/ en-us Â鶹ŇůÔş internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Â鶹ŇůÔşics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. Kanazawa gold leaf is a traditional Japanese material known for its remarkable thinness, just 100 nanometers—about 1/1,000 the diameter of a human hair—and its brilliant shine. /news/2025-10-secret-kanazawa-gold-leaf-brilliant.html Nanomaterials Tue, 07 Oct 2025 09:15:04 EDT news679047301 Electron microscopy is an exceptional tool for peering deep into the structure of isolated molecules. But when it comes to imaging thicker biological samples to understand how those molecules function in their cellular environments, the technology gets a little murky. /news/2025-10-cryo-imaging-deeper-view-thick.html Biotechnology Molecular & Computational biology Mon, 06 Oct 2025 14:30:04 EDT news678979801 Researchers have for the first time measured the true properties of individual MXene flakes—an exciting new nanomaterial with potential for better batteries, flexible electronics, and clean energy devices. /news/2025-10-mxenes-technique-gen-nanomaterials.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Mon, 06 Oct 2025 10:23:04 EDT news678964981 Black-and-white images of pom-pom–like clusters, semi-translucent fields of tiny dark gray stars on a pale background, and countless other abstract patterns are a familiar sight in scientific papers describing the shapes and properties of newly engineered materials. /news/2025-10-ai-generated-nanomaterial-images-experts.html Nanomaterials Thu, 02 Oct 2025 09:45:19 EDT news678617110 A research team at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities has investigated a new method to produce iron, the main component of steel. For the first time, the researchers were able to observe chemical reactions and iron formation in real-time at the nanometer scale. /news/2025-09-steel-production-makeover-captures-real.html Nanomaterials Mon, 29 Sep 2025 15:50:06 EDT news678379432 A research team from the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences has revealed the failure mechanism of diamond under extreme electrical fields through in situ experiments and molecular dynamics simulations. The study, published in Cell Reports Â鶹ŇůÔşical Science, provides critical insights for the design of robust diamond devices. /news/2025-09-diamond-extreme-electrical-fields.html Condensed Matter Fri, 26 Sep 2025 09:04:03 EDT news678096241 In a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers have revealed that amyloid fibrils formed by necroptosis mediators, RIPK1 and RIPK3, don't just form within dying cells, they can also escape the cell and trigger necroptotic death in neighboring cells. /news/2025-09-amyloid-fibrils-ripk1-ripk3-cell.html Cell & Microbiology Molecular & Computational biology Thu, 25 Sep 2025 15:17:59 EDT news678032276 You'd think there's nothing surprising left to discover about water. After all, researchers have been studying its properties for centuries. /news/2025-09-chilling-discovery-flexibility-ice-nanoscale.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Thu, 25 Sep 2025 11:01:09 EDT news678016864 Humans have been making metal alloys for thousands of years, and most of us can conjure a rough mental image of the process—it involves red-hot molten metals being mixed, poured, and shaped in a sweltering workshop or factory. This approach still works perfectly well for the traditional metals we see every day, like steel. But advanced metals with special chemical and mechanical properties, ones that scientists are investigating to use in energy technologies like long-lasting batteries and extreme-temperature engines for aerospace vehicles, need a more refined approach. /news/2025-09-electron-microscopy-reveals-method-exotic.html Analytical Chemistry Materials Science Wed, 24 Sep 2025 14:39:05 EDT news677943542 Researchers with the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, have created an innovative method to visualize and analyze atomic structures within specially designed, ultrathin bilayer 2D materials. When precisely aligned at an angle, these materials exhibit unique properties that could lead to advancements in quantum computing, superconductors and ultraefficient electronics. /news/2025-09-scientists-visualize-atomic-moir-materials.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Tue, 23 Sep 2025 11:21:04 EDT news677845261 Seoul National University College of Engineering announced that a joint research team has become the first in the world to elucidate the reconstruction mechanism of copper alloy catalysts during electrochemical COâ‚‚ conversion reactions. /news/2025-09-copper-alloy-catalysts-surface-conversion.html Analytical Chemistry Materials Science Thu, 18 Sep 2025 15:31:04 EDT news677428261 A new specimen holder gives scientists more control over ultra-cold temperatures, enabling the study of how materials acquire properties useful in quantum computers. /news/2025-09-microscopes-materials-quantum-liquid-helium.html General Â鶹ŇůÔşics Quantum Â鶹ŇůÔşics Fri, 12 Sep 2025 09:17:00 EDT news676887415 There are various ways to create artificial diamonds, but a new method developed by researchers, including those at the University of Tokyo, yields some extra benefits. /news/2025-09-diamonds-electron.html Analytical Chemistry Materials Science Thu, 04 Sep 2025 14:00:12 EDT news676031342 For many industrial applications one needs synthesis gas, also known as "syngas," a mixture of hydrogen (H2) and carbon monoxide (CO). In addition to the established production method via steam reforming, synthesis gas can alternatively—and even more energy‑efficiently—be produced from methane (CH4) and oxygen. /news/2025-09-catalytic-nanoparticles-metal-oxide-methane.html Analytical Chemistry Materials Science Mon, 01 Sep 2025 12:20:03 EDT news675948001 Nanoparticles have diverse applications in modern science and industry, powering technologies like quantum-dot displays, nanocatalysts and drug delivery. Their unique physicochemical properties, which can be tuned by changing their size and shape, make them highly attractive. /news/2025-08-mechanism-nanoparticle-formation-century-classical.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Thu, 28 Aug 2025 10:28:04 EDT news675595681 A joint study by researchers from the Technion Israel Institute of Technology and the University of Texas at Austin sheds new light on the structure of membranes used in water desalination. Published in ACS Nano, the study was selected as the journal's cover article. /news/2025-08-desalination-characterizing-membranes-dry-states.html Nanomaterials Mon, 25 Aug 2025 15:10:01 EDT news675351033 When two mesh screens or fabrics are overlapped with a slight offset, moirĂ© patterns emerge as a result of interference caused by the misalignment of the grids. While these patterns are commonly recognized as optical illusions in everyday life, their significance extends to the nanoscale, such as in materials like graphene, where they can profoundly influence electronic properties. /news/2025-08-customized-moir-patterns-stacked-metal.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Wed, 13 Aug 2025 15:23:03 EDT news674317381 Research from the Nanoscience Center of the University of Jyväskylä, Finland, has revealed that lignin, a polyphenol important for plant structure, has antimicrobial activity against viruses and bacteria. The results highlight that lignin, which is also an important byproduct of the wood industry, has potential as a promising green alternative to synthetic antimicrobial agents for coating agents, packaging material, or surface disinfectants. /news/2025-08-wood-industry-byproduct-lignin-effective.html Cell & Microbiology Biotechnology Tue, 12 Aug 2025 10:39:03 EDT news674213941 Researchers from the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory have discovered that the size of catalytic nanoparticles determines how their shape and structure transform during chemical reactions. With insights into the nanoparticles' atomic-scale behavior as they convert carbon dioxide into useful fuel—and a better understanding of how structural changes impact catalytic performance—researchers are newly positioned to design more effective catalysts for industrial applications. /news/2025-08-tiny-catalytic-particles-carbon-dioxide.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Thu, 07 Aug 2025 07:46:06 EDT news673771558 WEHI researchers have visualized a key protein complex in malaria parasites for the first time, uncovering a new target for next-generation vaccines that could help stop the disease from spreading. /news/2025-08-malaria-vaccine-parasite-fertilization-complex.html Biotechnology Molecular & Computational biology Wed, 06 Aug 2025 06:52:53 EDT news673681966 Cryo-transmission electron microscopy (cryo-TEM) allows us to observe samples in a preserved state that is close to their native form, making it a highly effective way to examine biological samples. This technique provides information on the size, shape, and dispersion of samples within a frozen solvent. However, there is another crucial piece of information that has not been accurately visualized in organic samples using this technique yet: elemental composition. /news/2025-08-cool-imaging-method-elemental-nanomaterials.html Analytical Chemistry Materials Science Fri, 01 Aug 2025 09:15:01 EDT news673258499 For the first time, spin waves, also known as magnons, have been directly observed at the nanoscale. This breakthrough was made possible by combining a high–energy-resolution electron microscope with a theoretical method developed at Uppsala University. The results open exciting new opportunities for studying and controlling magnetism at the nanoscale. /news/2025-07-nanoscale.html General Â鶹ŇůÔşics Quantum Â鶹ŇůÔşics Thu, 24 Jul 2025 12:20:01 EDT news672578397 Researchers are creating new moirĂ© materials at the nanometer scale using advanced DNA nanotechnology. DNA moirĂ© superlattices form when two periodic DNA lattices are overlaid with a slight rotational twist or positional offset. This creates a new, larger interference pattern with completely different physical properties. /news/2025-07-programmable-dna-moir-superlattices-material.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Thu, 17 Jul 2025 11:52:25 EDT news671971940 The mechanical strength and toughness of engineering materials are often mutually exclusive, posing challenges for material design and selection. To address this, a research team from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) has uncovered an innovative strategy: by simply twisting the layers of 2D materials, they can enhance toughness without compromising material's strength. /news/2025-07-2d-materials-material-strength-toughness.html Nanomaterials Tue, 15 Jul 2025 13:00:01 EDT news671801132 Nanoparticles—the tiniest building blocks of our world—are constantly in motion, bouncing, shifting, and drifting in unpredictable paths shaped by invisible forces and random environmental fluctuations. /news/2025-07-ai-tool-deciphers-mysteries-nanoparticle.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Tue, 15 Jul 2025 08:23:31 EDT news671786606 Researchers at the universities of Amsterdam and Utrecht have observed the formation of nanocavities in montmorillonite clay under exposure to gamma-aminobutyric acid, a molecule commonly found on meteorites. This hitherto unrecognized phenomenon could be relevant to the origin of life on Earth, by introducing 3D confined nano-environments in clay that might have facilitated life's first chemistry. The findings have been reported in Communications Earth & Environment. /news/2025-06-meteorite-common-amino-acid-formation.html Astrobiology Planetary Sciences Mon, 23 Jun 2025 13:25:01 EDT news669903897 Researchers from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab), UC Irvine, and the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), have used biology to convert human urine into a valuable product. The team genetically modified yeast to take the elements present in urine and create hydroxyapatite—a calcium and phosphorus-based mineral naturally produced by humans and other animals to build bones and teeth. /news/2025-06-genetically-yeast-valuable-materials-urine.html Cell & Microbiology Biotechnology Tue, 17 Jun 2025 13:11:26 EDT news669384682 The Apollo astronauts didn't know what they'd find when they explored the surface of the moon, but they certainly didn't expect to see drifts of tiny, bright orange glass beads glistening among the otherwise monochrome piles of rocks and dust. /news/2025-06-moon-shimmers-shiny-glass-beads.html Planetary Sciences Wed, 11 Jun 2025 16:55:03 EDT news668879701 A study nearly 10 years in the making has shed new insight into how oxides can regularly sustain themselves, using the oxygen inherent in their own structures. /news/2025-06-oxide-catalysts-sustain-reactors.html Analytical Chemistry Wed, 11 Jun 2025 15:57:14 EDT news668876222 A joint research team has successfully developed a two-dimensional (2D) quantum material platform through the superposition of moirĂ© lattices. /news/2025-06-overlapping-moir-lattices-2d-materials.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Tue, 03 Jun 2025 11:39:05 EDT news668169541