Category Technology/Electronics

Depiction of photon recycling inside the crystalline structure of perovskite. Credit: Criss Hohmann

Scientists have discovered that a highly promising group of materials known as hybrid lead halide perovskites can recycle light which could lead to large gains in the efficiency of solar cells. As well as being cheap and easy to produce, perovskite solar cells have, in the space of a few years, become almost as energy-efficient as silicon – the material currently used in most household solar panels.

By showing that they can also be optimised to recycle light, the new study suggests that this could just be the beginning...

Illustration of a graphene nanoribbon with zigzag edges and the precursor molecules used in its manufacture. Electrons on the two zigzag edges display opposite directions of rotation (spin) — “spin-up” on the bottom edge (red) or “spin-down” on the top edge (blue). Credit: EMPA

Scientists have now managed to synthesise GNR with perfectly zigzagged edges using suitable carbon precursor molecules and a perfected manufacturing process. The zigzags followed a very specific geometry along the longitudinal axis of the ribbons. This is an important step, because researchers can thus give graphene ribbons different properties via the geometry of the ribbons and especially via the structure of their edges.

With molecules in a U-shape, which they allowed to grow together to form a snake-like shape, ...

Schematics of structures for three kinds of spin-orbit-torque-induced magnetization scheme. (a) The first previous structure where the magnetization is perpendicular to the film plane. (b) The second previous structure where the magnetization is in-plane and orthogonal to channel current. (c) The new structure where the magnetization is in-plane and collinear with the current. Credit: Shunsuke Fukami

Researchers have developed a new-structure magnetic memory device utilizing spin-orbit- torque-induced magnetization switching. For these 2 decades, much effort has been devoted to the development of magnetic random access memories, which store information as the magnetization direction of a magnet...

The nozzle firing a jet of carbon nanotubes with helium plasma off and on. When the plasma is off, the density of carbon nanotubes is small. The plasma focuses the nanotubes onto the substrate with high density and good adhesion. Credit: NASA Ames Research Center

New method can deposit nanomaterials onto flexible surfaces such as paper or cloth and 3-D objects.. The technique could make it easier and cheaper to build devices like wearable chemical and biological sensors, flexible memory devices and batteries, and integrated circuits.

One of the most common methods to deposit nanomaterials- such as a layer of nanoparticles or nanotubes -onto a surface is with an inkjet printer similar to an ordinary printer found in an office. But inkjets can’t print on textiles etc, let alone 3-D objects...