[Images above] Credit: NIST
NANOMATERIALS
Novel technology for distinguishing elements at subnanometer scale
University of Wyoming researchers combined X-ray adsorption spectroscopy and scanning tunneling microscopy to distinguish elements at the subnanometer scale on the surfaces of high entropy alloys.
BIOMATERIALS
Borophene may improve implantable technology
Researchers at The Pennsylvania State University made borophene potentially more useful by imparting chirality on it. The chirality enables the material to interact in unique ways with different biological units, such as cells and protein precursors.
Toward transparent and antimicrobial surfaces for touch displays
Researchers from ICFO and Corning developed a durable and transparent antimicrobial nanostructured surface by dewetting ultrathin metal copper films on a glass substrate. The surface showed the ability to eliminate over 99.9% of Staphylococcus aureus present in the tested surfaces within two hours, under stringent dry test conditions.
ENVIRONMENT
Cold sintering may rescue plastic, ceramics, battery components from landfills
In three recent papers, researchers at The Pennsylvania State University outline three new uses for cold sintering that advance recycling in materials science.
New eco-friendly lubricant additives protect turbine equipment, waterways
Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers developed lubricant additives that protect both water turbine equipment and the surrounding environment. The additives are ionic liquids consisting of ammonium phosphate and phosphonium phosphate.
MANUFACTURING
Nanotechnology for creating wafer-scale nanoparticle monolayers in seconds
Researchers from Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology developed a “one-shot” self-limiting assembly technique that can efficiently transfer nanoparticles from microscopic volumes to a 2-inch wafer scale within 10 seconds while providing maximal surface coverage.
Self-embedding silver nanoparticles: Researchers find ‘silver lining’ in cotton gin waste
Researchers from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service revealed the ability of cotton gin waste to synthesize and generate silver nanoparticles in the presence of silver ions.
OTHER STORIES
When injecting pure spin into chiral materials, direction matters
Researchers from North Carolina State University and the University of Pittsburgh studied how the spin information of an electron, called a pure spin current, moves through chiral materials. They found that the direction in which the spins are injected into chiral materials affects their ability to pass through them.
This sound-suppressing silk can create quiet spaces
Massachusetts Institute of Technology researchers developed a silk fabric, which is barely thicker than a human hair, that can suppress unwanted noise and reduce noise transmission in a large room.
Exploration of raw materials and firing technology for Xing porcelain
Researchers from Shanghai Institute of Ceramics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences made new progress in understanding the raw materials and firing technology used to create porcelain in the Xing Kiln during the late 6th century.
Tiny displacements, giant changes in optical properties
Researchers from the University of Southern California found that tiny displacements of just a few picometers in the atomic structure of a crystal could have minimal impacts on optical properties in one direction but produce giant functional enhancements when viewed from another angle.
