News by Subject Technology & Engineering

One of the biggest challenges in making hydrogen production clean and cheap has been finding an alternative catalyst necessary for the chemical reaction that produces the gas, one that is much cheaper and abundant than the very expensive and rare platinum that is currently used. Researchers in Korea have now found a way to 'snip' into tiny nanoribbons a cheap and plentiful substance that fits the bill, boosting its catalytic efficiency to at least that of platinum.

Scientists at Ames Laboratory have discovered and confirmed a method which could serve as an easy but reliable way to test the quality of graphene and other 2D materials.

A liquid nanofoam liner undergoing testing could prolong the safe use of football helmets, says a Michigan State University researcher.

One of the proteins on the virus - located on the characteristic COVID spike - has a component called the receptor-binding domain, or RBD, which is its "Achilles heel." That is, he said, antibodies against this part of the virus have the potential to the neutralize the virus.

Freiburg researchers develop guidelines to standardize analysis of electrodes.

Researchers at the University of Basel have developed a precisely controllable system for mimicking biochemical reaction cascades in cells. Using microfluidic technology, they produce miniature polymeric reaction containers equipped with the desired properties. This 'cell on a chip' is useful not only for studying processes in cells, but also for the development of new synthetic pathways for chemical applications or for biological active substances in medicine.

Light-controlled molecular motors can be used to create functional materials, to provide autonomous motion or in systems that can respond on command, for example, to open drug-containing vesicles. For biological applications, this requires the motors to be driven by low-energy, low-intensity light that penetrates tissue. Chemists at the University of Groningen designed a rotary motor that is efficiently powered by near-infrared light, through adding an antenna to the motor molecule.

Researchers proposed a new approach to describe the interaction of metals with electromagnetic fluctuations (i.e., with random bursts of electric and magnetic fields). Researchers proposed a new approach to describe the interaction of metals with electromagnetic fluctuations (i.e., with random bursts of electric and magnetic fields).

An international multi-institution team of scientists has synthesized graphene nanoribbons -- ultrathin strips of carbon atoms -- on a titanium dioxide surface using an atomically precise method that removes a barrier for custom-designed carbon nanostructures required for quantum information sciences.