Physicists find misaligned carbon sheets yield unparalleled properties

A material composed of two one-atom-thick layers of carbon has grabbed the attention of physicists worldwide for its intriguing -- and potentially exploitable -- conductive properties. University of Texas at Dallas physicists are studying how the ability of twisted bilayer graphene to conduct electrical current changes in response to mid-infrared light.

'Drawn-on-skin' electronics offer breakthrough in wearable monitors

Researchers have reported a new form of electronics known as 'drawn-on-skin electronics,' allowing multifunctional sensors and circuits to be drawn on the skin with an ink pen.

New fabrication method brings single-crystal perovskite devices closer to viability

Nanoengineers have developed a new method to fabricate perovskites as single-crystal thin films, which are more efficient for use in solar cells and optical devices than the current state-of-the-art polycrystalline forms of the material. Their fabrication method -- which uses standard semiconductor fabrication processes -- results in flexible single-crystal perovskite films with controlled area, thickness, and composition.

New fabric could help keep you cool in the summer, even without A/C

Air conditioning and other space cooling methods account for about 10% of all electricity consumption in the U.S., according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Now, researchers have developed a material that cools the wearer without using any electricity. The fabric transfers heat, allows moisture to evaporate from the skin and repels water.

Transforming e-waste into a strong, protective coating for metal

A typical recycling process converts large quantities of items made of a single material into more of the same. However, this approach isn't feasible for old electronic devices, or ''e-waste,'' because they contain small amounts of many different materials that cannot be readily separated. Now researchers report a selective, small-scale microrecycling strategy, which they use to convert old printed circuit boards and monitor components into a new type of strong metal coating.

Metal-breathing bacteria could transform electronics, biosensors, and more

When the Shewanella oneidensis bacterium 'breathes' in certain metal and sulfur compounds anaerobically, the way an aerobic organism would process oxygen, it produces materials that could be used to enhance electronics, electrochemical energy storage, and drug-delivery devices. The ability of this bacterium to produce molybdenum disulfide -- a material that is able to transfer electrons easily, like graphene -- is the focus of new research.

New technology makes homes more energy independent, helps divert power during power outages

Researchers have designed a smart technology that can help utility companies better serve communities affected by power outages. The researchers said their single device works by improving energy delivery between home solar-power systems and the electrical grid.

A new MXene material shows extraordinary electromagnetic interference shielding ability

Researchers have discovered a MXene material that presents exceptional electromagnetic interference shielding abilities.

Through the nanoscale looking glass -- determining boson peak frequency in ultra-thin alumina

There's more to glass than meets the eye. Glasses, which are disordered materials with no long-range chemical order, have some mysterious properties that have remained enigmatic for several decades. Amongst these are the anomalous vibrational states that contribute to the heat capacity at low temperature. Early researchers established that these states obey Bose-Einstein statistics, and the name stuck, so today this feature is known as the boson peak. It is generally accepted that these vibrational states arise from the decay of bosonic phonon-like quasiparticles in the strong disordered glass environment.

Chemical thermometers take temperature to the nanometric scale

Scientists recently developed molecular films that can measure the operating temperature of electronic components on a nanometric scale. These patented temperature-sensitive molecules have the distinctive quality of being extremely stable, even after millions of uses. They could soon be deployed in the microelectronics industry.

Scientists identify new material with potential for brain-like computing

Researchers have developed a new complex material design strategy for potential use in neuromorphic computing, using metallocene intercalation in hafnium disulfide (HfS2). The work is the first to demonstrate the effectiveness of a design strategy that functionalizes a 2D material with an organic molecule.

'Blinking' crystals may convert CO2 into fuels

Imagine tiny crystals that ''blink'' like fireflies and can convert carbon dioxide, a key cause of climate change, into fuels. A team has created ultra-small titanium dioxide crystals that exhibit unusual ''blinking'' behavior and may help to produce methane and other fuels, according to a new study. The crystals, also known as nanoparticles, stay charged for a long time and could benefit efforts to develop quantum computers.

New organic material unlocks faster and more flexible electronic devices

Mobile phones and other electronic devices made from an organic material that is thin, bendable and more powerful are now a step closer.

A new path for electron optics in solid-state systems

In combined theoretical and experimental work, physicists introduce and demonstrate a novel mechanism for electron optics in two-dimensional solid-state systems. The discovery opens up a route to engineering quantum-optical phenomena in a variety of materials and devices.

Artificial 'neurotransistor' created

While the optimization of conventional microelectronics is slowly reaching its physical limits, nature offers us a blueprint how information can be processed and stored efficiently: our own brain. Scientists have now successfully imitated the functioning of neurons using semiconductor materials.

Magnetic memory states go exponential

Researchers showed that relatively simple structures can support exponential number of magnetic states -- much greater than previously thought -- and demonstrated switching between the states by generating spin currents. The ability to stabilize and control exponential number of discrete magnetic states in a relatively simple structure constitutes a major contribution to spintronics and may pave the way to multi-level magnetic memory with extremely large number of states per cell, be used for neuromorphic computing, and more.

Liquid metal synthesis for better piezoelectrics: Atomically-thin tin-monosulfide

Scientists have applied liquid-metal synthesis to piezoelectrics, advancing future flexible, wearable electronics, and biosensors drawing their power from the body's movements. Piezoelectric materials such as atomically-thin tin-monosulfide (SnS) convert mechanical forces or movement into electrical energy. Along with their inherent flexibility, this makes them candidates for flexible nanogenerators in wearable electronics or internal, self-powered biosensors.

Porous graphene ribbons doped with nitrogen for electronics and quantum computing

A team of physicists and chemists has produced the first porous graphene ribbons in which specific carbon atoms in the crystal lattice are replaced with nitrogen atoms. These ribbons have semiconducting properties that make them attractive for applications in electronics and quantum computing.

Graphene: It is all about the toppings

The way graphene interacts with other materials depends on how these materials are brought into contact with the graphene. The appropriate atoms are brought into contact with the graphene in such a way that they 'grow' on the graphene in the desired crystal structure. Until now the mechanisms of the 'growth' of such other materials on graphene have often remained unclear. A new study shows now how indium oxide grows on graphene.

2D semiconductors found to be close-to-ideal fractional quantum hall platform

Researchers report that they have observed a quantum fluid known as the fractional quantum Hall states (FQHS), one of the most delicate phases of matter, for the first time in a monolayer 2D semiconductor. Their findings demonstrate the excellent intrinsic quality of 2D semiconductors and establish them as a unique test platform for future applications in quantum computing.

New room-temperature liquid-metal battery could be the path to powering the future

Researchers have created a new liquid battery with components that can remain molten at room temperature. Other liquid batteries must be kept at 240 degrees Celsius for their components to stay molten.

Excitation of robust materials

So-called topological materials have special electronic properties, which are very robust against external perturbations. In tungsten ditelluride such a topologically protected state can be ''broken up'' using special laser pulses within picoseconds and thus change its properties. This could be a key requirement for realising extremely fast, optoelectronic switches. For the first time, physicists observed changes to the electronic properties of this material in experiments in real-time.

Machine learning reveals vulnerabilities in 3D-printed carbon-fiber composites

Components made of glass- and carbon- fiber reinforced composites, soaring in high-performance applications, can be 3D printed. A team of researchers has found that the printer head toolpaths are easy to reproduce -- and therefore steal -- with machine learning (ML) tools applied to the microstructures of the part obtained by a CT scan.

New breakthrough in 'spintronics' could boost high speed data technology

Scientists have made a pivotal breakthrough in the important, emerging field of spintronics -- which could lead to a new high speed energy efficient data technology.

World's widest graphene nanoribbon promises the next generation of miniaturized electronics

Standard semiconductor technology is reaching its limit in miniaturization, but the demand for smaller electrical devices with higher performance continues to grow. The research group introduced the widest graphene nanoribbon prepared by the bottom-up approach with electrical properties surpassing those of silicon semiconductors, promising a new generation of miniaturized electronic devices.

Flexible material shows potential for use in fabrics to heat, cool

A new study finds that a material made of carbon nanotubes has a combination of thermal, electrical and physical properties that make it an appealing candidate for next-generation smart fabrics.

Ion conducting polymer crucial to improving neuromorphic devices

''Neuromorphic'' refers to mimicking the behavior of brain neural cells. When one speaks of neuromorphic computers, they are talking about making computers think and process more like human brains-operating at high-speed with low energy consumption.