Pulling water from thin air

Inspired by a desert beetle, cactus and pitcher plant, researchers design a new material to collect water droplets.

Immune cells don't always ward off carbon nano invaders

have found evidence that some carbon nanomaterials can enter into immune cell membranes, seemingly going undetected by the cell's built-in mechanisms for engulfing and disposing of foreign material, and then escape through some unidentified pathway.

Physicists promise a copper revolution in nanophotonics

Researchers have proved that copper nanophotonic components can operate successfully in photonic devices - it was previously believed that only gold and silver components have the required properties for this. It means that light-based computers are closer to reality than ever before - copper is cheaper than gold or silver.

Material enables more reliable and meaningful self-screening

Paper-based diagnostics enable rapid medical test results at minimal cost - and now they're about to get even better. A new synthetic paper could enable simultaneous screenings for multiple conditions, with more reliable results.

Quantum dot solids: This generation's silicon wafer?

Just as the single-crystal silicon wafer forever changed the nature of electronics 60 years ago, a group of researchers is hoping its work with quantum dot solids - crystals made out of crystals - can help usher in a new era in electronics.

The key to mass-producing nanomaterials (w/video)

Researchers have created a new way to manufacture nanoparticles that will transform the process from a painstaking, batch-by-batch drudgery into a large-scale, automated assembly line.

Counting molecules with an ordinary cell phone

To address the need for a robust readout system for quantitative diagnostics, researchers have invented a new visual readout method that uses analytical chemistries and image processing to provide unambiguous quantification of single nucleic-acid molecules that can be performed by any cell-phone camera.

Breakthrough for lab-on-a-chip material

Researchers have developed a new polymer suited for photostructuring - a technique for creating micro-scale shapes. The discovery opens new possibilities for medical diagnostics, biophotonics and 3D printing.

New research introduces 'pause button' for boiling

Using a focused laser beam to essentially hit the pause button on boiling, scientists have created a single vapor bubble in a pool of liquid that can remain stable on a heated surface for hours, instead of milliseconds. This method gives researchers time to study vapor bubbles and determine ways to optimize the boiling process.