Measuring machines for the nanoscale

The NanoCMM project set out to develop the technology needed for a universal coordinate measuring machines (CMM) that could measure to an accuracy of 50 to 200 nanometres in all three dimensions over a volume several centimetres across.

The structural memory of water persists on a picosecond timescale

Long-lived sub-structures exist in liquid water as discovered using novel ultrafast vibrational spectroscopies.

Surfing over simulated ripples in graphene

Scientists elucidate the theory governing the characteristics of curved or rippled graphene using a simulation model based on an optical lattice.

Discovery of a new photonic crystal where light propagates through the surface without being scattered

By merely slightly adjusting positions of insulator or semiconductor cylinders (nanorods) in a honeycomb lattice, electromagnetic waves can propagate without being scattered even at corners of crystal or by defects.

Physicists discover spiral vortex patterns from electron waves

Physicists report an unusual pattern of wave interference produced when an electron is ejected, or ionized, from its orbit around a helium atom.

Nano-thin invisibility cloak makes 3D objects disappear (w/video)

Invisibility cloaks are a staple of science fiction and fantasy, from Star Trek to Harry Potter, but don't exist in real life, or do they? Scientists have devised an ultra-thin invisibility 'skin' cloak that can conform to the shape of an object and conceal it from detection with visible light. Although this cloak is only microscopic in size, the principles behind the technology should enable it to be scaled-up to conceal macroscopic items as well.

Nano-trapped molecules are potential path to quantum devices

Single atoms or molecules imprisoned by laser light in a doughnut-shaped metal cage could unlock the key to advanced storage devices, computers and high-resolution instruments.

Physicists defy conventional wisdom to identify ferroelectric material

A team of physicists has defied conventional wisdom by inducing stable ferroelectricity in a sheet of strontium titanate only a few nanometers thick.

New diamond structures produce bright luminescence for quantum cryotography and biomarkers applications

Germanium defects in a diamond crystal lattice act as a reliable source for single photons, new research shows. The results provide a promising new route to building components for quantum cryptography and biomarkers.

Carbyne research may boost nanoelectronics

Scientists have investigated a way to create linear chains of carbon atoms from laser-melted graphite. The material, called carbyne, could have a number of novel properties, including the ability to adjust the amount of electrical current traveling through a circuit, depending on the user?s needs.