and highly efficient software program that can make theoretical predictions about structure...
A molecular encryption key from sequence-defined polymers
Jul 20, 2022 (Nanowerk News) Many people and companies worry about sensitive data getting hacked, so encrypting files with digital keys has become more commonplace. Now, researchers reporting in ACS Central Science ("Molecular Encryption and Steganography Using Mixtures of Simultaneously Sequenced, Sequence-Defined Oligourethanes") have developed a durable molecular encryption key...
iTEARS could help diagnose diseases by isolating biomarkers in tears
Jul 20, 2022 (Nanowerk News) Going to the doctor might make you want to cry, and according to a new study, doctors could someday put those tears to good use. In ACS Nano ("Discovering the Secret of Diseases by Incorporated Tear Exosomes Analysis via Rapid-Isolation System: iTEARS"), researchers report a...
Tunable single-mode lasing on a high-Q resonator
Jul 20, 2022 (Nanowerk News) Crystalline lithium niobate (LN) is considered the “silicon of photonics” because of its outstanding optical properties, including a broad transparency window and high piezoelectric, acousto-optic, second-order nonlinear, and electro-optic coefficients, which are critical for photonic integrated circuit (PIC) applications. Recent breakthroughs in nanofabrication technology facilitate...
Magnetic memory milestone
Jul 20, 2022 (Nanowerk News) Computers and smartphones have different kinds of memory, which vary in speed and power efficiency depending on where they are used in the system. Typically, larger computers, especially those in data centers, will use a lot of magnetic hard drives, which are less common in...