[Images above] Credit: NIST
NANOMATERIALS
Creating perfect edges in 2D materials
Researchers at Chalmers University of Technology developed a method for controlling the edges of 2D materials using hydrogen peroxide. The new method, which includes a combination of standard top-down lithographic methods with a new anisotropic wet etching process, makes it possible to create perfect edges.
Graphene doping reaches new levels
Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research added an excessive amount of charge carriers to graphene, moving the material away from the Dirac point to a Van Hove point and, reportedly for the first time, even beyond.
ENERGY
Review of perovskite tandem solar cells
Two researchers from University of Surrey published a review summarizing the recent progress in improving perovskite tandem solar cells power conversion efficiencies, including thickness adjustment of perovskite, improving the transparency of perovskite solar cells, and more effective protective layers, among other things.
Colorful perovskites: Thermochromic window technologies
By using a different chemical composition and materials, National Renewable Energy Laboratory researchers were able to rapidly speed up the color transformation in their thermochromic photovoltaic window.
Tough love: intense glare helps next-gen solar tech through awkward phase
Researchers in Australia showed high-intensity light will reverse light-induced phase segregation in mixed-halide perovskites, enabling bandgap control and maximizing efficiency for potential photovoltaic applications.
BIOMATERIALS
Diamond-studded silk wound dressing detects infection and improves healing
In research led by RMIT University, smart wound dressings made of silk and nanodiamonds effectively sensed wound temperature (an early sign of infection), promoted healing, and reduced infection from certain bacteria.
MANUFACTURING
3D printer makes stronger, greener concrete
Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley developed a new way to reinforce concrete with a polymer lattice. They used a 3D printer to build octet lattices out of polymer, and then filled them with ultrahigh performance concrete.
OTHER STORIES
How is STEM children’s programming prioritizing diversity?
Michigan State University researchers conducted the first large-scale analysis of characters featured in science, technology, engineering and math-related educational programming. Results revealed that of the characters appearing in STEM television programming for kids ages 3 to 6, Latinx and females are left behind.
Which is more creative, the arts or the sciences?
In a recent paper, researchers from Maastricht University and University of South Australia call for schools and universities to increase their emphasis on teaching creativity, as new research shows it is a core competency across all disciplines and critical for ensuring future job success.
Ultrafast fiber laser produces record high power
Researchers from Friedrich Schiller University Jena developed an ultrafast fiber laser that delivers an average power more than ten times what is available from today’s high-power lasers. They did so by externally combining the output of 12 laser amplifiers.
High pressure is key for better optical fibers
Using computer simulations, researchers at Hokkaido University, The Pennsylvania State University, and their industry collaborators theoretically show that signal loss from silica glass fibers can be reduced by more than 50% if the fibers are produced under high pressure.
Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the University of Maryland developed a microchip technology that can convert invisible near-infrared laser light into any one of a panoply of visible laser colors, including red, orange, yellow, and green.