Creating switchable plasmons in plastics

Researchers have developed optical nanoantennas made from a conducting polymer. The antennas can be switched on and off, and will make possible a completely new type of controllable nano-optical components.

A robot and software make it easier to create advanced materials

A team of engineers has developed an automated way to produce polymers, making it much easier to create advanced materials aimed at improving human health. The innovation is a critical step in pushing the limits for researchers who want to explore large libraries of polymers, including plastics and fibers, for chemical and biological applications such as drugs and regenerative medicine through tissue engineering.

Novel material switches between electrically conducting and insulating states

A new approach could inform the design of quantum materials platforms for future electronics, as well as faster devices with more storage capabilities.

Imaging technique gives catalytic 2D material engineering a better view

A scanning electrochemical cell imaging technique shows how nanoscale structural features affect the catalytic activity of MoS2 monolayers for hydrogen evolution reactions, report researchers.

Bending an organic semiconductor can boost electrical flow

Slightly bending semiconductors made of organic materials can roughly double the speed of electricity flowing through them and could benefit next-generation electronics such as sensors and solar cells, according to new research.

A trick for taming terahertz transmissions

Researchers have invented a wireless communication receiver that can operate in the terahertz frequency band. By increasing the sensitivity 10,000-fold, they achieved the fastest Researchers invent a new receiver for terahertz-frequency radiation -- by implementing coherent detection, they achieve record transmission rates -- this work may lead to much faster wireless data speeds using less power.real-time error-free transmission rates ever recorded. This work may be crucial for next generation cell phone standards and novel remote sensors.

Potential solution to overheating mobile phones

Researchers have developed a revolutionary way to encode computational information without using electrical current. As a global first, this could lead to faster technological devices that could efficiently use energy without overheating.