Nov 27, 2024 (Nanowerk News) A team of researchers led by Anna-Karin Gustavsson at Rice University has developed an innovative imaging platform that promises to improve our understanding of cellular structures at the nanoscale. This platform, called soTILT3D for single-objective tilted light sheet with 3D point spread functions (PSFs), offers...
Velcro DNA helps build nanorobotic Meccano
Nov 27, 2024 (Nanowerk News) Researchers at the University of Sydney Nano Institute have made a significant advance in the field of molecular robotics by developing custom-designed and programmable nanostructures using DNA origami. This innovative approach has potential across a range of applications, from targeted drug delivery systems to responsive...
Atomic size differences guide nanoscale structural control of metal aerogels
Nov 27, 2024 (Nanowerk Spotlight) Chemical reactions power everything from industrial manufacturing to clean energy production, but their efficiency depends critically on catalysts - materials that speed up reactions without being consumed. The key to a catalyst's performance lies in its microscopic architecture, which determines how easily molecules can reach...
Engineers knit a ‘blanket’ of sophisticated radio-frequency antennas
Nov 27, 2024 (Nanowerk News) Imagine taking the radio frequency properties of the dish antennas you see on rooftops and knitting them into a wearable garment -- a sweater or a blanket that is ultralight, portable, easy to fold up and stow away. Not having to use heavy, bulky satellite...
Paving the way for graphene biosensor based diagnostics
Nov 27, 2024 (Nanowerk News) Two-dimensional materials such as graphene are not only ultrathin, but also extremely sensitive. Researchers have therefore been trying for years to develop highly sensitive biosensors that utilise this property. Graphene-based field-effect transistors, for example, could register the tiniest changes in the electronic properties caused by...
Electrically defined quantum dots in zinc oxide
Nov 26, 2024 (Nanowerk News) Researchers have successfully created electrically defined quantum dots in zinc oxide (ZnO) heterostructures, marking a significant milestone in the development of quantum technologies. Details of their breakthrough were published in the journal Nature Communications ("Parity-independent Kondo effect of correlated electrons in electrostatically defined ZnO quantum...
Breakthrough in carbon nanotube applications for battery dry process
Nov 26, 2024 (Nanowerk News) A research team led by Dr. Joong Tark Han at the Korea Electrotechnology Research Institute (KERI) Nano Hybrid Technology Research Center has developed the world’s first technology for producing highly dispersible carbon nanotube (CNT) powder, which can be easily applicable to environmentally-friendly secondry battery dry...
Exploring optical cooling in semiconductor quantum dots
Nov 26, 2024 (Nanowerk News) Cooling systems are an integral part of many modern technologies, as heat tends to wear down materials and decrease performance in several ways. In many cases, however, cooling can be an inconvenient and energy-intensive process. Accordingly, scientists have been seeking innovative and efficient methods to...
Scientists pioneer novel heat-to-electricity conversion
Nov 26, 2024 (Nanowerk News) Thermoelectric materials, which convert heat into electricity, are valuable tools for capturing waste heat and turning it into usable electricity. These materials are especially useful in industries and vehicles where engines produce a lot of waste heat, improving energy efficiency by converting it into additional...
How catalysts secretly lose their stability
Nov 26, 2024 (Nanowerk News) Covalent organic frameworks (COFs) are less stable as catalysts than previously thought but remain highly active. COFs are promising designer catalysts, for example for the sustainable production of chemicals and fuels. Their properties can be adjusted very specifically to catalyze a desired reaction based on...