Nanotechnology News – Latest Headlines

Graphene becomes superconductive

Researchers have developed a method to grow high-quality graphene on a silicon carbide crystal by controlling the number of graphene sheets.

Feb 16th, 2016

Advance could aid development of nanoscale biosensors

Imagine a hand-held environmental sensor that can instantly test water for lead, E. coli, and pesticides all at the same time, or a biosensor that can perform a complete blood workup from just a single drop. That's the promise of nanoscale plasmonic interferometry, a technique that combines nanotechnology with plasmonics - the interaction between electrons in a metal and light.

Feb 16th, 2016

Testing the response time of electrons (w/video)

The first visible attosecond pulses allow researchers to determine the delay with which electrons in atoms respond to the electromagnetic forces of light.

Feb 16th, 2016

A new spin on quantum computing: Scientists train electrons with microwaves

In what may provide a potential path to processing information in a quantum computer, researchers have switched an intrinsic property of electrons from an excited state to a relaxed state on demand using a device that served as a microwave 'tuning fork'.

Feb 15th, 2016

Eternal 5D data storage could record the history of humankind

Scientists have made a major step forward in the development of digital data storage that is capable of surviving for billions of years.

Feb 15th, 2016

Changes in shape and 'squishiness' can help drug-containing microcapsules reach tumors

Working at the intersection of polymer chemistry, nanotechnology and biomedical science, researchers are creating novel 'smart' particles that will provide controlled delivery for therapeutic drugs.

Feb 15th, 2016

Novel cancer cell detection method improves early diagnosis

An electrical engineer has developed a novel cancer cell detection method that will improve early diagnosis through a tool that tracks cellular behavior in real time using nanotextured walls that mimic layers of body tissue.

Feb 15th, 2016

Engineers discover a new kind of 2D semiconducting material for electronics

The semiconductor, made of the elements tin and oxygen, or tin monoxide, is a layer of 2D material only one atom thick, allowing electrical charges to move through it much faster than conventional 3D materials such as silicon.

Feb 15th, 2016

Small clumps in the body: how nanoparticles react to proteins

Researchers have found out that the protein haemoglobin influences the aggregation of individual gold nanoparticles to form clumps.

Feb 15th, 2016

Light used to measure the 'big stretch' in spider silk proteins

While working to improve a tool that measures the pushes and pulls sensed by proteins in living cells, biophysicists at Johns Hopkins say they've discovered one reason spiders' silk is so elastic: Pieces of the silk's protein threads act like supersprings, stretching to five times their initial length.

Feb 15th, 2016

New nanotechnology detects biomarkers of cancer

Scientists have developed a new technology to detect disease biomarkers in the form of nucleic acids, the building blocks of all living organisms.

Feb 12th, 2016

Scientists create ultrathin semiconductor heterostructures for new technological applications

Heterostructures formed by different three-dimensional semiconductors form the foundation for modern electronic and photonic devices. Now, scientists have successfully combined two different ultrathin semiconductors - each just one layer of atoms thick - to make a new two-dimensional heterostructure with potential uses in clean energy and optically-active electronics.