New “Acoustic Fabric” Hears Your Heart’s Sounds
Inspired by the human ear, a new acoustic fabric converts audible sounds into electrical signals. Having trouble hearing? Just turn up your shirt. That’s the…
Materials Science
Magnetism Helps Electrons Vanish in High-Temperature Superconductors
Superconductors – metals in which electricity flows without resistance – hold promise as the defining material of the near future, according to physicist Brad Ramshaw,…
Building-Block Solar Cells: Computer Algorithm Searches for New Materials for Better Organic Solar Cells
Organic, carbon-based, materials already see widespread use in displays today, but they are also promising materials for new solar cells. However, tailoring their properties is…
Building a Silicon Quantum Computer Chip Atom by Atom
Atom by atom: new silicon computer chip technique opens up quantum computing construction possibilities. Quantum computers could be constructed cheaply and reliably using a new…
Physicists Startled To Discover a New Way To Shape a Material’s Atomic Structure With Light
X-ray laser experiments show that intense light distorts the structure of a thermoelectric material in a unique way, opening a new avenue for controlling the…
Zero Wasted Electricity: Working To Revolutionize the Way We Live With Superconductivity
University of Houston Researchers Exploring the Bounds of Room-Temperature Superconductivity. In the simplest terms, superconductivity between two or more objects means zero wasted electricity. It…
Toward Solid-State Lithium-Ion Batteries That Pack Twice As Much Energy per Pound
A method for stabilizing the interfaces in solid-state lithium-ion batteries opens new possibilities. In the endless quest to pack more energy into batteries without increasing…
Engineers Create Tiny Robot “Bugs” That Can Go Just About Anywhere
University of Pittsburgh Engineers Create Insect-Inspired Robots That Can Monitor Hard-to-Reach Spots. These ancient creatures can squeeze through the tiniest cracks, fit snugly into tight…
“Seeing” Non-Uniformities in 2D Materials May Lead to Tiny New Medical Sensors
A novel and better approach at detecting non-uniformities in the optical properties of two-dimensional materials could potentially open the door to new uses for these…
A “Greener” Way To Clean Wastewater Treatment Filters With Reusable Nanoparticle Catalysts
Membrane filters don’t require much energy to purify water, making them popular for wastewater treatment. To keep these materials in tip-top condition, they’re commonly cleaned…
Magnetic Memory Breakthrough: Physicists Observe an Exotic “Multiferroic” State in an Atomically Thin Material
Discovery shows for the first time that multiferroic properties can exist in a two-dimensional material; could lead to more efficient magnetic memory devices. MIT physicists…
Entirely New, Inexpensive Catalyst Speeds the Production of Oxygen From Water
The material could replace rare metals and lead to more economical production of carbon-neutral fuels. An electrochemical mechanism that splits apart water molecules to produce…
Safer X-Rays: Improved Scintillators for More Sensitive X-Ray Imaging
Improvements in the material that converts X-rays into light, for medical or industrial images, could allow a tenfold signal enhancement. Scintillators are materials that emit…
Active Camouflage Using a Polymer Network of Liquid Crystals
The animal kingdom is full of creatures with active camouflage. What looks like a drab pile of sand and rocks might actually be a brightly…
MIT’s New Plant-Derived Material Is Tough As Bone and Hard As Aluminum
The material could pave the way for sustainable plastics. The strongest part of a tree lies not in its trunk or its sprawling roots, but…
New Robotic Drone Morphs From a Ground to Air Vehicle Using Liquid Metal
Imagine a small autonomous vehicle that could drive over land, stop, and flatten itself into a quadcopter. The rotors start spinning, and the vehicle flies…
Nanopores Feel the Heat: Breakthrough May Lead to More Efficient DNA Sequencing Technology
Researchers at Osaka University use a tiny thermometer to directly monitor changes in temperature when ions pass through a nanopore, which may lead to more…
Two Sides of the Same Coin: Tiny Electrical Vortexes Bridge Gap Between Ferroelectric and Ferromagnetic Materials
University of Warwick physicists discover presence of a special ferroelectric texture that mirrors the spin crystal phase (checkerboard-like symmetry) in ferromagnets. Ferromagnetic materials have a…
