News in Brief [67-91]
Jiangping Hu and Ningning Hao at Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, and Department of Physics, Purdue University, West Lafayette, USA, present a symmetry-based effective microscopic theory of simplicity that makes an extraordinary stride, in a new direction, toward the ultimate answers to these challenging questions.
Researchers sponsored by Semiconductor Research Corporation (SRC) developed new sensor-based metrology technology that can significantly reduce water and related energy usage during semiconductor manufacturing. The sensor-based real-time monitoring approach showed 30% less water and energy used for ultra-clean chip production.
Greg Lowry, Professor of Environmental Engineering at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, USA, and Deputy Director of the Center for Environmental Implications of Nanotechnology (CEINT), and his research colleagues present in Environmental Science & Technology in July a research paper on nanomaterials and the impact in the environment.
Yissum Research and Development Company of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, introduces a novel biocontrol agent that is based on naturally-occurring fungi that increase the plant's resistance to fungal and bacterial infestations as well as enhances growth.
Researcher at KAIST in Korea present a flexible thin-film LIB developed using the universal transfer approach, which enables the realization of diverse flexible LIBs regardless of electrode chemistry. Moreover, it can form high-temperature (HT) annealed electrodes on polymer substrates for high-performance lithium-ion batteries.
Researcher report the first structural study on the atomistic processes of a ligand-exchange reaction of a well-defined gold nanoparticle that has 102 gold atoms and 44 ligand sites in the molecular overlayer.
Fraunhofer (DE) researchers in the USA are investigating materials to protect solar cells from environmental influences. Silicone is one of the promising materials. In order to determine if silicone could replace the ethylene-vinyl acetate a team of experts worked together: researchers from Fraunhofer and from Dow Corning Corporation. The scientists coated photovoltaic cells with liquid silicone.
US Researchers have for the first time experimentally demonstrated surface-only charge conduction in a topological insulator, and have theoretically explained the conduction using techniques previously applied successfully to the understanding of graphene.
Researchers at Cambridge University (UK) report a way to make artificial nacre for the first time using CaCO3 as the main component. The new method could lead to tough coatings from inexpensive starting materials.
Researchers from the University of Toronto and KAUST) have made a breakthrough in the development of colloidal quantum dot (CQD) films, leading to the most efficient CQD solar cell ever. The U of T cell represents a 37% increase in efficiency over the previous certified record.
For the first time, researchers from CNRS and Aix Marseille Université (FR) have succeeded in producing a nanoantenna from short strands of DNA, two gold nanoparticles and a small fluorescent molecule that captures and emits light.
Researchers at Alzahra University successfully made it to modify a glassy carbon electrode (GCE) with multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) to obtain an efficient catalyst for the oxidation reaction of sulfaguanidine (SG) as well as its detection within environmental samples.
Researchers have determined important information about the nanoscale properties of materials called relaxors, which can be used in electronic devices to change temperature or shape. The discoveries may help maximize efficient use of relaxors to create better medical ultrasound, sensors and heart implants.
Researcher at Catalan Institute of Nanotechnology, CIN2 (ICN-CSIC), Spain, and Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Campus UAB-Facultat de Biociències, Spain, present a new strategy for a simple and fast detection of cancer circulating cells (CTCs) using nanoparticles.
Researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Engineering and Automation IPA in Stuttgart, Germany, are working on paints for building façades which contain titanium dioxide particles.
A new sensor system from the Fraunhofer Institute for Telecommunications, Heinrich Hertz Institute HHI can help to detect weak points on time and warn yachtsmen when breaking point has been reached.
Robert L. Mauck and Brendon M. Baker, University of Pennsylvania (US), have developed and validated a new technology in which composite nanofibrous scaffolds provide a loose enough structure for cells to colonize without impediment, but still can instruct cells how to lay down new tissue.
Imitating the antennas of the silkmoth, Bombyx mori, to design a system for detecting explosives with unparalleled performance is the feat achieved by a team from the "Nanomatériaux pour Systèmes sous Sollicitations Extrêmes" unit (CNRS / Institut Franco-Allemand de Recherches de Saint-Louis), in collaboration with the Laboratoire des Matériaux, Surfaces et Procédés pour la Catalyse (CNRS / Université de Strasbourg).
Using the pyroelectric effect, researcher at Gatech, USA, and Beijing Institute of Nanoenergy and Nanosystems, CAS, China, experimentally demonstrate the first application of pyroelectric ZnO nanowire arrays for converting heat energy into electricity. The fabricated nanogenerator has a good stability.
Researcher at Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST), South Korea, have found a way to cut battery charging times for e-cars from hours down to minutes. The rate capability can be improved in lithium ion batteries (LIBs) by reducing the dimensions of the active material; however, the LIBs would then have insufficient electrode density.
A joint study by the University of Missouri and United States Geological Survey found that CNTs can be toxic to aquatic animals.
A report, on development of a new flexible "aerogel" stuff so light it has been called "solid smoke" was part of the 244th National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society. Mary Ann B. Meador, Ph.D., explained that traditional aerogels, developed decades ago and made from silica, found in beach sand, are brittle, and break and crumble easily. Scientists have improved the strength of aerogels over the years, and Meador described one of these muscled-up materials developed with colleagues at the NASA Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, Ohio.
Prof. Dr. Sherif El-Safty, Japan, developed a nanomaterial which enables simple detection and removal of arsenic from drinking water.
A study found that lung cells were not affected by short fibres that were less than five-thousandths of a millimetre long. However, longer fibres can reach the lung cavity, where they become stuck and cause disease. Ken Donaldson, Professor of Respiratory Toxicology: "We knew that long fibres, compared with shorter fibres, could cause tumours but until now we did not know the cut-off length at which this happened. Knowing the length beyond which the tiny fibres can cause disease is important in ensuring that safe fibres are made in the future as well as helping to understand the current risk from asbestos and other fibres."[page 91]
|
Comments