[Image above] Credit: ACerS
NANOMATERIALS
Floquet effects observed in graphene
Researchers led by the University of Göttingen directly observed Floquet effects in graphene for the first time. Floquet engineering is a technique in which light pulses precisely modify the properties of a material.
Researchers uncover rare form of iron inside carbon nanotubes
Researchers from Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University revealed an unusual atomic arrangement of iron when confined inside carbon nanotubes. This type of iron phase is unstable in ambient conditions but has unique magnetic properties.
ENERGY
New nuclear requires strong governance to avoid making old mistakes
A new report from the University of Michigan lays out implications of the widespread adoption of small modular reactors and other advanced nuclear reactors. It also provides policy recommendations for the governance of small modular reactors and the uranium supply chain to maximize public benefit.
Graphene breakthrough powers supercapacitors that rival batteries
By redesigning carbon structures into highly curved, accessible graphene networks, Monash University researchers enabled supercapacitors to hold energy levels comparable to traditional lead-acid batteries while releasing that energy far more quickly than conventional battery designs.
ENVIRONMENT
Global demand for rare earths is wreaking havoc on one of Asia’s mightiest river systems
Global demand for rare earth minerals is driving the toxic pollution of some of Asia’s most important rivers, threatening the health and livelihoods of tens of millions of people.
Space is filling with junk and scientists have a fix
In a recent open-access paper, researchers from the University of Surrey examined how familiar ideas like reducing, reusing, and recycling could be built into the way satellites and spacecraft are designed, repaired in orbit, and handled at the end of their service lives.
MANUFACTURING
Overcoming physics problems in 3D printing
Researchers at the University of Maryland, the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, and the University of Tennessee, Knoxville wrote a comprehensive review of the challenges in printing with paste-like materials and how understanding the underlying physics could improve manufacturing reliability.
Innovating stronger 3D-printed structures through advanced simulations
Kennesaw State University researchers showed that adjusting build settings can significantly improve part performance, making a printed component nearly three times stronger and offering a pathway toward safer and more efficient designs.
OTHER STORIES
Scientists achieve breakthrough on quantum signaling
Stanford University researchers introduced a new nanoscale optical device that works at room temperature to entangle the spin of photons and electrons to achieve quantum communication. The device is made of a thin, patterned layer of molybdenum diselenide atop a solid, nanopatterned substrate of silicon.
‘Decorative’ symbols may be visual language shared by Roman glassworkers
Hallie Meredith, a Washington State University art history professor and trained glassblower, showed that symbols once thought decorative on Roman glass cups may actually be ancient makers’ marks.