How long does memory last? For shape memory alloys, the longer the better
Scientists captured live action details of the phase transitions of shape memory alloys, giving them a better idea how to improve their properties for applications.
Read moreScientists captured live action details of the phase transitions of shape memory alloys, giving them a better idea how to improve their properties for applications.
Read moreA team of scientists has made the strongest silver ever — 42 percent stronger than the previous world record. It's part of a discovery of a new mechanism at the nanoscale that can create metals much stronger than any ever made before — while not losing electrical conductivity.
Read moreResearchers have made a discovery that could provide new insights into how superconductors might move energy more efficiently to power homes, industries and vehicles. Their work showed that graphene — a material composed of a single layer of carbon atoms — is more likely to become a superconductor than originally thought possible.
Read moreA research team has developed methods to manipulate polymers in a way that changes their fundamental structure, paving the way for potential applications in cargo delivery and release, recyclable materials, shape-shifting soft robots, antimicrobials and more.
Read moreA new way to calculate the interaction between a metal and its alloying material could speed the hunt for a new material that combines the hardness of ceramic with the resilience of metal.
Read moreTopological insulators are quantum materials, which, due to their exotic electronic structure, on surfaces and edges conduct electric current like metal, while acting as an insulator in bulk. Scientists have now demonstrated how to tell apart topological materials from their regular — trivial — counterparts within a millionth of a billionth of a second by probing it with ultra-fast laser light.
Read moreScientists, inspired by the clingfish's suction power, set out to develop an artificial suction cup that borrows from nature's design. Their prototype actually performed better than the clingfish.
Read moreResearchers have developed a 'coloring-by-shrinking' method to print arbitrary 3D microscopic objects exhibiting structural colors. The design consisted of woodpile photonic crystals with varying lattice constants as the 3D building blocks. These structures remain colorless until they are heat treated, causing them to shrink and manifest color, a result of their lattice constants shrinking down below the wavelength of visible light. The team printed a colorful microscopic Eiffel Tower with structural colors, demonstrating feature sizes smaller than 100 nm.
Read moreA researcher has shown for the first time that the shape of a nanostructure has an effect on its ability to retain water. This has important ramifications for heat transfer, which is important when it comes to performance in small electronics.
Read moreResearchers have found it can significantly boost an existing polymer's ability to selectively remove carbon dioxide out of gas mixtures by first submerging the material in liquid water.
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