The swarming behavior of about 100 million molecular machines can be controlled by applying simple mechanical stimuli such as extension and contraction. This method could lead to the development of new swarming molecular machines and small energy-saving devices.
Read moreToday's computer processors are increasingly pushed to their limits due to their physical properties. Novel materials could be the solution. Physicists have investigated if and how these materials might be developed. They have created, tested and filed a patent for a concept that utilizes the latest findings from the field of spintronics.
Read moreAn organic material that can repeatedly change shape without breaking would have many useful applications, such as artificial muscles, pumps or as a switch. Physicists accidentally discovered a material with that property.
Read moreA team of researchers has observed a rare phenomenon called re-entrant superconductivity in the material uranium ditelluride. Nicknamed 'Lazarus superconductivity,' the phenomenon occurs when a superconducting state arises, breaks down, then re-emerges in a material due to a change in a specific parameter — in this case, the application of a very strong magnetic field. The discovery furthers the case for uranium ditelluride as a promising material for use in quantum computers.
Read moreEngineers have developed silk materials that can wrinkle into highly detailed patterns — including words, textures and images as intricate as a QR code or a fingerprint. The patterns are stable, but can be erased by flooding the surface of the silk with vapor, allowing the surface to be printed again. The researchers demonstrate multiple examples of the silk wrinkle patterns, and envision a wide range of potential applications for optical electronic devices.
Read moreUsing an atomic-force microscope fitted with an electrode tip 1,000 times smaller than a human hair, researchers have identified in real time how nanoscale catalysts collect charges that are excited by light in semiconductors. It's a discovery that could help efforts to design devices that can store solar power for later use.
Read moreScientists have spotted a famously elusive particle: The axion – first predicted 42 years ago as an elementary particle in extensions of the standard model of particle physics.
Read moreChemists transform their laser-induced graphene into an air filter that not only traps pathogens but also kills them with a small blast of electricity.
Read moreA system developed at MIT helps to identify zeolites that can readily transform into other zeolite forms, which are widely used as catalysts in industrial processes.
Read morePressure improves the ability of materials to turn heat into electricity and could potentially be used to create clean generators, according to new work.
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