Sculptured materials allow multiple channel plasmonic sensors
Sensors, communications devices and imaging equipment that use a prism and a special form of light -- a surface plasmon-polariton -- may incorporate multiple channels or redundant applications if manufacturers use sculptured thin films. view more (2009-11-11)
New Transparent Insulating Film Could Enable Energy-Efficient Displays
Johns Hopkins materials scientists have found a new use for a chemical compound that has traditionally been viewed as an electrical conductor, a substance that allows electricity to flow through it. view more (2009-11-10)
Plentiful poinsettias without PGRs
Poinsettias can be a lucrative crop for ornamental plant growers, particularly during the Christmas season. view more (2009-11-05)
Reflective film can boost profits for apple growers
In a research report published in a recent issue of HortTechnology, scientists Ignasi Iglesias and Simó Alegre examined the effects of covering orchard floors with reflective films on fruit color, fruit quality, canopy light distribution, orchard temperature, and profitability. view more (2009-11-04)
Caltech scientists solve decade-long mystery of nanopillar formations
Scientists at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) have uncovered the physical mechanism by which arrays of nanoscale (billionths-of-a-meter) pillars can be grown on polymer films with very high precision, in potentially limitless patterns. view more (2009-10-23)
Camera flash turns an insulating material into a conductor
An insulator can now be transformed to conduct electricity by an ordinary camera flash. view more (2009-08-13)
Novel temperature calibration improves NIST microhotplate technology
Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have developed a new calibration technique that will improve the reliability and stability of one of NIST's most versatile technologies, the microhotplate. view more (2009-08-12)
Historical movies help students learn, but separating fact from fiction can be challenge
Students who learn history by watching historically based blockbuster movies may be doomed to repeat the historical mistakes portrayed within them, suggests a new study from Washington University in St. Louis. view more (2009-08-06)
Switch to Digital Mammography Leads to Increased Cancer Detection Rates
The use of digital mammography equipment alone is responsible for an increased number of breast cancers detected at a community-based mammography facility, according to a study performed at San Luis Diagnostic Center in San Luis Obispo, CA. view more (2009-08-04)
Rapid heating prepares energy-saving zeolite for greater role in industrial separations
Thin-film zeolite membranes with tiny, molecule-sized pores are one step closer to replacing the energy-intensive processes now used in industrial separations, a group of academic researchers is reporting. view more (2009-08-04)
Membrane breaks through performance barrier
Engineers have developed a new method for creating high-performance membranes from crystal sieves called zeolites; the method could increase the energy efficiency of chemical separations up to 50 times over conventional methods and enable higher production rates. view more (2009-07-31)
NIST scientists study how to stack the deck for organic solar power
A new class of economically viable solar power cells-cheap, flexible and easy to make-has come a step closer to reality as a result of recent work* at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), where scientists have deepened their understanding of the complex organic films at the heart of the devices. view more (2009-07-30)
Unexpectedly long-range effects in advanced magnetic devices
A tiny grid pattern has led materials scientists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the Institute of Solid State Physics in Russia to an unexpected finding-the surprisingly strong and long-range effects of certain electromagnetic nanostructures used in data storage. view more (2009-07-02)
Implant bacteria, beware: Researchers create nano-sized assassins
Staphylococcus epidermidis is quite an opportunist. Commonly found on human skin, the bacteria pose little danger. But S. epidermidis is a leading cause of infections in hospitals. view more (2009-06-26)
UGA researchers achieve breakthrough in effort to develop tiny biological fuel cells
University of Georgia researchers have developed a successful way to grow molecular wire brushes that conduct electrical charges, a first step in developing biological fuel cells that could power pacemakers, cochlear implants and prosthetic limbs. The journal Chemical Science calls the technique "a significant breakthrough for... view more... (2009-06-22)
NIST discovers how strain at grain boundaries suppresses high-temperature superconductivity
Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have discovered that a reduction in mechanical strain at the boundaries of crystal grains can significantly improve the performance of high-temperature superconductors (HTS). view more (2009-06-18)
MIT: Peeling stickers may lead to stretchable electronics
A study of stickers peeling from windows could lead to a new way to precisely control the fabrication of stretchable electronics, according to a team of researchers including one at MIT. view more (2009-06-16)
Thinnest superconducting metal created
A superconducting sheet of lead only two atoms thick, the thinnest superconducting metal layer ever created, has been developed by physicists at The University of Texas at Austin. view more (2009-06-09)
Aluminum-oxide nanopore beats other materials for DNA analysis
Fast and affordable genome sequencing has moved a step closer with a new solid-state nanopore sensor being developed by researchers at the University of Illinois. view more (2009-06-03)
Lasers are making solar cells competitive
Solar electricity has a future: It is renewable and available in unlimited quantities, and it does not produce any gases detrimental to the climate. view more (2009-06-01)
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