Nanoscopic Scale

The U.S. leads the world in fusion energy research. It can't squander that lead like it did with microchips

Microscopes traditionally resolve only the thin layer of cellular activity within a narrow focal plane. Now scientists have worked out how to squeeze an entire cell and all its molecular machinery into this space.

A new study of bubbles on electrode surfaces could help improve the efficiency of electrochemical processes that produce fuels, chemicals, and materials.

A tiny robot with a clutch that mimics similar mechanisms found in microorganisms could be used to trigger the internal workings of a cell

Researchers discovered that a heart-shaped molecule will jump in straight lines when given an electric jolt

A study conducted at the Center for Research, Education and Innovation in Vitreous Materials (CeRTEV) in São Carlos, São Paulo state, Brazil, shows for the first time that including niobium oxide (Nb2O5) in silicate glass results in silica network polymerization, which increases bond density and connectivity, enhancing the mechanical and thermal stability of specialty glass.

The potential of an ultrafast form of transmission electron microscopy to measure sound waves in nanostructures has been demonstrated by three RIKEN physicists. This could help realize a high-resolution imaging method that uses ultrahigh-frequency sound waves to image structures that are nanometers in size.

Imagine using your cellphone to control the activity of your own cells to treat injuries and disease. It sounds like something from the imagination of an overly optimistic science fiction writer. But this may one day be a possibility through the emerging field of quantum biology.

Classical robots, such as those used for manufacturing, can lift heavy loads and repeat automated processes precisely. But they are too rigid and bulky for delicate work and interaction with humans. The research field of soft robotics works on the development of robots made of soft, organic materials and flexible technical components. Materials researchers at Kiel University have now developed a novel soft…

Water contaminated with bacteria is a large threat to global health. A Chinese research team has described a simple new method of disinfection in the journal Angewandte Chemie that is based on tiny biocompatible assemblies of atoms, known as quantum dots, made of silver sulfide with caps made of a silver-binding peptide. When irradiated with near-infrared light, they kill bacteria in water with high efficiency…

New lithium metal batteries with solid electrolytes are lightweight, inflammable, pack a lot of energy, and can be recharged very quickly, but they have been slow to develop due to mysterious short circuiting and failure. Now, researchers at Stanford University and SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory say they have solved the mystery. It comes down to stress – mechanical stress to be more precise – especially…

Water in a one-molecule layer acts like neither a liquid nor a solid, and becomes highly conductive at high pressures, according to a new paper published in the journal Nature.

MIT researchers found a way to improve the efficiency of systems that heat and evaporate water. Their tailored surface treatment could significantly reduce the systems' energy use.

Stochastic thermodynamics is an emerging area of physics aimed at better understanding and interpreting thermodynamic concepts away from equilibrium. Over the past few years, findings in these fields have revolutionized the general understanding of different thermodynamic processes operating in finite time.

Ferroelectric materials have found widespread use in everyday technology mainly owing to their electric polarization that can be switched between two distinct states. Overcoming the binary limit of ferroelectrics in order to achieve any arbitrary value of the polarization has been a long-standing challenge, but has the potential to vastly expand the scope of ferroelectric applications, for instance towards…

Scientists must make ever more sophisticated measurements as technology shrinks to the nanoscale and we face global challenges from the effects of climate change.

Water scarcity is a growing problem around the world. Desalination of seawater is an established method to produce drinkable water but comes with huge energy costs. For the first time, researchers use fluorine-based nanostructures to successfully filter salt from water. Compared to current desalination methods, these fluorous nanochannels work faster, require less pressure and less energy, and are a more effective…

Researchers led by Prof. Zhou Yihua from the Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology (IGDB) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) recently reported an identification of unprecedented xylan nanocompartments at the pit borders of xylem vessels in rice and Arabidopsis using super-resolution confocal microscopy.

Inspired by the way molecules interact in nature, UNSW medical researchers engineer versatile nanoscale machines to enable greater functional range.

When it comes to recording and stimulating brain activity, scientists can rely on a formidable tool: light. An international research team, coordinated by IIT- Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia (Italian Institute of Technology), has developed nanometric light modulators that, fabricated on a micrometric optical fiber, make the fiber capable of studying neuronal tissue in deep regions of the brain. The new approach,…