Materials Science News

Jaws of Glycera dibranchiata are composites of protein, melanin, and both mineral and ionic copper; to date, nanomechanical tests have correlated the ionic copper and melanin with hardness and wear resistance, but the function of protein is uncertain. Wonderly et al. characterize a Gly- and His-rich protein called multi-tasking protein (MTP) and, using recombinant protein, show that it performs six distinct functions critical for jaw formation and performance, namely (1) recruiting 22 equiv of Cu2+, (2) mediating a liquid-liquid phase separation of the MTP-copper complex, (3) catalyzing the oxidation of 3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine (Dopa) to melanin, (4) templating the interfacial polymerization of melanin, (5) integrating melanin and itself into thin films and fibers, and (6) providing intermolecular cohesion through Cu bridging. MTP achieves all these by assuming unprecedented roles as a building block, organizer, and fabricator -- a processing feat of considerable relevance to the autonomous production of other polymer composites, blends, and/or networks. Image credit: Wonderly et al., doi: 10.1016/j.matt.2022.04.001.

Study: Bloodworms Use Copper Harvested From Marine Sediments to Form Their Unique Jaws

Apr 26, 2022 by News Staff

Bloodworms Glycera dibranchiata are known for their unusual jaws, which are made of protein (∼50% w/w), ionic and mineralized copper (up to 10%), and...

The green fuel (alcohol) is represented by the green-colored droplets at the top of the image, which upon interacting with curcumin enveloped gold nanoparticles, efficiently yield energy (white-colored sparks at the bottom of the image). Image credit: Sri Sai Prasad Nayak / Lakshman Ventrapragada.

Scientists Use Curcumin to Create Highly Efficient Electrode

Apr 19, 2022 by News Staff

A team of researchers from India and the United States has combined curcumin, a molecule that was first extracted from the roots of Curcuma longa (turmeric),...

A thermophotovoltaic cell (size 1 x 1 cm) mounted on a heat sink designed to measure the TPV cell efficiency. Image credit: Felice Frankel.

Researchers Develop Highly Efficient Heat Engine

Apr 14, 2022 by News Staff

The newly-developed heat engine is a thermophotovoltaic cell that captures high-energy photons from a white-hot heat source and converts them into electricity...

Yan et al. designed an acoustic fabric, woven with a fiber that is designed from a piezoelectric material that produces an electrical signal when bent or mechanically deformed: (a) the tympanic membrane is a four-layer construct composed of circumferentially and radially oriented high-modulus collagen fibers, which are key for sound conduction; the tympanic membrane motion is ultimately transmitted to the cochlea through the ossicular chain, wherein short cilia fibers convert pressure waves into electrical signals (ionic), which are picked up by the nervous system; (b) in the acoustic fabric, high-modulus Twaron yarns and cotton yarns are oriented at right angles, mimicking the construction of the tympanic membrane; this construction converts faint audible frequency sound pressure waves into low-order mechanical vibration modes; within that same medium, a single strand of piezoelectric elastomeric fiber transducer is woven, leading to a synergistically coupled fabric, where sound transduction is a collective effect; this results in a fabric capable of operating as a sensitive microphone that detects weak sound signals (for example, human speech) as low as 10-7 atm. Image credit: Yan et al., doi: 10.1038/s41586-022-04476-9.

Newly-Developed ‘Acoustic Fabric’ Converts Sounds into Electrical Signals

Mar 18, 2022 by News Staff

Fabrics, by virtue of their composition and structure, have traditionally been used as acoustic absorbers. Inspired by the auditory system, a team of engineers...

Use of the reverse phosphorolysis action of acholetin phosphorylase (AchP) provides an efficient method to enzymatically synthesize acholetin, which is a new biodegradable polymeric material. Image credit: Macdonald et al., doi: 10.1021/acscentsci.1c01570.

Scientists Create New Type of Biodegradable Polymeric Material

Mar 16, 2022 by News Staff

A team of researchers from the University of British Columbia and elsewhere has identified a bacterial enzyme that can make a new type of polysaccharide,...

2DPA-1 is a 2D polymer that self-assembles into sheets and could be used as a lightweight, durable coating for car parts or cell phones, or as a building material for bridges or other structures. Image credit: Christine Daniloff, MIT.

Scientists Create Ultrastrong Polymeric Material

Feb 3, 2022 by News Staff

The new 2D polymer, named 2DPA-1, is stronger than steel and as light as plastic; it self-assembles into sheets, unlike all other polymers, which form...

Hexagonal boron nitride-based deep-ultraviolet LED. Image credit: Pohang University of Science and Technology.

Researchers Create Deep-Ultraviolet Light-Emitting Diode

Jan 20, 2022 by News Staff

A team of researchers from the Pohang University of Science and Technology and the Korean Institute for Basic Science has demonstrated deep-ultraviolet...

Scanning electron microscopy image of a nanopatterned YBa2Cu3O7−δ (YBCO) thin film. The 12-nm-thick nanopatterned YBCO thin film was fabricated by reactive ion etching through an anodic aluminium oxide (AAO) membrane directly placed atop the YBCO. By RIE, the anodized aluminium oxide pattern of a triangular array of holes with ~70-nm diameter and ~103-nm period was duplicated onto the YBCO film. Image credit: Yang et al., doi: 10.1038/s41586-021-04239-y.

Physicists Discover New Type of ‘Strange Metal’

Jan 14, 2022 by News Staff

A team of physicists from the United States and China has detected the unexpected signatures of strange metallicity in a material in which electrical charge...

The fully 3D-printed flexible OLED display prototype is about 1.5 inches on each side and has 64 pixels. Image credit: McAlpine Group, University of Minnesota.

Scientists 3D Print Flexible OLED Display

Jan 12, 2022 by News Staff

A team of researchers from the University of Minnesota, MIT, Korea Institute of Industrial Technology and Pusan National University has demonstrated a...

A designer view of a single-wall carbon nanotube intramolecular junction with metallic portions on left and right ends and a semiconductor ultrashort 3 nm channel in between. Image credit: Tang et al., doi: 10.1126/science.abi8884.

Scientists Turn Carbon Nanotubes into Tiny Transistors

Dec 24, 2021 by News Staff

Using a transmission electron microscope, a team of materials scientists led by the International Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics in Japan and...

The copper magnified 500,000 times under a scanning electron microscope shows its tiny nano-scale pores. Image credit: RMIT University.

Novel Copper Surface Shows Exceptional Bactericidal Efficacy

Dec 14, 2021 by News Staff

A team of materials scientists from RMIT University and CSIRO has designed and fabricated a micro-nano copper structure and demonstrated its exceptional...

Optical photographs of the recovered amorphous carbon (AC) samples from different conditions: (a) optical photographs of AC-1 synthesized at 20 GPa and 1,000 degrees Celsius; (b) AC-2, 25 GPa and 1,000 degrees Celsius; (c) AC-3, 27 GPa and 1,000 degrees Celsius; (d) AC-4, 27 GPa and 900 degrees Celsius; (e) AC-5, 30 GPa and 870 degrees Celsius; and (f) AC-6, 37 GPa and 450 degrees Celsius. Image credit: Shang et al., doi: 10.1038/s41586-021-03882-9.

Researchers Create Ultrahard Diamond Glass

Nov 25, 2021 by News Staff

The new form of carbon glass synthesized by scientists from Jilin University and elsewhere consists of many randomly oriented clusters with diamond-like...

Tin monosulfide nanosheets possess high photon absorption coefficients, allowing them to be used in making ultrathin soft X-ray detectors with high sensitivity and a rapid response time. Image credit: Shabbir et al., doi: 10.1002/adfm.202105038.

World’s Thinnest X-ray Detector Created

Nov 9, 2021 by News Staff

The structural characteristics of biological specimens, such as wet proteins and living cells, can be conveniently probed in their host aqueous media using...

An electrically conductive and durable yarn was sewn onto fabric and became a wearable heater (high temperatures indicated by yellows and reds) when a safe voltage was applied. Image credit: Pattanarat et al., doi: 10.1021/acsami.1c13329.

Researchers Develop Wearable Electric Heater

Oct 21, 2021 by News Staff

Scientists have created a textile-based wearable heater based on highly durable conductive yarns. An electrically conductive and durable yarn was sewn...

Profuse dendritic-synaptic interconnections among neurons in the neocortex embed intricate logic structures enabling sophisticated decision-making that vastly outperforms any artificial electronic analogues. The physical complexity is far beyond existing circuit fabrication technologies: moreover, the network in a brain is dynamically reconfigurable, which provides flexibility and adaptability to changing environments. In contrast, state-of-the-art semiconductor logic circuits are based on threshold switches that are hard-wired to perform predefined logic functions. To advance the performance of logic circuits, Goswami et al. re-imagined fundamental electronic circuit elements by expressing complex logic in nanometer-scale material properties. Image credit: National University of Singapore.

Brain-Inspired Molecular Memristor Has Exceptional Memory Reconfigurability

Sep 2, 2021 by News Staff

The new reconfigurable memristor, or an electronic memory device, is based on a molecular system that can transition between on and off states at several...

The new phosphorescent materials could potentially be used in a wide number of applications, from medical imaging and optical sensing to ‘glow in the dark’ dyes and paints. Image credit: Yuan et al., doi: 10.1016/j.xcrp.2021.100542.

Scientists Create New Phosphorescent Materials

Aug 25, 2021 by News Staff

Inspired by the afterglow room-temperature phosphorescence of natural basswood, researchers have prepared a series of new sustainable phosphorescent materials...

Chen et al. report the observation of room-temperature ferromagnetism in 2D graphitic Zn1-xCoxO (gZCO) monolayer with strong environmental stability; red, blue, and yellow spheres represent cobalt, oxygen, and zinc atoms. respectively. Image credit: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

World’s Thinnest Magnet Created

Jul 20, 2021 by News Staff

The one-atom thin 2D magnet, created by Dr. Jie Yao from the University of California, Berkeley, and the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, and his...

The structure of the superlattice material Bi4O4SeCl2. Image credit: University of Liverpool.

Newly-Developed Material Has Extremely Low Thermal Conductivity

Jul 16, 2021 by News Staff

The new superlattice material, Bi4O4SeCl2, developed by a team of scientists from the United Kingdom and France, combines two different arrangements of...

The acousto-electric chip includes a radio-frequency amplifier, circulator and filter; SEM image shows details of the amplifier. Image credit: Bret Latter / Matt Eichenfield.

Researchers Create World’s Smallest Acoustic Amplifier

Jun 7, 2021 by News Staff

An acoustic amplifier developed by Sandia National Laboratories researchers measures 0.5 mm2 (0.0008 square inches), and is more than 10 times more effective...