Thinking Big to Think Small: US Nanoscale Science Research Centres

MaterialsScienceOnTheNanoscale

Scanning probe microscopy in the US Department of Energy Nanoscale Research Centers: status, perspectives, and opportunities.

Dresden Center for Nanoanalysis opens at TU Dresden, Germany

The Technische Universität Dresden has celebrated the official opening of a new analytics center – the Dresden Center for Nanoanalysis.

UM nanotech researcher elected to Royal Society

Paul O’Brien’s research centres on developing new chemical processes for thin films and nanoparticles, especially of chalcogenide-containing materials.

Look Both Ways: Metallic Janus Particles Reviewed

ppsc0057coverclip

Patchy particles, and Janus particles in particular, already have such broad application potential that it’s hard to believe they are a relatively young concept to nanoscience.

PDFLink to the original paper on Wiley Online Library

“Smart” nano-network can control insulin release for diabetes treatment

The nano-network releases insulin in response to changes in blood sugar.

Researchers have developed a network of nanoscale particles that can be injected into the body and release insulin when blood-sugar levels rise.

PDFLink to the original paper

Old technique can be used to sort carbon nanotubes

Three examples of partitioning carbon nanotubes in liquid phases. Left: nanotubes partitioned by diameter. Smaller diameters, on the bottom, appear purple. Center: partitioned between semiconductors (amber, top) and metals. Right: A sample with different diameter range partitioned between metals (yellow) and semiconductors. Color differences are due to differences in electronic structure. Image: Baum/NIST.

An old, somewhat passé, trick used to purify protein samples based on their affinity for water has found new fans at NIST.

PDFLink to the original paper

New super-resolution microscopy does not require dyes

A new type of super-resolution optical microscopy takes a high-resolution image (at right) of graphite "nanoplatelets" about 100 nanometers wide. The imaging system, called saturated transient absorption microscopy, or STAM, uses a trio of laser beams and represents a practical tool for biomedical and nanotechnology research. Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering, Purdue University.

Researchers have found a way to see synthetic nanostructures and molecules using a new type of optical microscopy that does not require fluorescent dyes.

PDFLink to the original paper

Nanomaterial developed to speed up light

100-nanometer-long “meta-atom” of gold and silicon oxide is capable of straightening and speeding up light waves.

PDFLink to the original paper

Nanodevices can be both battery and memory

Configuration of a resistive storage cell (ReRAM): An electric voltage is built up between the two electrodes so that the storage cells can be regarded as tiny batteries. Filaments formed by deposits during operation may modify the battery's properties. Image: Jülich Aachen Research Alliance (JARA).

Resistive memory cells open up new possibilities in nanoelectronics.

PDFLink to the original paper

Imaging nanoparticles in action

Researchers develop technique for imaging nanoparticle dynamics with atomic resolution as these dynamics occur in a liquid environment.

PDFLink to the original paper