Materials news, October 2019

New study identifies prime culprit for growth of dendrites in lithium batteries

Scientists have shown that the presence of certain compounds in the liquid electrolyte of lithium batteries prompts the growth of dendrites and whiskers.

Defects and strains cause 2D material to emit quantum light

A subtle interaction between single atomic defects in the 2D material tungsten diselenide and mechanical strain causes it to emit quantum light.

Shedding light on biomimetics

Shedding light on biomimetics

Topological insulators take the heat out of friction

Due to a new quantum mechanism, the heat generated by friction is significantly lower in topological insulators than in conventional materials.

Navigational aids provide geometrical explanation for polymer spindles

Navigational tools from the 16th century have helped researchers understand how polymer spheres can be transformed into twisted spindles.

Rediscovered material has superconductivity useful for quantum computing

Material with unconventional behavior affected by strong magnetic fields

Method for 3D printing of soft materials in fine detail

New technique for 3D printing of soft materials with additive manufacturing

Nanoparticle catalysts offer greener route to better bulletproof-vest polymer

An alloy-based nanoparticle catalyst offers a greener route to producing a more robust version of a polymer used in bulletproof vests.

Polycrystalline material naturally exists in two different quantum states

Electric current can simultaneously flow clockwise and counterclockwise in a ring of a polycrystalline material made from bismuth and palladium.

Novel approach lets scientists draw superconducting patterns

Scientists have produced a heavy fermion material with superconducting regions coexisting alongside regions in a normal metallic state.

Graph theory provides transformative discovery about zeolites

A novel mathematical approach based on graph theory can predict which pairs of zeolite types can be transformed from one to the other.

New silk materials put wrinkle into pattern creation

Researchers have developed silk materials that can wrinkle into highly detailed patterns, which can be erased by flooding the silk surface with vapor.

Chemical maps show routes to new high-entropy alloys

Researchers have gained new insights into high-entropy alloys by using X-ray spectroscopy to create atomic-resolution chemical maps of them.

Magnetic fields can’t keep a good superconductor down

The superconducting state of uranium ditelluride rises, breaks down and then re-emerges on exposure to very strong magnetic field.

Better understanding of defect interaction could lead to better alloys

Engineers have identified two aspects of the interaction between a metal and its alloying material that can predict how a particular alloy will behave.

Novel shape-shifting material can produce human face

Complex shape-shifting lattices composed of multiple elastomeric materials can grow or shrink in response to changes in temperature.

Researchers take nanomaterials down to the next level

Researchers have developed an artificial, layered crystal composed of the elements lanthanum, titanium, cobalt and oxygen in atom-thick sheets.

Polymer proves better at filtering carbon dioxide when wet

Researchers have found that submerging a polymer in liquid water can boost its ability to selectively remove carbon dioxide from gas mixtures.

Copper impurities produce strongest ever silver

By simply adding a trace amount of copper, scientists have created the strongest ever silver without reducing its electrical conductivity.

Magic angle in superconducting graphene not quite so magical

Scientists have discovered that the magic angle at which two layers of graphene become superconducting is slightly wider than originally thought.

Silver helps borophene grow to unprecedented lengths

Using a silver substrate and molecular-beam epitaxy , scientists were able to grow elongated, hexagon-shaped flakes of the 2D material borophene.

Graphene is 3D as well as 2D

Researchers have found that graphene has many of the same mechanical properties as 3D graphite and is significantly thicker than widely believed.

New model reveals role of hopping electrons in high-temperature superconductors

A new model suggests that high-temperature superconductivity in cuprates arises when electrons hop from atom-to-atom in a particular pattern.

New composite design promises flexible displays

novel electroluminescent device uses flexible, electrically conductive Ag-coated nylon fibers embedded in a PDMS + ZnS composite as electrodes

Accommodating borophene forms heterostructure with graphene

As a step towards fabricating circuits from nanomaterials, engineers have created heterostructures from the 2D materials graphene and borophene.

Machine-learning algorithm can pick out just the right dielectric Lego piece

Engineers have harnessed machine learning to design dielectric metamaterials that absorb and emit specific frequencies of terahertz radiation.

New nano-lightbulb turns heat into light

By combining different materials, scientists have created highly configurable, nanoscale thermal light emitters for producing light from heat.

Valley trail leads to quantum computing applications for 2D material

Scientists have found a new way to manipulate the electronic properties of 2D tungsten disulfide that could prove useful for quantum computing.

Aerogel support for enzymes

Aerogel support for enzymes

Recharging the Nobel Prize for Chemistry

Rechargeable lithium-ion batteries, Chemistry Nobel 2019

Antimony nanochains look good on lithium-ion batteries

Researchers have created a net-like structure, called a ‘nanochain’, of antimony, which can enhance lithium-ion charge capacity in batteries.

Quantum loop leads to room-temperature topological magnet

Researchers have found that a crystal made of cobalt, manganese and gallium is a room-temperature topological magnet that hosts quantum loops.

Smart skin material that changes color in response to heat and light

Smart skin that responds to heat and sunlight

Thin films of platinum on graphene make effective fuel cell catalyst

Films of platinum only two atoms thick supported by graphene could usher in fuel cell catalysts with unprecedented catalytic activity and longevity.

Wood toughens up spider silk

Adding spider silk protein to wood cellulose nanofibrils makes tougher, but flexible composite

Ultrasonic waves prevent shear-thickening materials from thickening

Researchers have shown that ultrasonic waves produced by an acoustic transducer can manipulate the viscosity of shear-thickening materials.

Molybdenum helps produce better transparent coating for touchscreens

Researchers have found that doping indium oxide with molybdenum rather than tin doubles the conductivity of this transparent conductor.

Organic semiconductors need to stay hydrated during doping

A Lewis acid offers an effective way to change the electrical properties of certain organic semiconductors, but only in the presence of water.

Novel soft material carries out logic functions when touched

A silicone polymer embedded with temperature-sensitive dyes and liquid metal wires can carry out simple logic functions in response to touch.

Save the Date - 11th Conference on Modification, Degradation and Stabilization of Polymers (MoDeSt 2020)

None more black

Coating chlorine-etched aluminum foil with carbon nanotubes created a material that is 10 times blacker than anything previously reported.

Halide perovskites are troubled by dislocations

Crystallographic dislocations can impact the ability of halide perovskites to hold energy derived from light in the form of excited electrons.

Smallest ever spectrometer can image single cells

Smallest ever spectrometer based on a single nanowire