[Images above] Credit: NIST
NANOMATERIALS
Nanogel could turn germs into batteries, sensors, and more
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology researchers made a new gel of carbon nanotubes and nanoparticles of silica woven together with strands of DNA on which bacteria can grow and thrive. The nanogel host can collect electrons pumped out by the bacteria and conduct them to an anode, essentially creating a living battery.
Carbon nanostructure created that is stronger than diamonds
Researchers at the University of California, Irvine and other institutions architecturally designed plate-nanolattices that are stronger than diamonds as a ratio of strength to density. The nanometer-sized carbon structures consist of closely connected, closed-cell plates instead of the common cylindrical trusses.
ENERGY
X-rays reveal in situ crystal growth of lead-free perovskite solar panel materials
University of Groningen researchers investigated in situ how lead-free perovskite crystals form and how the crystal structure affects the functioning of the solar cells. They found increasing the content of 2D perovskite causes formation of an extended 2D-like organic layer that acts as an insulator, negatively affecting the device’s efficiency.
Researchers develop promising solid electrolyte for solid-state batteries
Researchers at the Korea Institute of Science and Technology developed a superionic halogen-rich lithium-argyrodite that works well as a promising solid electrolyte (Li5.5PS4.5Cl1.5) in all-solid-state batteries without a decreased intrinsic electrochemical window in various electrode configurations.
Ironing out the bumps in perovskite’s solar potential
Australian researchers found they could detect nanoscale surface imperfections created during the manufacturing of perovskites by shining blue light onto the cells and recording the infrared light that bounces back.
Development of new photovoltaic commercialization technology
Researchers at Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology identified the cause of performance degradation in colloidal quantum dot photovoltaic devices and developed a material processing method that stabilizes the performance of the devices.
ENVIRONMENT
A new Johns Hopkins University study found for every percentage point increase in roads, parking lots, and other impervious surfaces that prevent water from flowing into the ground, annual floods increase on average by 3.3%.
Potential for using fiber-optic networks to assess ground motions during earthquakes
A University of Michigan researcher and colleagues at three institutions demonstrated the potential for using existing networks of buried optical fibers as an inexpensive observatory for monitoring and studying earthquakes.
Mystery of noncotectic magmatic rocks
Researchers at University of the Witwatersrand showed that an excess amount of some minerals contained in noncotetic rocks may originate in the feeder conduits along which the magmas are travelling from the deep-seated staging chambers toward Earth’s surface.
MANUFACTURING
X-ray vision through the water window
ETH Zurich researchers developed the first high-repetition-rate laser source that produces coherent soft x-rays spanning the entire “water window.” That technological breakthrough should enable a broad range of studies in the biological, chemical, and materials sciences as well as in physics.
Making big data processing more energy efficient using magnetic circuits
University of Texas at Austin researchers found magnetic wires, spaced a certain way, can lead to a 20–30x reduction in the amount of energy needed to run neural network training algorithms compared to a standard back-propagation algorithm.
OTHER STORIES
Condensed matter: Bethe strings experimentally observed
For the first time, researchers experimentally identified and characterized Bethe strings in a real solid (crystals of SrCo2V2O8) by isolating the strings using a magnetic field. Bethe strings refer to unusual patterns in certain magnetic solids.
A combined optical transmitter and receiver
Researchers at Linköping University, together with colleagues in China, developed a tiny unit that is both an optical transmitter and a receiver. To demonstrate the potential of the diode, which is made from a perovskite, they built a monolithic sensor that detects heart beats in real time and an optical, bidirectional communication system.
First-principles calculations shed light on semiconductor defects
Researchers at East China Normal University and Shanxi University performed the first systematic study of a class of gallium nitride defects known as defect pairs. Their results show that after a high-energy particle strikes GaN and triggers a defect-inducing “collision cascade,” the defect pairs that form are generally stable.
Researchers 3D print minerals to better predict fracture formation
Purdue University researchers 3D printed minerals with various orientations to determine if orientation affects how and where fractures form. They discovered that in rock samples with no layers and no oriented grains, fractures formed smoothly, with no corrugations.
Self-powered X-ray detector to revolutionize imaging for medicine, security, and research
Los Alamos National Laboratory and Argonne National Laboratory researchers created an X-ray detector prototype with dramatic reduction in radiation exposure while also boosting resolution in security scanners and research applications. The detector replaces silicon-based technology with a structure built around a perovskite thin film.