[Images above] Credit: NIST
NANOMATERIALS
Superconductivity and ferroelectricity found in the same 2D material
Columbia University researchers found evidence that two competing phenomena—superconductivity and ferroelectricity—can occur within bilayer Td-MoTe2. They say this study is the first time a tunable switch between ferroelectricity and superconductivity has ever been seen.
More links are not necessarily better for hybrid nanomaterials
Chemists from Rice University and the University of Texas at Austin discovered more is not always better when it comes to packing charge-acceptor molecules on the surface of semiconducting nanocrystals.
Simulations transform coal-like material to amorphous graphite and nanotubes
A team at Ohio University used the Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center’s Bridges-2 system to carry out a series of simulations showing how coal might eventually be converted to valuable—and carbon-neutral—materials like graphite and carbon nanotubes.
ENERGY
Researchers develop efficient sodium-ion battery anode for energy storage
Researchers led by Pusan National University used quinacridones as precursors to prepare carbonaceous sodium-ion battery anodes. The anodes exhibited a high rate capability (290 mAh/g at 0.05 A/g ) and great cycle stability (134 mAh/g at 5 A/g for 1,000 cycles).
Lithium-sulfur batteries are one step closer to powering the future
Argonne National Laboratory researchers advanced sulfur-based battery research by creating a layer within the battery that adds energy storage capacity while nearly eliminating a traditional problem with sulfur batteries that caused corrosion.
Phase heterojunction solar cell is a first
Researchers at Dresden University of Technology developed a new type of heterojunction solar cell that uses two polymorphs of a single material: caesium lead iodide. They report that the top layer of gamma-perovskite improves the performance of the solar cells by passivating defects at the surface of the bottom beta-phase layer.
BIOMATERIALS
Piezoelectric nanoparticles provide deep brain stimulation without invasive surgery
Researchers from Pohang University of Science and Technology are developing a noninvasive neural stimulation strategy based on piezoelectric nanoparticles. The nanoparticles serve two functions: transient opening of the blood–brain barrier and stimulating dopamine release, both controlled by externally applied focused ultrasound.
MANUFACTURING
New process to create freestanding membranes of ‘smart’ materials
Researchers led by University of Minnesota Twin Cities developed a new method based on hybrid molecular beam epitaxy for making thin films of perovskite oxide semiconductors.
Investigating the laser-induced periodic surface structure of silicon
A Japanese research collaboration led by scientists from Nagoya Institute of Technology directly investigated how laser choice influences laser-induced periodic surface structures (LIPSS). LIPSS has been earmarked as a novel and prospective alternative method for creating structures on submicron scales.
OTHER STORIES
Riddle solved: Why was Roman concrete so durable?
Researchers from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard University, and laboratories in Italy and Switzerland argued that tiny lime clasts in Roman concrete, previously disregarded as evidence of sloppy mixing practices, gave the concrete a previously unrecognized self-healing capability.
Electronic bridge allows rapid energy sharing between semiconductors
Researchers led by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory discovered that electrons play a surprising role in how energy is transferred between layers of 2D tungsten diselenide and tungsten disulfide. Although the layers are not tightly bonded to one another, electrons provide a bridge between them that facilitates rapid heat transfer.
Mechanism of fatigue damage by high thermal loads in tungsten composites
The relationship between microstructure evolution and property degradation of two representative second-phase dispersion strengthened tungsten materials after electron beam thermal loading was investigated by a collaborative research team from Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences.