All Articles Tagged As: materials

A plane with wings of glass? (6/23/2008)

Major breakthrough in understanding the nature of glass ...> Full Article

Study finds new properties in non-magnetic materials (6/14/2008)

A team of researchers has shown for the first time that the entire class of non-magnetic materials, such as those used in some computer components, could have considerably more uses than scientists had thought ...> Full Article

Physicists Reveal Secrets of Newest Form of Carbon (6/11/2008)

Using one of the world's most powerful sources of man-made radiation, physicists have uncovered new secrets about the properties of graphene-a form of pure carbon that may one day replace the silicon in computers, televisions, mobile phones and other common electronic devices. ...> Full Article

Surprising graphene (6/9/2008)

Honing in on graphene electronics with infrared synchrotron radiation ...> Full Article

The crack as a tool (6/2/2008)

Scientists using thermal cracking to 'cut' glass ...> Full Article

New metamaterial proves to be a 'perfect' absorber of light (6/2/2008)

Resonators couple individually to electric and magnetic fields to absorb all incident radiation ...> Full Article

Magnet Lab research suggests novel superconductor is in a powerful class all its own (6/1/2008)

Researchers have discovered unusual properties in a novel superconducting material that point to an entirely new kind of superconductor ...> Full Article

Physicists don't flip spin but find possible electron switch (5/31/2008)

Unexpected results offer a potential tool for selectively manipulating electron spins in new technologies ...> Full Article

A Molecular 'Salve' to Sooth Surface Stresses (5/30/2008)

Researchers have shown for the first time that a single layer of molecular "salve" can significantly soothe the stresses affecting clean metal surfaces ...> Full Article

Researchers Uncover Information on New Superconductors (5/29/2008)

The world of physics is on fire about a new kind of superconductor ...> Full Article

New Iron-based Superconductors Reinforce Link to Magnetism (5/29/2008)

Researchers have discovered that a new class of iron-based superconductors discovered earlier this year shares similar unusual magnetic properties with previously known high-temperature superconductors based on copper-oxide materials ...> Full Article

Bright sparks make gains towards plastic lasers of the future (5/24/2008)

Researchers have come one step closer to finding the 'holy grail' in the field of plastic semiconductors by demonstrating a class of material that could make electrically-driven plastic laser diodes a reality. ...> Full Article

Disorder enables extreme sensitivity in piezoelectric materials (5/19/2008)

A research team has found an explanation for the extreme sensitivity to mechanical pressure or voltage of a special class of solid materials called relaxors ...> Full Article

Research puts new wrinkle in study of materials folding under pressure (5/16/2008)

Scientists have explained, for the first time, the physics that governs how thin materials at scales millions of times different in thickness make the transition from wrinkles into folds under compression. ...> Full Article

Possible Mechanism for Enormous Electromechanical Response (5/13/2008)

Could lead to industrial applications including improved sensors, actuators, transducers ...> Full Article

Researchers discover theoretical model to predict jamming (5/2/2008)

The model could provide new avenues in materials innovation and medicine ...> Full Article

Heat transfer between materials is focus of new research grant (5/1/2008)

Managing heat is a major challenge for engineers who work on devices from jet engines to personal electronics to nano-scale transistors. ...> Full Article

Scientists discover exotic quantum state of matter (4/25/2008)

'Quantum Hall-like effect' found in a bulk material without an applied magnetic field ...> Full Article

Second family of high-temperature superconductors discovered (4/23/2008)

Researchers in Japan and China have discovered a new family of high-temperature superconductors ...> Full Article

From cartilage to fruit-fly wings, physicist studies 'squishiness' in everyday things (4/20/2008)

Figuring out the physics of how cartilage moves, is compressed, twisted and otherwise deformed to eventually be replaced by better, longer-lasting artificial cartilage is goal of projects ...> Full Article

Micro Sensor and Micro Fridge Make Cool Pair (4/17/2008)

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have combined two tiny but powerful NIST inventions on a single microchip, a cryogenic sensor and a microrefrigerator. The combination offers the possibility of cheaper, simpler and faster precision analysis of materials such as semiconductors and stardust. ...> Full Article

Newly discovered 'superinsulators' promise to transform materials research, electronics design (4/6/2008)

Discovery opens new directions of inquiry in condensed matter physics and breaks ground for a new generation of microelectronics ...> Full Article

Researchers Find 'Metafilms' Can Shrink Radio, Radar Devices (3/21/2008)

Recent research at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has demonstrated that thin films made of "metamaterials"-manmade composites engineered to offer strange combinations of electromagnetic properties-can reduce the size of resonating circuits that generate microwaves. The work is a step forward in the worldwide quest to further shrink electronic devices such as cell phones, radios, and radar equipment. ...> Full Article

Fake Diamonds Help Jet Engines Take The Heat (3/19/2008)

Engineers are developing a technology to coat jet engine turbine blades with zirconium dioxide -- commonly called zirconia, the stuff of synthetic diamonds -- to combat high-temperature corrosion. ...> Full Article

Single-crystal semiconductor wire built into an optical fiber (3/17/2008)

An international science team from Penn State and the University of Southampton, United Kingdom, has developed a process for growing a single-crystal semiconductor inside the tunnel of a hollow optical fiber. The device adds new electronic capabilities to optical fibers, whose performance in electronic devices such as computers typically is degraded by the interface between the fiber and the device. ...> Full Article

New Method for Creating Tough Metallic Glass Composites (3/2/2008)

Scientists at the California Institute of Technology have developed a new strategy for creating "liquid metal" that makes it able to bend significantly without breaking, while retaining a strength twice that of titanium. It is among the toughest, or least brittle, known materials, and could be used anywhere that strong metal alloys are traditionally found, but may prove most useful in the aerospace industry, where lower density means fuel savings. ...> Full Article

'Two-Faced' Particles Act Like Tiny Submarines in Study (2/29/2008)

For the first time, researchers at North Carolina State University have demonstrated that microscopic "two-faced" spheres whose halves are physically or chemically different - so-called Janus particles - will move like stealthy submarines when an alternating electrical field is applied to liquid surrounding the particles. ...> Full Article

By color-coding atoms, new electron microscope promises big advance in materials analysis (2/26/2008)

A new electron microscope recently installed in Cornell's Duffield Hall is enabling scientists for the first time to form images that uniquely identify individual atoms in a crystal and see how those atoms bond to one another. And in living color. ...> Full Article

Researcher reveals superconducting surprise (2/14/2008)

A better understanding of material could bring 'endless applications' ...> Full Article

'T-ray' breakthrough signals next generation of security sensors (2/5/2008)

A new generation of sensors for detecting explosives and poisons could be developed following new research into a type of radiation known as T-rays ...> Full Article

Squeezed Crystals Deliver More Volts Per Jolt (2/1/2008)

A discovery by scientists at the Carnegie Institution has opened the door to a new generation of piezoelectric materials that can convert mechanical strain into electricity and vice versa, potentially cutting costs and boosting performance in myriad applications ranging from medical diagnostics to green energy technologies. ...> Full Article

Scientists Dramatically Improve Soft X-Ray Lasers With Discovery (1/23/2008)

Colorado State University scientists have found a way to dramatically improve the quality of laser light at extremely short wavelengths, according to a paper that was published Sunday online by Nature Photonics. ...> Full Article

New technology sharpens X-ray vision (1/21/2008)

Researchers at the Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI) and the EPFL in Switzerland have developed a novel method for producing dark-field x-ray images at wavelengths used in typical medical and industrial imaging equipment. ...> Full Article

Laboratory Is 'Beefing' Up Magnets For Electric-Drive Cars (1/10/2008)

New Magnet Alloy Stays Strong - Even at 200 Degrees Celsius ...> Full Article

Magnetic Alloy With Swiss Cheese Structure Morphs Shape (1/9/2008)

Researchers have turned a stubborn alloy into a shape-shifting foam by just giving it a little breathing room. ...> Full Article

Tiny technology (12/23/2007)

A switch just one-tenth the size of a human hair has been developed by Scottish scientists to boost communication technologies. ...> Full Article

ISIS Second Target station - protons on target! (12/21/2007)

The ISIS Second Target Station Project at the STFC Rutherford Appleton Laboratory in Oxfordshire achieved a major milestone on Friday 14 December, at the first attempt and two days ahead of schedule. Protons were successfully extracted into the new proton transfer beamline from the existing ISIS accelerator and delivered to the new target station. ...> Full Article

Hybrid semiconductors show zero thermal expansion, could lead to hardier electronics and optoelectronics (12/20/2007)

The fan in your computer is there to keep the microprocessor chip from heating to the point where its component materials start to expand, inducing cracks that interrupt the flow of electricity - and not incidentally, ruin the chip. Thermal expansion can also separate semiconducting materials from the substrate, reduce performance through changes in the electronic structure of the material or warp the delicate structures that emit laser light. ...> Full Article

Metal Foam Has a Good Memory (12/19/2007)

In the world of commercial materials, lighter and cheaper is usually better, especially when those attributes are coupled with superior strength and special properties, such as a material's ability to remember its original shape after it's been deformed by a physical or magnetic force. ...> Full Article

Project to look at best way to find defects in aircraft and racing cars (12/15/2007)

An Anglo-Indian initiative is to be launched to look at the efficiency of new ways of detecting dangerous defects in vehicles including aircraft, racing cars and spacecraft. ...> Full Article

Researchers advance process to manufacture silicon chips (12/4/2007)

The next generation of laptops, desk computers, cell phones and other semiconductor devices may get faster and more cost-effective with research from Clemson University. ...> Full Article

Scientists use unique diamond anvils to view oxide glass structures under pressure (11/22/2007)

Researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory have used a uniquely constructed perforated diamond cell to investigate oxide glass structures at high pressures in unprecedented detail. ...> Full Article

Thermoelectric materials are one key to energy savings (11/21/2007)

Breathing new life into an old idea, MIT Institute Professor Mildred S. Dresselhaus and co-workers are developing innovative materials for controlling temperatures that could lead to substantial energy savings by allowing more efficient car engines, photovoltaic cells and electronic devices. ...> Full Article

Novel semiconductor structure bends light 'wrong' way - the right direction for many applications (10/17/2007)

A research team has created an easy-to-produce material from the stuff of computer chips that has the rare ability to bend light in the opposite direction from all naturally occurring materials. This startling property may contribute to significant advances in many areas, including high-speed communications, medical diagnostics and detection of terrorist threats. ...> Full Article

Researchers' material may lead to advances in quantum computing (10/5/2007)

Scientists have introduced a new material that could be to computers of the future what silicon is to the computers of today. ...> Full Article