Nanoparticles make lightweight, strong metal

Researchers have created a lightweight but very strong structural metal that could improve energy efficiency in aerospace, automobile, defense, mobile electronics and biomedical applications.

Beating the heat - Ultrafast sensing and quantum control

Harnessing quantum systems for information processing will require controlling large numbers of basic building blocks called qubits. The qubits must be isolated, and in most cases cooled. Physicists have recently demonstrated important steps towards implementing a proposed type of gate, which does not rely on super-cooling their ion qubits.

A 'printing press' for nanoparticles

New technique could facilitate use of gold nanoparticles in electronic, medical applications.

Single-chip laser delivers powerful result

High power and rapid tuning for the detection of hazardous chemicals.

X-rays reveal details of plastic solar cell production at nano level

The processes that take place on the molecular scale during the production of organic solar cells are not yet entirely clear. Researchers have now managed to observe these processes in real time.

Gauging quantum properties of nanotubes, essential for next-gen electronics

Imaging method allowed researchers to measure the nanotube quantum capacitance - a very unique property of an object from the nano-world.

Self-assembling nanosphere clusters speed up chemical reactions

The nanoflasks, which have a span of several nanometers, or millionths of a millimeter, can accelerate chemical reactions for research. In the future, they might facilitate the manufacture of various industrial materials and perhaps even serve as vehicles for drug delivery.

A new way to store solar heat

Material could harvest sunlight by day, release heat on demand hours or days later.

New class of sound wave could lead to revolution in stem cell therapy

Acoustics experts have created a new class of sound wave - the first in more than half a century - in a breakthrough they hope could lead to a revolution in stem cell therapy.

Using a microscopic ring to produce pulsed light

Researchers have made a chip-based device that can generate a laser signal with frequencies spaced in a comb-like fashion. Their work could be used in telecommunications applications and in chemical analysis.