Nanotechnology News – Latest Headlines

Nanoengineered cement shows promise for sealing leaky gas wells

Leaking natural gas wells are considered a potential source of methane emissions, and a new nanomaterial cement mixture could provide an effective, affordable solution for sealing these wells.

Dec 15th, 2020

How water helps the substrate into the enzyme

Scientists have investigated why cages can increase the catalytic activity of enclosed molecules. Using terahertz spectroscopy and complex computer simulations, they showed that water encapsulated in a tiny cage has special properties - that are structurally and dynamically distinct from any known phase of water.

Dec 15th, 2020

Novel nanomaterial strain sensors are ultra-thin, battery-free and can transmit data wirelessly

Researchers have taken the first step towards improving the safety and precision of industrial robotic arms by developing a new range of nanomaterial strain sensors that are 10 times more sensitive when measuring minute movements, compared to existing technology.

Dec 15th, 2020

Toward imperceptible electronics that you cannot see or feel

Researchers have fabricated ultrathin, flexible, transparent sensors with cross-aligned silver nanowire microelectrodes fabricated using print technique that are scalable and require minimal raw materials.

Dec 14th, 2020

Industrial waste is reused to produce alternatives to plastic

Researchers reused bacterial cellulose scraps usually thrown away by manufacturers of wound dressings to make strong biodegradable film for food packaging.

Dec 14th, 2020

Reducing pesticide use with nanoparticles

Scientists have discovered how certain silica nanoparticles could act as a traceless, degradable, and highly efficient treatment against some plant pathogens.

Dec 14th, 2020

When less is more: A single layer of atoms boosts the nonlinear generation of light

Researchers show that structures built around a single layer of graphene allow for strong optical nonlinearities that can convert light.

Dec 14th, 2020

Physics discovery leads to ballistic optical materials

Scientists have found a way to create more efficient metamaterials using semiconductors and a novel aspect of physics that amplifies the activity of electrons.

Dec 14th, 2020

Researchers investigate photosensitive carbon nanoparticles

Researchers have managed to identify the fundamental problems relating to the photophysics and photochemistry of carbon nanocolloids, and ascertain possible approaches for research into these readily available, non-toxic and adaptable nanomaterials.

Dec 14th, 2020

'Magic' angle graphene and the creation of unexpected topological quantum states

Electrons inhabit a strange and topsy-turvy world. These infinitesimally small particles have never ceased to amaze and mystify despite the more than a century that scientists have studied them. Now, in an even more amazing twist, physicists have discovered that, under certain conditions, interacting electrons can create what are called 'topological quantum states'.

Dec 14th, 2020

Bacterial nanopores open the future of data storage

Bioengineers have developed a nanopore-based system that can read data encoded into synthetic macromolecules with higher accuracy and resolution than similar methods on the market. The system is also potentially cheaper and longer-lasting, and overcomes limitations that prevent us from moving away from conventional data storage devices that are rapidly maxing out in capacity and endurance.