[Images above] Credit: NIST
NANOMATERIALS
Phosphorene nanoribbons live up to hype in first demonstration
Researchers led by Imperial College London and University College London used phosphorene nanoribbons to significantly improve the efficiency of a new kind of solar cell made from perovskites.
Technique tunes into graphene nanoribbons’ electronic potential
Researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and UC Berkeley developed a method to stabilize the edges of graphene nanoribbons and directly measure their unique magnetic properties.
Scientists turn carbon nanotubes into tiny transistors
Using a transmission electron microscope, materials scientists led by the International Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics in Japan and Queensland University of Technology in Australia created a carbon nanotube transistor that is 25,000 smaller than the width of a human hair.
Nanotube fibers stand strong—but for how long?
Rice University researchers calculated how strains and stresses affect both “perfect” nanotubes and those assembled into fibers and found that while fibers under cyclic loads can fail over time, the tubes themselves may remain perfect.
ENERGY
X-ray technique offers new view inside active batteries
A new X-ray technique developed at Cornell University offers an unprecedented look at the elaborate inner workings of batteries while they are in use. The technique, developed using the Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source, combines X-ray absorption spectroscopy with X-ray diffraction.
Toshiba claims 8.4% efficiency for transparent cuprous oxide solar cell
Japanese electronics manufacturer Toshiba announced an 8.4% power conversion efficiency for a transparent cuprous oxide thin-film solar cell. The record efficiency was achieved by engineering the cell with reduced copper(II) oxide and copper impurities in the thin-film deposition.
Fueling the future with new perovskite-related oxide-ion conductors
Researchers at Tokyo Tech, Kojundo Chemical Laboratory Co. Ltd., and Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organization developed stable and high oxide-ion conductors based on a new hexagonal perovskite-related oxide.
Researchers develop promising anode material for ultrafast charging
Researchers from Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology developed an anode material for lithium-ion batteries that allows for ultrafast charging. Produced via a simple, environmentally sound approach involving the calcination of a bio-based polymer, this novel material retained most of its initial capacity over thousands of cycles.
‘Nanochocolates’ that store hydrogen
A team led by researchers at the German Electron Synchrotron DESY developed tiny nanoparticles made of palladium, iridium, and graphene that can store hydrogen. Current methods of storing hydrogen are costly, so this approach could be more economical.
ENVIRONMENT
Astronomers elaborate on options to reduce impact of satellite megaconstellations
The American Astronomical Society and the National Science Foundation’s NOIRLab released a set of reports on October 29 that flesh out policy options for reducing light pollution from planned satellite “megaconstellations,” which threaten to undermine the viability of ground-based observatories.
MANUFACTURING
A new platform for controlled design of printed electronics with 2D materials
Researchers led by Imperial College London and Politecnico di Torino revealed the physical mechanisms responsible for the transport of electricity in printed 2D materials. They investigated three typical types of 2D materials: graphene (semimetal), molybdenum disulphide (semiconductor), and titanium carbide MXene (metal).
OTHER STORIES
Semiconductors reach the quantum world
Researchers at the Paul Scherrer Institute PSI and Cornell University in New York State identified a composite material made of the superconductor niobium nitride and the semiconductor gallium nitride that could integrate quantum devices into semiconductor technology, making electronic components significantly more powerful.
3D semiconductor particles offer 2D properties
Cornell University researchers discovered that the junctures at the facet edges of 3D bismuth vanadate particles have 2D properties, which can be leveraged for photoelectrochemical processes that can boost solar energy conversion technologies.
Self-healing nanomaterials usable in solar panels and other electronic devices
Researchers from Technion – Israel Institute of Technology developed eco-friendly, lead-free perovskite nanocrystals capable of self-healing.
New concrete that ‘gains shape instantaneously’ used to 3D print house in Angola
Mexican building material supplier Cemex and 3D printer manufacturer COBOD developed a means of turning regular concrete into a more versatile aggregate, and deployed it with contractor Power2Build to build Angola’s first 3D-printed home.