Blog
- Beyond van der Waals: The next generation of covalent 2D-2D heterostructures 10/05/2022 A team of scientists have "velcroed" 2D structures of MoS2 and graphene using a covalent connection for the first time. The 2D-2D structures were used to build robust field effect transistors with controlled electronic communication, interface chemical nature and interlayer distance.
- Skyrmions on the rise: New 2D material advances low-power computing 05/05/2022 Two-dimensional magnetic materials have been hailed as building blocks for the next generation of small, fast electronic devices. These materials, made of layers of crystalline sheets just a few atoms thick, gain their unique magnetic properties from the intrinsic compass-needle-like spins of their electrons. The sheets' atomic-scale thinness means that these spins can be manipulated on the finest scales using external electric fields, potentially leading to novel low-energy data storage and information processing systems. But knowing exactly how to design 2D materials with specific magnetic properties that can be precisely manipulated remains a barrier to their application.
- Lasers trigger magnetism in atomically thin quantum materials 03/05/2022 Researchers have discovered that light—in the form of a laser—can trigger a form of magnetism in a normally nonmagnetic material. This magnetism centers on the behavior of electrons. These subatomic particles have an electronic property called "spin," which has a potential application in quantum computing. The researchers found that electrons within the material became oriented in the same direction when illuminated by photons from a laser.
- New transistor could cut 5% from world’s digital energy budget 28/04/2022 Design also poised to save space, retain memory in event of power loss
- Don’t underestimate undulating graphene 26/04/2022 Lay some graphene down on a wavy surface, and you’ll get a guide to one possible future of two-dimensional electronics.
- CERN’s impact on medical technology 21/04/2022 Frontier instruments like the LHC and its detectors not only push back the boundaries of our knowledge, but also catalyse innovative technology for medical applications, writes Manuela Cirilli.
- Graphene gets enhanced by flashing 19/04/2022 Flashing graphene into existence from waste was merely a good start. Now Rice University researchers are customizing it.
- Physicists create extremely compressible 14/04/2022 Researchers at the University of Bonn have created a gas of light particles that can be extremely compressed. Their results confirm the predictions of central theories of quantum physics. The findings could also point the way to new types of sensors that can measure minute forces.
- Light derails electrons through graphene 12/04/2022 The way electrons flow in materials determine its electronic properties. For example, when a voltage is sustained across a conducting material, electrons start flowing, generating an electrical current. These electrons are often thought to flow in straight paths, moving along the electric field, much like a ball rolling down a hill. Yet these are not the only trajectories electrons can take: when a magnetic field is applied, the electrons no longer travel in straight paths along the electric field, but in fact, they bend. The bent electronic flows lead to transverse signals called “Hall” responses.
- Using electron microscopy and automatic atom-tracking to learn more about grain boundaries in metals during deformation 07/04/2022 A team of researchers affiliated with multiple institutions in China and the U.S. has found that it is possible to track the sliding of grain boundaries in some metals at the atomic scale using an electron microscope and an automatic atom tracker. In their paper published in the journal Science, the group describes their study of platinum using their new technique and the discovery they made in doing so.
- Toward a quantum computer that calculates molecular energy 05/04/2022 Researchers have developed an algorithm that uses the most quantum bits to date to calculate ground state energy, the lowest-energy state in a quantum mechanical system. The discovery could make it easier to design new materials.