A research team has discovered the structural origins of mechanical softness in amorphous materials like glass, attributing it to hierarchical ring structures that coexist with medium-range order and local disorder. This finding will accelerate the design of flexible and strong amorphous solids.
SourceThe University of Osaka·JournalNature Communications·TypeComputational simulation/modeling·DateSep 25, 2025
Researchers investigated low-density amorphous ice and found it was not fully disordered but contained tiny crystals. This discovery challenges the assumption that space ice is similar to liquid water and has implications for theories like Panspermia.
SourceUniversity College London·JournalPhysical Review B·DateJul 7, 2025
Researchers identified a direct correlation between the emergence of boson peak (BP) and first sharp diffraction peak (FSDP) using heterogeneous elasticity theory. This suggests that FSDP is a determining factor in the vibrational behavior of glasses within the THz band.
SourceUniversity of Tsukuba·JournalScientific Reports·DateMay 18, 2025
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TIFRH researchers found that imparting additional motility to poorly annealed glass components can induce further annealing, transforming a ductile material into a brittle one. This discovery provides insights into how cells might regulate glassiness and aids in designing new metamaterials.
SourceTata Institute of Fundamental Research·JournalNature Physics·TypeComputational simulation/modeling·DateMay 17, 2025
Researchers discover that disordered solids lose stability at low-frequency vibrations near zero, leading to a 'loose state' where particles slide in clusters. The theory applies to materials with negligible thermal fluctuations, including those found in space.
A study published in Nature Materials reveals that cooperative particle rearrangements influence structural order and dynamic behavior in glass-forming liquids. The researchers identified a key process called T1, which maintains local order and leads to super-Arrhenius behavior.
SourceInstitute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo·JournalNature Materials·DateJan 8, 2025
A new study uses a solid dispersion technique to improve the dissolution rate and bioavailability of nitrofurantoin, a BCS II drug with low solubility. The researchers found that the optimized formulation showed a 3.88-fold improvement in bioavailability compared to the marketed formulation.
SourceCompuscript Ltd·JournalBIO Integration·DateAug 6, 2024
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Researchers from Tokyo Metropolitan University created a new model to study the transmission of forces through amorphous solids like concrete and cement. They found that areas between hard regions 'harden' to produce elongated force chains, leading to softer materials with more uniform stiffness.
SourceTokyo Metropolitan University·JournalScientific Reports·DateMay 4, 2024
Researchers used data science techniques to analyze the atomic structure of amorphous germanium materials, revealing that smaller atomic rings are associated with lower thermal conductivity and larger rings with higher conductivity. This discovery could lead to the development of new metastable phase-integrated thermal control materials.
SourceNational Institute for Materials Science, Japan·JournalInternational Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer·TypeExperimental study·DateMar 4, 2024
Researchers have found that increasing pressure suppresses a regular atomic arrangement called Peierls-like distortion, which is crucial for phase-change materials. This discovery may lead to the development of new materials for advanced phase-change memory and other applications.
SourceUniversity of Tsukuba·JournalNature Communications·DateDec 12, 2023
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Researchers at Hokkaido University and Kyushu University have developed a technique to synthesize potential molecular switches from anthraquinodimethanes (AQDs), a group of overcrowded organic molecules. The synthesized derivatives can stably form twisted and folded isomers, as well as other isomeric forms, in different solvents.
SourceHokkaido University·JournalMaterials Chemistry Frontiers·TypeExperimental study·DateApr 6, 2023
High-entropy metal telluride superconductors exhibit unique properties due to structural disorder and atomic vibrations. The discovery sheds light on the coupling between electrons and lattice vibrations, potentially leading to exotic superconductivity mechanisms.
SourceTokyo Metropolitan University·JournalMaterials Today Physics·DateMar 25, 2023
Researchers at UCL discovered a new type of ice, medium-density amorphous ice (MDA), which has the same density as liquid water and exhibits properties similar to solid water. This finding may challenge existing models of water and raise questions about its anomalies.
SourceUniversity College London·JournalScience·TypeExperimental study·DateFeb 2, 2023
A team of researchers at Cambridge and UCL created a novel amorphous form of ice called medium-density amorphous ice (MDA), which resembles liquid water in its solid state. MDA has a density similar to that of liquid water and displays unique properties not found in other forms of ice.
SourceUniversity of Cambridge·JournalScience·DateFeb 2, 2023
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Researchers from the University of Tokyo simulated fracture in amorphous solids to better understand material fatigue. They found that the critical strain for irreversible deformation is the same for both fatigue and monotonic fractures.
SourceInstitute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo·JournalCommunications Materials·DateOct 11, 2022
Scientists create a bendable organic LED with a mica backing that produces soft, warm light similar to candlelight, with minimal blue wavelength emissions. This device offers a potential solution for sleep-friendly lighting alternatives.
SourceAmerican Chemical Society·JournalACS Applied Electronic Materials·DateMay 24, 2022
A UCLA-led research team directly observes how atoms are packed in samples of amorphous materials using 3D imaging. They found that the most commonly seen arrangement is groups of seven, with five in one central layer, leading to a network structure with shared edges.
SourceUniversity of California - Los Angeles·JournalNature Materials·DateOct 18, 2021
Researchers used atomic electron tomography to map the structure of metallic glass, a class of matter that has long posed a challenge to scientists. The study revealed pockets where atoms coalesced into ordered superclusters, showing that even within an amorphous solid, the arrangement of atoms is not completely random.
SourceUniversity of California - Los Angeles·JournalNature·DateMar 31, 2021
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The University of Tokyo researchers employed a new computer model to simulate amorphous solids and their strength. They found that the internal network of force-bearing particles is responsible for giving glass its rigidity.
SourceInstitute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo·JournalNature Communications·DateSep 25, 2020
A team of researchers at the University of Tokyo developed a new method for understanding amorphous solids using computer simulations. They focused on local mechanical properties and introduced a new order parameter called vibrability, which controls atomic vibrations in soft discs or spheres. This discovery may help design more effici...
SourceInstitute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo·JournalPhysical Review Letters·DateJun 5, 2019
Researchers found that amorphous solids can be truly elastic and reversible for small strains, but become marginally stable with infinitesimal deformations, exhibiting both elastic and plastic behavior
SourceChinese Academy of Sciences Headquarters·JournalScience Advances·DateDec 7, 2018
Researchers from University of Bristol and Johannes Gutenberg Universität Mainz have found a critical point in the glass transition, enabling reconciliation of mutually incompatible interpretations. The study suggests that the thermodynamic and dynamic interpretations are different reflections of the same underlying phenomenon.
SourceUniversity of Bristol·JournalPhysical Review X·DateAug 14, 2017
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Engineers at North Carolina State University have developed a comprehensive understanding of nanostructural control during nanoparticle formation. They created hollow, solid, and amorphous nanoparticles of nickel phosphide with controlled structures using specific reactant ratios and temperatures.
SourceNorth Carolina State University·JournalChemistry of Materials·DateSep 24, 2009