Science and Enterprise

Tag: materials science

  • Feasibility Shown of Spintronic Enabling Organic Materials

    Engineers at University of Utah in Salt Lake City developed a process to create organic materials with the ability to conduct electricity on their edges, while the inside acts as an insulator. The team led by Utah professor Feng Liu published its findings in yesterday’s issue of the journal Nature Communications (paid subscription required). Materials…

  • Nano Patterns in Plastic Help Stem Cells Become Bone Cells

    Medical researchers and engineers at universities of Southampton and Glasgow in the U.K. created a nanoscale process with a common plastic material to convert human embryonic stem cells into skeletal tissue cells. The findings of the team led by Southampton’s Richard Oreffo are described online in a recent issue of the journal Small (paid subscription…

  • Process Adds New Properties to Ferroelectric Materials

    Materials scientists at University of Illinois in Urbana developed a new type of thin metal oxide film with a built-in electric field, useful  for semiconductor devices such as computer memory. The team led by Illinois professor Lane Martin published their findings online in a recent issue of the journal Advanced Materials (paid subscription required). Lane,…

  • Techniques Developed for Defect-Free Graphene Formation

    Researchers in the U.K., Germany, and Greece developed a method of forming graphene layers with uniform orientation and alignment, using established and inexpensive techniques. The team led by University of Oxford materials scientist Nicole Grobert published its findings online last week in the journal ACS Nano (paid subscription required). Grobert (pictured right), with colleagues from…

  • U.K. to Spend $20.4 Million on Catalytic Chemistry

    The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council,  or EPSRC, a research funding agency in the U.K., will devote £12.9 million ($US 20.4 million) to the U.K. Catalysis Hub, a catalytic science research program to support economic growth. The program is based at the Research Complex at Harwell in Oxfordshire, and is expected to involve scientists…

  • Consortium Building Safe Lightweight E-Car Body, Drivetrain

    A consortium of German manufacturers and Technical University Munich (Technische Universität München) is building a prototype concept car that provides a lightweight, yet strong body for electric passenger vehicles. The consortium known as Visio.M is led by car maker BMW and includes Technical University Munich as the group’s scientific partner, as well as 15 other…

  • Material Developed for Warm White Light from LED Bulbs

    Researchers from the U.S. and China created a light-emitting diode (LED) bulb that emits warm white light with a single light-emitting phosphor. The findings of University of Georgia physicist Zhengwei Pan, with colleagues from Georgia, Georgia Southern University, Oak Ridge National Lab, Argonne National Lab, and the Chinese Academy of Sciences, were published online today…

  • Semiconductor Research Corp, DARPA, Launch University Nets

    Semiconductor Research Corporation (SRC) in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) in Arlington, Virginia unveiled their support for six U.S. university research centers. STARnet, as the program is called, will devote $194 million microelectronics research over five years. SRC is university-company research consortium for semiconductors and related technologies…

  • Nanotech Coating Provides Liquid-Repellent Surface

    Materials scientists at University of Michigan in Ann Arbor and Air Force Research Lab at Edwards Air Force Base in California developed a new coating material that can repel virtually any liquid from a surface. The team led by Michigan engineering professor Anish Tuteja reported its findings in the current issue of the Journal of…

  • Industrial Process Devised for Carbon Nanotube Fibers

    Engineers and materials scientists from the U.S., Netherlands, and Israel developed an industrial-scale process for spinning carbon nanotubes into fibers for a range of commercial products. The team led by chemical engineering professor Matteo Pasquali at Rice University in Houston published its findings in this week’s issue of the journal Science (paid subscription required). Pasquali,…