[Images above] Credit: NIST
NANOMATERIALS
Unmasking the magic of superconductivity in twisted graphene
Princeton University researchers reported an uncanny resemblance between the superconductivity of magic bilayer graphene and that of high-temperature superconductors. Future research will involve trying to understand what causes electrons to pair in unconventional superconductivity.
How pearls achieve nanoscale precision
A University of Michigan-led team uncovered for the first time how mollusks build ultradurable structures with a level of symmetry that outstrips everything else in the natural world, with the exception of individual atoms.
Controlling light with a material three atoms thick
California Institute of Technology researchers used three layers of phosphorus atoms to create a material for polarizing light that is tunable, precise, and extremely thin. In contrast to graphene, which has perfectly flat layers, black phosphorus’s layers are ribbed, giving it significantly anisotropic optical properties.
ENERGY
New technique paves the way for perfect perovskites
Researchers developed a new technique that allows for the synthesis, characterization, and testing of a perovskite solar material all at the same time. The technique involves the use of a new instrument that uses X-ray and visible laser light to probe a perovskite material’s crystal structure and optical properties as it is synthesized.
Simulations herald rethink for all-inorganic perovskite solar cells
Researchers at the University of California, Santa Barbara compared the recombination rates of a common hybrid perovskite with those of a prototypical all-inorganic sibling. They discovered that while the common sample is more chemically stable, it faces a significant second source of nonradiative loss, which impacts its efficiency.
Insight could lead to better silicon solar panels
Researchers at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and Colorado School of Mines used electron paramagnetic resonance to identify defects responsible for light-induced degradation. The examination revealed a distinct defect signature as the sample solar cells became more degraded by light.
MANUFACTURING
Running shoe material inspired 3D-printed design to protect buildings from impact damage
A material used in running shoes and memory foam pillows inspired the design of a 3D-printed product that could help protect buildings from collision damage and other high impact forces, equivalent to a car travelling at 60 km/hr.
OTHER STORIES
Scientists use sintered porous media to build compact, efficient heat exchangers
Researchers from The University of Electro-Communications and Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, Japan, compared the heat transfer performance of tubes filled with a sintered porous material to that of normal conventional heat transfer tubes.
Need for larger space telescope inspires lightweight flexible holographic lens
Inspired by a concept for discovering exoplanets with a giant space telescope, a team of researchers is developing holographic lenses that render visible and infrared starlight into either a focused image or a spectrum.
Stretchy, bendy, flexible LEDs
Researchers at Washington University in St. Louis developed a way to print stretchy light-emitting diodes on unconventional surfaces using an inkjet printer. They made the LEDs stretchy by embedding the inorganic perovskite crystals into an organic, polymer matrix made of polymer binders.
Researchers make hardened wooden knives that slice through steak
Researchers developed a method that makes wood 23 times harder, and a knife made from the wood is nearly three times sharper than a stainless-steel dinner knife. Their process involves removing the weaker components while not destroying the cellulose skeleton.
New book on magma redox geochemistry
ACerS lifetime member Daniel R. Neuville and his colleague Roberto Moretti edited an American Geophysical Union monograph on magma redox geochemistry. View the monograph at this link.
Free mini audio summit: Get the STEM Job in 2022
The free mini audio summit “Get the STEM Job in 2022” provides interviews with experts in networking, interviewing, and negotiating to help you land a job in STEM. The interviews will be available Nov. 8–12, 2021. Each recording is approximately 40 minutes.