SEPARATING THE HYPE AND THE BUZZ - Monday, March 8, 2010

NEWSWORTHY

Graphene nanomesh
Researchers from the University of California, Los Angeles developed graphene nanostructures with band gaps (graphene, otherwise, has zero band gap). They injected nanoscale holes into layers of graphene to create a band gap using a self-assembled block co-polymer thin film. Adjustments can be made to the neck width (distance between nanohole edges and cannot go below 5nm) and perodicites (the distance between the centers of two neighboring nanoholes) to vary electrical properties. The on-off ratio (the ratio between the currents when a device is switched on or switched off) can be adjusted through the neck width as well. See AtoZ Nano, Nanotech Wire, Nanowerk, and Nature Nanotechnology.

Nanocavities for non-stick
Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory displayed first pictures of tiny air bubbles capable of keeping water from wetting a non-stick surface. They created trillions of nanocavities in an otherwise smooth surface and coated it with a wax-like material. When tested with water, they found this surface to be more hydrophobic than the uncoated version. The applications of this research could lead to improvements in non-stick materials used in power plants, speed boats, and surfaces resistant to germs. See AtoZ Nano, Nanotech Wire, Nanowerk, and Nano Letters.

Carbon nanotube thermocells for conversion
Researchers from the Georgia Institute of Technology in collaboration with researchers from the U.S., Australia, China, India and the Philippines devised a method to convert heat waste discarded by chemical plants, automobiles, and solar cell farms in to electricity using carbon nanotube thermocells. The thermocells and electrolyte-filled, textile-separated nanotube sheets are placed around pipes carrying hot waste in chemical plants. This creates a temperature difference between the pipes and carbon nanotube sheets, which produces an electrochemical potential that could be used to generate electricity. See Nanowerk and Nano Letters.

Nanocomposite-polymer deposition
Researchers from the Naval Research Laboratory and the University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign developed a method to deposit mixtures of nanocomposites and polymers onto a surface. The probe of an atomic force microscope is first coated with this mixture and then heated to produce flow onto the surface below. The forces in the polymer could be adjusted to ensure alignment of deposition on surfaces. See AtoZ Nano, Nanowerk, and Nano Letters.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

Nanoscale tip
Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Wisconsin-Madison and IBM Research-Zürich developed a nanoscale tip that is 3,000 times more wear-resistant at the nanoscale than silicon. This carbon, hydrogen, silicon and oxygen molded nano-sized tip was seen to perform well when in sliding contact with a hard substrate (silicon dioxide). This discovery could lead to advancements in atomic imaging, probe-based data storage, nanolithography, nanometrology and nanomanufacturing. See AtoZ Nano, Nanotech Wire, Nanowerk, and Nature Nanotechnology.

Nanomaterials to fight drug resistance in cancer
Researchers from Rutgers University developed nanomaterials that fight the side-effects and drug resistance problem resulting from regular chemotherapy. They designed nanomaterials capable of simultaneously targeting and destroying cancer cells and a genetic drug that would prevent drug resistance by loading the anticancer drug doxorubicin onto silver nanomaterials. See AtoZ Nano, Nanotech Wire, Nanowerk, and Small.

“Green nanomagents”
Researchers from the University of Manchester found a method to devise nanosized magnets without the use of chemicals that could be used in electronic applications. They used the natural iron-reducing bacteria and added cobalt, manganese or nickel to it. This resulted in tiny magnets containing these elements. These nanomagnets can be used in mobile phones and recording devices. See Nanowerk and Nano Letters.

“Take a Nanooze break”
The National Science Foundation (NSF) in collaboration with the Cornell University researchers has a new exhibition at the Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. This exhibit is based on the NSF-supported children's magazine and Web site Nanooze. The display allows visitors to manipulate models of molecules, view everyday objects at the nanoscale, and interact with scientists and engineers who conduct the latest nano research. The exhibition opened on Feb. 22, 2010. See Nanowerk.