A study of jewel wasps, known for their distinctive metallic colours, has shown that they can undergo a kind of natural ‘time-out’ as larvae before emerging into adulthood with this surprising advantage

University of Missouri researchers have devised a more efficient and precise method for manufacturing computer chips: ultraviolet-enabled atomic layer deposition (UV-ALD). It uses UV light to precisely control where a thin layer of material — often a metal oxide — is applied during fabrication. The metal oxide coatings help direct the flow of electricity through each transistor, improving the overall efficiency of the chip. This targeted approach could reduce manufacturing steps, saving both time and materials.

To bring fusion power to the grid, researchers will need to know how to make the most of tritium, a rare fusion fuel. A new study provides insights into what is responsible for trapping most of the tritium that winds up embedded in the walls of doughnut-shaped fusion systems known as tokamaks. Conducted in the tokamak known as DIII-D, the research found that the dominant driver of fuel retention is co-deposition: the trapping of fuel alongside lithium that is added during plasma operation, as well as lithium that is eroded and subsequently redeposited. 

Since March 2022, the global community has been negotiating a global plastics treaty within the framework of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) – but no agreement has been reached so far. From 5 to 14 August, the next round of negotiations in Geneva (Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) 5.2) will make another attempt to reach a legally binding agreement aimed at ending global plastic pollution. Plastic pollution harms not only the environment and human health but also the climate. Environmental chemist Prof. Dr Annika Jahnke and ecotoxicologist Dr Dana Kühnel from the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ) are advocating cooperation between the scientific, regulatory, industrial, and civil society sectors in order to achieve far-reaching improvements in pollution levels as quickly as possible. Within the INC 5.2 negotiations, they will support the “Scientists’ Coalition for an Effective Plastics Treaty” and the German delegation.

What if a complex material could reshape itself in response to a simple chemical signal? A team of physicists from the University of Vienna and the University of Edinburgh has shown that even small changes in pH value and thus in electric charge can shift the spatial arrangement of closed ring-shaped polymers (molecular chains) – by altering the balance between twist and writhe, two distinct modes of spatial deformation. Their findings, published in Physical Review Letters, demonstrate how electric charge can be used to reshape polymers in a reversible and controllable way – opening up new possibilities for programmable, responsive materials. With such materials, permeability and mechanical properties such as elasticity, yield stress and viscosity could be better controlled and precisely 'programmed'.

Using energy piles for geothermal heat exchange in buildings offers a sustainable alternative to traditional temperature regulators. However, designing these systems is often complex. Now, researchers from Shibaura Institute of Technology, Japan, have developed a simplified modeling framework to improve the design of energy pile systems. Using a combination of finite element modeling and field testing, they quantified the thermal interference between piles and soft clay soil—offering insights for quicker and enhanced geothermal performance.