Category Technology/Electronics

Mutual rotation of two monolayers of a semiconducting material creates a variety of bilayer stacking patterns, depending on the twist angle. Fast and efficient characterization of these stacking patterns may aid exploration of potential applications in electronics and optoelectronics. Credit: Image credit: Oak Ridge National Laboratory, US Dept. of Energy

Recently a team measured vibrations between 2 layers to decipher their stacking patterns with low-frequency Raman spectroscopy. This will allow for 2D materials with optical and electronic properties that strongly depend on stacking configurations eg energy-efficient transistors and solar cells.

The atoms in each layer are arranged in hexagonal arrays...

The Solar Thermal Electrochemical Process (STEP) converts atmospheric carbon dioxide into carbon nanotubes that can be used in advanced batteries. Credit: Julie Turner, Vanderbilt University

s can be replaced with carbon recovered from the atmosphere. The team adapted a solar-powered process that converts carbon dioxide into carbon so that it produces carbon nanotubes that can be incorporated into both lithium-ion batteries like those used in electric vehicles and electronic devices and low-cost sodium-ion batteries under development for large-scale applications, such as the electric grid.

“This approach not only produces better batteries but it also establishes a value for carbon dioxide recovered from the atmosphere that is associated with the end-user battery cost unlike most efforts to...

Photo of Nano-Bio System A schematic of the nano-biosystem (top) and an electron microscope image of quantum rods

A transformational advance has been made in an alternate lighting source, one that doesn’t require a battery or a plug: high-efficient energy transfer between semiconductor quantum rods and luciferase enzymes. Quantum rods and luciferase enzymes are nanomaterials and biomaterials, respectively. When combined correctly, these materials produce bioluminescence – except, instead of coming from a biomaterial, such as a firefly enzyme, the light eminates from a nanomaterial, and is green, orange, red, or near-infrared in color.

Each quantum rods is 4 nm wide and 50 nm long...

The water bridge pictured is formed under the influence of a high-voltage electrical field of about 15kV. It spans about 1 cm across two Teflon beakers, each filled with deionised water. Credit: © Woisetschläger/Fuchs – TU Graz.

Wetsus in The Netherlands and TU Graz have produced electrically charged water by means of a floating water bridge. Until its scientific rediscovery in 2007 at TU Graz, the “water bridge” phenomenon, discovered in the 19th century, had sank into oblivion. If extremely pure water ie water distilled many times, is placed in 2 beakers and subject to a high voltage, the fluid moves up the side of each beaker and forms a floating water bridge between the 2 vessels...