/ 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. The ability to move electron-hole pairs—called excitons—in desired directions is important for generating electricity and creating fuels. This happens naturally in photosynthesis, making it a source of inspiration to researchers innovating optoelectronic devices. /news/2025-08-evidence-hyperbolic-exciton-polaritons.html Condensed Matter Optics & Photonics Thu, 14 Aug 2025 12:14:44 EDT news674392475 Researchers with the schools of science and engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) are exploring new ways to manipulate matter with light to unlock a new generation of computer chips, photovoltaic cells and other advanced materials. /news/2025-08-material-properties-reveals-atomic-nanocrystals.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Tue, 12 Aug 2025 15:19:04 EDT news674230741 Large metal surfaces coated with precisely formed nanostructures have so far remained in the realm of fantasy. The obstacle standing in the way of their production seemed fundamental, as it resulted from the presence of crystal grains in metals: their boundaries disrupted the growth of the nanostructures. At the Institute of Nuclear Â鶹ŇůÔşics of the PAS, using titanium and its oxide by way of example, it has been proven that this obstacle can be overcome. /news/2025-08-titanium-oxide-nanostructuring-transcends-boundaries.html Nanomaterials Thu, 07 Aug 2025 12:06:04 EDT news673787161 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 Ever wondered how a delicate plant root can push its way through hard ground? It's a feat of engineering happening beneath our feet. /news/2025-08-nature-underground-roots-harvests-drought.html Plants & Animals Agriculture Wed, 06 Aug 2025 11:58:05 EDT news673700281 Researchers at Kumamoto University and Nagoya University have developed a new class of two-dimensional (2D) metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) using triptycene-based molecules, marking a breakthrough in the quest to understand and enhance the physical properties of these promising materials. The work is published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society. /news/2025-08-high-quality-crystals-enable-insights.html Analytical Chemistry Materials Science Fri, 01 Aug 2025 09:41:04 EDT news673260062 Template-assisted synthesis dramatically improves the yield of functionalized oligophenylene cages, report researchers from Japan. /news/2025-07-template-chemistry-efficiently-functionalized-oligophenylene.html Materials Science Fri, 25 Jul 2025 06:47:24 EDT news672644839 Despite natural evidence indicating sulfur's importance and efficiency as a catalyst for critical redox reactions, including hydrogenation (addition of hydrogen to molecule) and dehydrogenation (its opposite), chemists have struggled to manage the enzyme's complexity and fragility at scale. /news/2025-07-sulfur-nanostructures-boosts-catalytic-efficiency.html Analytical Chemistry Materials Science Thu, 24 Jul 2025 14:20:07 EDT news672585060 Every year, thousands of new materials are created, yet many never reach their full potential because their applications aren't immediately obvious—a challenge University of Toronto researchers aim to address using artificial intelligence. /news/2025-07-ai-applications-newly-materials.html Materials Science Thu, 24 Jul 2025 08:26:13 EDT news672564367 The secret to how steel hardens and shape-memory alloys snap into place lies in rapid, atomic-scale shifts that scientists have struggled to observe in materials. Now, Cornell researchers are revealing how these transformations unfold, particle by particle, through advanced modeling techniques. /news/2025-07-visualize-crystal-phase-particle-simulations.html Materials Science Wed, 23 Jul 2025 16:11:58 EDT news672505912 When the first astronauts walked on the moon as part of the Apollo Program, the concept of lunar habitats ceased being the stuff of science fiction and became a matter of scientific study. With several space agencies planning on sending crewed missions to the moon in the coming decade, these plans have become the subject of scientific interest again. Structures that will enable a "sustained program of lunar science and development" is the long-term aim of NASA's Artemis Program. China and the ESA have similar plans with the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS) and the Moon Village. /news/2025-07-lunar-base-dome-crater-regolith.html Space Exploration Planetary Sciences Tue, 15 Jul 2025 11:00:01 EDT news671793590 Imagine going through a surgery where the doctor proposes the use of a temporary implant that dissolves by itself with time in the human body, thereby avoiding a painful second surgery. As great as that would sound, the challenges are plenty when it comes to designing an implant that has mechanical properties close to that of the human bone, is biocompatible and degrades at an appreciable rate till the bone heals. /news/2025-07-retarding-corrosion-magnesium-alloy-polymer.html Polymers Materials Science Fri, 11 Jul 2025 09:07:42 EDT news671443656 Canadians may think they're intimately familiar with ice in all its forms, but there is one kind that most have probably never heard of. Clathrate hydrates are tiny crystalline cages of ice that can trap other gases or liquids inside them. /news/2025-07-ice-compound-pipeline-safety-carbon.html Analytical Chemistry Materials Science Mon, 07 Jul 2025 16:22:03 EDT news671124121 "Space ice" contains tiny crystals and is not a completely disordered material like liquid water, as previously assumed, according to a new study by scientists at UCL (University College London) and the University of Cambridge. /news/2025-07-space-ice-previously-thought.html Astrobiology Planetary Sciences Mon, 07 Jul 2025 11:00:05 EDT news670773410 Understanding how molecular arrangements within crystals influence their thermal behavior is a fundamental question in solid-state chemistry. This topic is especially relevant in pharmaceuticals existing as enantiomers, molecules in two forms that are mirror images of one another but cannot be superimposed, which can exhibit distinct physical and chemical properties depending on their crystalline form. /news/2025-06-decoding-thermal-behavior-crystals-insights.html Analytical Chemistry Materials Science Wed, 25 Jun 2025 14:22:53 EDT news670080163 In an elegant fusion of art and science, researchers at Rice University have achieved a major milestone in nanomaterials engineering by uncovering how boron nitride nanotubes (BNNTs)—touted for their strength, thermal stability and insulating properties—can be coaxed into forming ordered liquid crystalline phases in water. Their work, published in Langmuir, was so visually striking it graced the journal's cover. /news/2025-06-versatility-boron-nitride-nanotubes-displayed.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Tue, 24 Jun 2025 14:34:03 EDT news669994441 Diamonds might be forever but that doesn't stop them being bought and sold. One stone thought to have once belonged to Marie Antoinette, the last queen of France, has just sold for US$14 million (ÂŁ10 million) at an auction in New York—about three times the asking price. Set into a platinum ring and weighing a total of 15.5 grams, the clue to the diamond's uniqueness is in its name: the Marie-ThĂ©rèse pink. /news/2025-06-pink-diamond-sold-us14-million.html Materials Science Mon, 23 Jun 2025 14:44:15 EDT news669908650 In today's energy-intensive environment, designing new devices for more efficient and renewable energy sources is at the forefront of scientific research. A particularly interesting approach utilizes Ruddlesden-Popper perovskites—a type of layered material made from alternating sheets of inorganic and organic components. These materials are potentially ideal for several applications, including light-emitting diodes (LEDs), thermal energy storage and solar-panel technology. /news/2025-06-shifting-hybrid-materials-bright-future.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Thu, 12 Jun 2025 09:21:21 EDT news668938878 Using advanced electron crystallography techniques, researchers at Stockholm University have succeeded in determining the structure of the historically significant red pigment carmine. It turns out that the substance, used today in products such as candy and paint, has a complex porous structure. /news/2025-06-red-pigment-carmine-complex-porous.html Analytical Chemistry Materials Science Tue, 03 Jun 2025 15:56:03 EDT news668184961 Prof. Chii-Shen Yang's team at National Taiwan University resolved the molecular structure and discovered that HwMR, a light-sensing protein in H. walsbyi, transports magnesium ions using key residues, helping microbes survive extreme conditions. /news/2025-05-driven-magnesium-protein-microbe-harsh.html Cell & Microbiology Molecular & Computational biology Fri, 23 May 2025 12:50:01 EDT news667223206 The clean energy transition requires new means to transport energy that are less reliant on burning fossil fuels. This requires new materials to catalyze reactions to store and extract energy from chemical energy carriers without combustion. /news/2025-05-tool-stable-metal-frameworks-energy.html Analytical Chemistry Materials Science Wed, 21 May 2025 14:54:04 EDT news667058042 With the declared aim of measuring matter under extreme pressure, an international research collaboration headed by the University of Rostock and the Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR) used the high-performance laser DIPOLE 100-X at the European XFEL for the first time in 2023. With spectacular results: In this initial experiment they managed to study liquid carbon—an unprecedented achievement as the researchers report in the journal Nature. /news/2025-05-liquid-carbon.html Plasma Â鶹ŇůÔşics Wed, 21 May 2025 14:17:04 EDT news667055822 Although glasses exhibit disordered atomic structures, X-ray and neutron scattering reveal a subtle periodicity. Researchers at the University of Tsukuba have demonstrated that this hidden periodicity—referred to as "invisible order"—plays a critical role in determining vibrational fluctuations in the terahertz (THz) frequency range, which significantly influence the physical properties of glass. /news/2025-05-invisible-glass-vibrations-terahertz-frequency.html General Â鶹ŇůÔşics Soft Matter Fri, 16 May 2025 10:26:02 EDT news666609961 Researchers at the University of Tokyo and their collaborators have developed a digital laboratory system that fully automates the material synthesis and the structural and physical property evaluation of thin-film samples. /news/2025-05-team-digital-lab-robot-driven.html Analytical Chemistry Materials Science Wed, 14 May 2025 05:00:01 EDT news666272101 A squishy, layered material that dramatically transforms under pressure could someday help computers store more data with less energy. /news/2025-04-pressure-responsive-layered-semiconductor-potential.html Condensed Matter Mon, 28 Apr 2025 13:04:04 EDT news665064241 Catalysts make our modern lives possible. By reducing the start-up energy needed for chemical reactions, they facilitate the production of fuels, plastics and textiles as well as vital water treatment processes. /news/2025-04-dedicated-beamline-slac-catalysis-community.html Analytical Chemistry Materials Science Tue, 22 Apr 2025 08:47:05 EDT news664530422 Researchers at the European XFEL have developed a new device for X-ray measurements at high photon energies—a so-called Laue spectrometer. It enables X-ray light with photon energies of more than 15 kiloelectronvolts to be detected with improved efficiency and highest precision. /news/2025-04-spectrometer-high-photon-energy-rays.html Optics & Photonics Thu, 17 Apr 2025 16:23:03 EDT news664125781 It's highly technical work in what looks more like a lab than a museum: A fragment of a glazed roof tile from Beijing's Forbidden City is analyzed in a state-of-the-art X-ray diffraction machine that produces images, which are then projected onto computer screens. /news/2025-03-science-tradition-relics-china-forbidden.html Archaeology Mon, 24 Mar 2025 05:12:22 EDT news662011933 Porous organic crystals with superior properties as CO2 adsorbents were created by researchers at Institute of Science Tokyo. Owing to the novel 2.5-dimensional skeleton, the materials feature ultrahigh-density amines. The covalently-bonded microporous skeleton and high crystallinity realize fast CO2 adsorption and high thermal stability. Their low adsorption heat, only one-fourth of the current amine scrubbing method, and their light-elemental nature can reduce the cost for CO2 separation from flue gases. /news/2025-02-porous-crystal-superior.html Polymers Analytical Chemistry Fri, 14 Feb 2025 10:56:04 EST news658752961 A new study led by Rice University materials scientist Lane Martin sheds light on how the extreme miniaturization of thin films affects the behavior of relaxor ferroelectrics—materials with noteworthy energy-conversion properties used in sensors, actuators and nanoelectronics. The findings reveal that as the film shrinks to dimensions comparable to the materials' internal polarization structures, their fundamental properties can shift in unexpected ways. /news/2025-02-miniaturization-thin-uncovers-goldilocks-zone.html Nanophysics Nanomaterials Tue, 11 Feb 2025 15:03:10 EST news658508581