EurekAlert! - Nanotechnology

Danish chemists in molecular chip breakthrough

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 00:00:00 EDT

(University of Copenhagen) Electronic components built from single molecules using chemical synthesis could pave the way for smaller, faster and more green and sustainable electronic devices. Now for the first time, a transistor made from just one molecular monolayer has been made to work where it really counts. On a computer chip.

A battery made of wood?

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 00:00:00 EDT

(University of Maryland) A sliver of wood coated with tin could make a tiny, long-lasting, efficient and environmentally friendly battery, say scientists from the University of Maryland.

New microfluidic chip can help identify unwanted particles in water and food

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 00:00:00 EDT

(Virginia Tech) Virginia Tech researchers developed a new microfabrication technique to develop three-dimensional microfluidic devices in polymers. The devices can be used in the analysis of cells and could prove useful in counterterrorism measures and in water and food safety concerns.

A shot in the arm for old antibiotics

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 00:00:00 EDT

(Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard) Slipping bacteria some silver could give old antibiotics new life, scientists at the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University reported June 19 in Science Translational Medicine. This could pave the way for new therapies for drug-resistant and recurrent infections.

Sound waves precisely position nanowires

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 00:00:00 EDT

(Penn State) The smaller components become, the more difficult it is to create patterns in an economical and reproducible way, according to an interdisciplinary team of Penn State researchers who, using sound waves, can place nanowires in repeatable patterns for potential use in a variety of sensors, optoelectronics and nanoscale circuits.

Carbon nanotube harpoon catches individual brain-cell signals

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 00:00:00 EDT

(Duke University) Neuroscientists may soon be modern-day harpooners, snaring individual brain-cell signals instead of whales with tiny spears made of carbon nanotubes.

Printing tiny batteries

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 00:00:00 EDT

(Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard) Three-dimensional printing can now be used to print lithium-ion microbatteries the size of a grain of sand. The printed microbatteries could supply electricity to tiny devices in fields from medicine to communications, including many that have lingered on lab benches for lack of a battery small enough to fit the device, yet provide enough stored energy to power them.

US and Canadian researchers drive towards cheaper fuel cells for electric cars

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 00:00:00 EDT

(University of Waterloo) A million electric cars could be on roads across North America before the end of the decade with the help of research by the United States Department of Energy, Los Alamos National Laboratory and the University of Waterloo.

New way to improve antibiotic production

Mon, 17 Jun 2013 00:00:00 EDT

(Norwich BioScience Institutes) New research findings could reduce production times and therefore costs for antibiotic producers.

Efficient and inexpensive: Researchers develop catalyst material for fuel cells

Mon, 17 Jun 2013 00:00:00 EDT

(Helmholtz Association of German Research Centres) Efficient, robust and economic catalyst materials hold the key to achieving a breakthrough in fuel cell technology. Scientists from Jülich and Berlin have developed a material for converting hydrogen and oxygen to water using a tenth of the typical amount of platinum that was previously required. With the aid of state-of-the-art electron microscopy, the researchers discovered that the function of the nanometre-scale catalyst particles is decisively determined by their geometric shape and atomic structure.

An innovative material for the green Earth

Mon, 17 Jun 2013 00:00:00 EDT

(Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology(UNIST)) Researchers from Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology, S. Korea, developed a novel, simple method to synthesize hierarchically nanoporous frameworks of nanocrystalline metal oxides such as magnesia and ceria by the thermal conversion of well-designed metal-organic frameworks.

A robot that runs like a cat

Mon, 17 Jun 2013 00:00:00 EDT

(Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne) Thanks to its legs, whose design faithfully reproduces feline morphology, EPFL's four-legged "cheetah-cub robot" has the same advantages as its model: it is small, light and fast. Still in its experimental stage, the robot will serve as a platform for research in locomotion and biomechanics.

IU chemists produce star-shaped macromolecule that grabs large anions

Sun, 16 Jun 2013 00:00:00 EDT

(Indiana University) Chemists at Indiana University Bloomington have created a symmetrical, five-sided macrocycle that is easy to synthesize and has characteristics that may help expand the molecular tool box available to researchers in biology, chemistry and materials sciences. The molecule, which the researchers call cyanostar, was developed in the lab of Amar Flood, associate professor in the Department of Chemistry.

New array measures vibrations across skin may help engineers design tactile displays

Fri, 14 Jun 2013 00:00:00 EDT

(Massachusetts Institute of Technology) A new array measures vibrations across skin may help engineers design tactile displays.

Unzipped nanotubes unlock potential for batteries

Thu, 13 Jun 2013 00:00:00 EDT

(Rice University) Graphene nanoribbons and tin oxide make an effective anode for lithium ion batteries, as discovered in early tests at Rice University.

Autonomous energy-scavenging micro devices will test water quality, monitor bridges, more

Thu, 13 Jun 2013 00:00:00 EDT

(SPIE--International Society for Optics and Photonics) Researchers at the University of Waterloo in Ontario are using photonics in their quest to "bring the lab to the sample," developing sophisticated micro instruments that scavenge power from sunlight, body heat, or other sources, for uses such as monitoring water quality or assessing bridge safety.

New 'electronic nose' nano-sensor being developed for food safety, health

Thu, 13 Jun 2013 00:00:00 EDT

(University of California - Riverside) The "electronic nose" sensor developed by a University of California, Riverside engineering professor, and being commercialized by Innovation Economy Crowd, will be further refined to detect deadly pathogens including toxic pesticides in the global food supply chain, according to a recently signed product development and distribution agreement.

Monell-led research identifies scent of melanoma

Thu, 13 Jun 2013 00:00:00 EDT

(Monell Chemical Senses Center) Monell researchers identified odorants from human skin cells that can be used to identify melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer. In addition, a nanotechnology-based sensor could utilize the odor profiles to reliably differentiate melanoma cells from normal skin cells. Non-invasive odor analysis may be a valuable technique in the detection and early diagnosis of human melanoma.

Nanoparticle opens the door to clean-energy alternatives

Thu, 13 Jun 2013 00:00:00 EDT

(Penn State) Cheaper clean-energy technologies could be made possible thanks to a new discovery. An important chemical reaction that generates hydrogen from water is effectively triggered -- or catalyzed -- by a nanoparticle composed of nickel and phosphorus, two inexpensive elements that are abundant on Earth. The research team is led by Raymond Schaak, a professor of chemistry at Penn State University.

Light-carved 'nano-volcanoes' hold promise for drug delivery

Thu, 13 Jun 2013 00:00:00 EDT

(North Carolina State University) Researchers from North Carolina State University have developed a method for creating "nano-volcanoes" by shining various colors of light through a nanoscale "crystal ball" made of a synthetic polymer. These nano-volcanoes can store precise amounts of other materials and hold promise for new drug-delivery technologies.

Discovery of new material state counterintuitive to laws of physics

Wed, 12 Jun 2013 00:00:00 EDT

(DOE/Argonne National Laboratory) Dense materials made porous, doubling the number of nanotraps for use as water filters, chemical sensors, sequestration, hydrogen fuel cell storage, drug delivery, and catalysis.

Nanoelectronics Center at UT Austin receives $7.8 million award

Wed, 12 Jun 2013 00:00:00 EDT

(University of Texas at Austin) The Nanoelectronics Center at UT Austin received a $7.8 million award from the Semiconductor Research Corporations and the National Institute of Standards and Technology.

New quantum dot technique combines best of optical and electron microscopy

Wed, 12 Jun 2013 00:00:00 EDT

(National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)) Researchers working at NIST have developed a new microscopy technique that uses a process similar to how an old tube television produces a picture to image nanoscale features. Combining the best features of optical and scanning electron microscopy, the fast, versatile, and high-resolution technique allows scientists to view surface and subsurface features potentially as small as 10 nanometers in size.

University of Toronto breakthrough allows fast, reliable pathogen identification

Wed, 12 Jun 2013 00:00:00 EDT

(University of Toronto Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering) University of Toronto researchers may have developed a way to quickly and reliably diagnose life-threatening bacterial infections and pinpoint the right antibiotics to clear the infections.

Filmmaking magic with polymers

Wed, 12 Jun 2013 00:00:00 EDT

(University of Akron) Self-assembled copolymer block film is now being fabricated with intricately organized nanostructures, giving them multiple functions and flexibility on a macroscale level never before seen.