Crystal symmetry is one of the decisive physical attributes that determines the properties of a material. In particular, the behaviour of an electron is largely affected by the symmetry of the crystal which in turn governs the fundamental behaviour of the material, such as its conductive or optical properties. With recent developments of experimental techniques and advances in ultrafast laser experiments, another symmetry besides the crystal has turned out to influence the electrons: the symmetry of light. Now researchers from…

New approach facilitates the control of reversible conductivity in semiconductors. The semiconductor gallium oxide is thought to be a promising candidate for potential use in power electronics. So far, however, a number of obstacles have stood in its path, especially how to specifically influence the material’s electrical conductivity. In a study published in the journal Scientific Reports (DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-62948-2), a team of researchers involving scientists from the Helmholtz Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR) have now demonstrated how the conductivity of gallium oxide…

IBS researchers in South Korea probe the cage formation of the glass at surgical precision and elucidate the onset of glass transition. Bo Li, Kai Kou, Research Fellows of IBS Center for Soft and Living Matter, Walter Kob, Professor of University of Montpellier and Institute Universitaire de France and Steve Granick, Director of the IBS Center for Soft and Living Matter report together in the 7833 issue of the journal Nature that onset of glass transition is a highly non-trivial…

Developing new materials takes a lot of time, money and effort. Recently, a POSTECH research team has taken a step closer to creating new materials by applying AI to develop high-entropy alloys (HEAs) which are coined as “alloy of alloys.” A joint research team led by Professor Seungchul Lee, Ph.D. candidate Soo Young Lee, Professor Hyungyu Jin and Ph.D. candidate Seokyeong Byeon of the Department of Mechanical Engineering along with Professor Hyoung Seop Kim of the Department of Materials Science…

Slinky-like sensor is ultra-sensitive and resilient. Think about your favorite t-shirt, the one you’ve worn a hundred times, and all the abuse you’ve put it through. You’ve washed it more times than you can remember, spilled on it, stretched it, crumbled it up, maybe even singed it leaning over the stove once. We put our clothes through a lot and if the smart textiles of the future are going to survive all that we throw at them, their components are…

A new and efficient way to create nanographene for power and display devices. Nanographene is a material that is anticipated to radically improve solar cells, fuel cells, LEDs and more. Typically the synthesis of this material has been imprecise and difficult to control. For the first time, researchers have discovered a simple way to gain precise control over the fabrication of nanographene. In doing so, they have shed light on the previously unclear chemical processes involved in nanographene production. You…

In October 2019, the EU-funded initiative “Switch2Save” (grant agreement No. 869929) was launched to improve the availability and affordability of electrochromic and thermochromic smart glass technologies. About one year later, the first project results show that the use of these technologies in combination with intelligent switching protocols can reduce the primary energy use of extensively glazed buildings by up to 70%. Smart Glass Solutions – such as electrochromic (EC) and thermochromic (TC) windows and glass façades – control the radiation…

A research team has developed a new method for creating metal-organic framework (MOF) thin films that can be applied to sensors and electric devices. Like sponges, porous materials contain pores. The pore size affects the property of the material. For example, small pores create more absorbent surface areas. Silica gel, which is often used in food packaging to soak up moisture, is one typical example. Recent studies on porous materials have led to the development of new materials with designable…

Complex 3D nanoscale architectures based on DNA self-assembly can conduct electricity without resistance and may provide a platform for fabricating quantum computing and sensing devices. Three-dimensional (3-D) nanostructured materials–those with complex shapes at a size scale of billionths of a meter–that can conduct electricity without resistance could be used in a range of quantum devices. For example, such 3-D superconducting nanostructures could find application in signal amplifiers to enhance the speed and accuracy of quantum computers and ultrasensitive magnetic field…

Researchers from Osaka University polished the hardest known material without damaging it, which will help accelerate its use in advanced electronics. Silicon has been the workhorse of electronics for decades because it is a common element, is easy to process, and has useful electronic properties. A limitation of silicon is that high temperatures damage it, which limits the operating speed of silicon-based electronics. Single-crystal diamond is a possible alternative to silicon. Researchers recently fabricated a single-crystal diamond wafer, but common…

Germanium telluride (GeTe) is known as a ferrolectric Rashba semiconductor with a number of interesting properties. The crystals consist of nanodomains, whose ferrolectric polarization can be switched by external electric fields. Because of the so-called Rashba effect, this ferroelectricity can also be used to switch electron spins within each domain. Germanium telluride is therefore an interesting material for spintronic devices, which allow data processing with significantly less energy input. Now a team from HZB and the Lomonosov Moscow State University,…

Scientists have found a way to generate electricity from nylon, raising hopes that the clothes on our backs will become an important source of energy. Researchers have found a way to produce nylon fibres that are smart enough to produce electricity from simple body movement, paving the way for smart clothes that will monitor our health through miniaturised sensors and charge our devices without any external power source. This discovery – a collaboration between the University of Bath, the Max…

For quality control and damage assessment of injection-moulded components, simple and cost-effective tests are desired. Preparation of the standard test specimens is sometimes costly. In this case, the specimens taken from the flat areas of the component can be preferred. Scientists at the Fraunhofer LBF have improved known in-plane geometry for the shear test. Together with the modified loading schema, the new procedure is reliable and can be used for a wide range of materials. The new test specification is…

The EU research project “Center of Excellence in Combustion” (CoEC), granted with a budget of over 5.6 Million Euro, has started. Eleven partners from eight countries are involved – including the “Institute of Simulation of reactive Thermo-Fluid Systems“ and “Institute for Energy and Power Plant Technology” of TU Darmstadt. With the European Green Deal the EU has set the goal reaching climate neutrality in its energy and transport sector. To make this possible in combustion processes, new innovative concepts on…

Improvement of heat exchange by means of metallized zeolites The heating season in Germany has started again and in terms of a sustainable energy supply, concepts for an effective heat utilization are needed. In this context, thermal storage facilities, which are flexible in use and have high storage capacities, are moving into focus. Thermal storage systems based on zeolite materials offer great potential, but have so far suffered from a lack of efficient heat transfer between storage material and heat…

By means of an innovative bonding technology, high-performance timber-concrete composite elements can be produced faster and more easily. As a result of the new joining technology, which was developed by researchers in a cooperative project involving the Fraunhofer WKI, the composite elements become more competitive in comparison to pure concrete elements. The utilization of the renewable raw material wood can therefore be increased in the construction industry. Timber-concrete composite elements (TCC elements) can be used in multi-story building construction, for…