[Images above] Credit: NIST
NANOMATERIALS
Suppressing the Auger recombination process in quantum dots
Researchers at the Institute for Basic Science revealed that the interaction between the transition dipole in cadmium selenide quantum dots and its image formed by the nanostructure can suppress the Auger recombination process by reducing the amplitude of the net transition dipole moment.
Magnetic surprise revealed in ‘magic-angle’ graphene
Brown University researchers showed that by inducing a phenomenon known as spin-orbit coupling, magic-angle graphene becomes a powerful ferromagnet. They induced the phenomenon by interfacing magic-angle graphene with a block of tungsten diselenide, a material that has strong spin-orbit coupling.
Nematicity is a new piece in a phase diagram puzzle
Using scanning tunnelling microscopy and spectroscopy to record the electronic properties of individual atoms, Columbia University researchers recorded twisted graphene at different voltages. They saw stripes in the samples, indicating the presence of a nematic phase characterized by broken rotational symmetry.
Chalcogenide glasses open up to visible and ultraviolet wavelengths
Researchers from Duke University found that nanostructured arsenic trisulphide could react with high-intensity pulses of light in a way that differs from the behavior seen in bulk or even thin-film versions of this chalcogenide glass.
ENERGY
Revitalizing batteries by bringing ‘dead’ lithium back to life
Researchers at SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory and Stanford University found a way to revitalize rechargeable lithium batteries by making them creep like a worm to reconnect with their electrodes in next-gen lithium metal batteries. This approach extended battery life by nearly 30%.
First realistic portraits of squishy layer that’s key to battery performance
Researchers from SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory and Stanford University made the first high-res images of the solid-electrolyte interphase layer in its natural plump, squishy state. This advance was made possible by cryogenic electron microscopy, or cryo-EM, a revolutionary technology that reveals details as small as atoms.
Scientists reduce all-solid-state battery resistance by heating
Researchers from Tokyo Institute of Technology, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, and Yamagata University introduced a strategy to restore the low electrical resistance of all-solid-state batteries by putting the battery through a heat treatment with the negative electrode deposited.
NREL project investigates wind condition impacts on solar power structures
In a new two-year project, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory will work with the Department of Energy Solar Energy Technologies Office to conduct two comprehensive at-scale field measurements of atmospheric turbulent wind conditions and the resulting wind loads on concentrating solar power structures.
ENVIRONMENT
Windows that outsmart the elements
New research from the University of Pittsburgh and the University of Oxford proposes a new smart window design that would harvest the sun’s energy in the winter to warm the house and reflect it in the summer to keep it cool.
MANUFACTURING
Suiting up with Al-Mg-Si: New protective coating for steel to resist corrosion
Researchers from the Korea National Ocean and Maritime University developed a new aluminum-magnesium-silicon alloy that can greatly increase the corrosion resistance of steel. They plated aluminized steel (with aluminum and silicon) with magnesium using physical vapor deposition, and then exposed the coating to a high temperature of 375°C.
OTHER STORIES
Integrated photonics for quantum technologies
An international team of leading scientists has compiled a comprehensive overview of the potential, global outlook, background, and frontiers of integrated photonics. The paper is a roadmap for integrated photonic circuits for quantum technologies.
Fitness sensor warns when you are at your limits
Researchers created a prototype wearable sensor, developed with a new MXene–hydrogel compound, that was able to track muscle movement by producing distinct electrical resistance patterns as mechanical stress increased.
Engineers develop new software tool to aid material modeling research
Penn State and Sandia National Laboratories researchers debuted propSym, an open-source software on the programming platform MATLAB, to calculate the fundamental constants needed to describe the physical properties of solids, such as metals, ceramics, or composites.
This rare metal could soon be replaced in mobile phone screens
Researchers from Paragraf and the Queen Mary University of London fabricated an organic light-emitting diode, where the indium tin oxide anode normally used was replaced with a mono-layer graphene anode.
World’s fastest blade runner gets no competitive advantage from prostheses, study shows
A new study conducted at the University of Colorado at Boulder found that bilateral leg amputee sprinters using running prostheses have no clear competitive advantage at the 400-meter distance compared to sprinters with biological legs and, in fact, appear to have a significant disadvantage at the start.