[Image above] Credit: ACerS
NANOMATERIALS
Large area MoS₂ reduces energy loss in magnetic memory films
University of Manchester researchers discovered that placing magnetic films on atomically thin molybdenum disulfide fundamentally changes how they lose energy, a finding that could bring 2D‑material spintronics closer to real devices.
Tracking mineral growth on bioorganic coatings in real time at the nanoscale
Jeonbuk National University researchers studied how two coating materials, zein and polydopamine, affect calcium phosphate formation on titanium dioxide nanoparticles. The coating’s surface chemistry affects nucleation and crystal growth, with polydopamine-coated particles accumulating about 37% more mineral mass than zein-coated particles.
ENERGY
How a 270-year-old physics trick could supercharge affordable battery technology
Researchers from the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Bhopal, the Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar, Swansea University, and the University of Southern Queensland explored how the Leidenfrost effect can help create more stable, longer-lasting sodium-ion batteries.
INL researchers build first microreactor control system in decades
Idaho National Laboratory researchers designed the new Microreactor Applications Research Validation and Evaluation reactor to demonstrate advanced microreactor applications such as chemical production, electricity for remote locations, and heat for industry. The system uses two mechanical reactivity control mechanisms to help keep it small.
Electrons catapult across solar materials in just 18 femtoseconds
In experiments lasting just 18 femtoseconds, University of Cambridge researchers observed electrons blasting across a boundary in a single burst, far faster than long-standing theories predicted. Instead of slow, random movement, the electron rides the natural vibrations of the molecule itself, challenging decades of design rules for solar materials.
Researchers create a brighter future for photovoltaic cells—without the sun
Electrical and computer engineers at the University of California, Davis, theoretically demonstrated a thermophotovoltaic system that can achieve a power conversion efficiency rate of 50%. Thermophotovoltaic systems use photovoltaic cells to create electricity through heat energy rather than sunlight.
BIOMATERIALS
Real-time imaging of microplastics in the body improves understanding of health risks
Tokyo University of Science researchers developed fluorescent dye-loaded nanosized, irregularly shaped microplastics to track their movement in real time, following ingestion, through deep-tissue imaging.
ENVIRONMENT
In cooperation with partners from four European countries, researchers at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology are working in the EU-financed C-SINC project on a climate-friendly material that can partly replace cement. They are using magnesium silicates to permanently bind carbon dioxide in mineral form.
MANUFACTURING
Multiscale structural design of ZrC via two-step in-situ reactive spark plasma sintering
Material scientists from Harbin University of Science and Technology and Harbin Institute of Technology developed a multiscale microstructure design for zirconium carbide-based ceramics through a two-step in-situ reactive spark plasma sintering process. The resulting ceramic achieved a flexural strength of about 824 MPa and fracture toughness of about 7.5 MPa·m1/2.
Two University of Pittsburgh engineers secured a highly competitive $600,000, three-year grant from the National Academies’ National Cooperative Highway Research Program to pinpoint the root causes of longitudinal cracking and create predictive models for integration into design software.
Atom-thin material could help solve chip manufacturing problem
Researchers at The Pennsylvania State University found that a 2D material, chromium oxychloride, dramatically outperforms conventional hard mask materials used in chip fabrication.
OTHER STORIES
Engineers improve infrared devices using century-old materials
Stanford University researchers integrated some of the oldest semiconductor materials—lead selenide and lead tin selenide—with modern technology, leading to a new type of infrared diode and a new way to control infrared light.
Mapping the expanding cosmos: Dark Energy Survey unveils clearest picture yet
The Dark Energy Survey collaborative released an analysis that gives the clearest picture yet of how dark energy is driving the universe’s expansion and how matter—including galaxies and groups of galaxies—has been organized over cosmic time. The analysis combines six years of data and four cosmic probes.
Material previously thought to be quantum is actually new, nonquantum state of matter
Rice University researchers found that cerium magnesium hexalluminate was not actually in a quantum spin liquid phase despite evidence suggesting it was. Instead, careful analysis of the continuum of states indicates that it instead arises from degeneration of states from the competition of ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic interactions.
Authors are not disclosing AI use
Emerging research seems to show that there is a wealth of published papers in which authors use artificial intelligence without disclosure. One study found that 62% of researchers reported using AI at some point in their research and publication process, but another study that randomly reviewed 200 articles found only two author declarations.