Technology Update

About 60 percent of drugs on the market have hydrophobic molecules as their active ingredients. These drugs, which are not soluble in water, can be difficult to formulate into tablets because they need to be broken down into very small crystals in order to be absorbed by the human body….. https://nano-magazine.com/news/2021/6/8/new-drug-formulation-method-may-lead-to-smaller-pills?ss_source=sscampaigns&ss_campaign_id=60c08e1292b5507c135fde9c&ss_email_id=60c0f573e2afaf0cdd4a4f47&ss_campaign_name=Carbon+nanotubes+can+generate+electricity+by+scavenging+energy&ss_campaign_sent_date=2021-06-09T17%3A08%3A10Z

Nano-sized particles have been engineered in a new way to improve detection of tumors within the body and in biopsy tissue, a research team in Sweden reports. The advance could enable identifying early stage tumors with lower doses of radiation….. https://nano-magazine.com/news/2021/6/3/new-nanoparticle-design-paves-way-for-improved-detection-of-tumors?ss_source=sscampaigns&ss_campaign_id=60c08e1292b5507c135fde9c&ss_email_id=60c0f573e2afaf0cdd4a4f47&ss_campaign_name=Carbon+nanotubes+can+generate+electricity+by+scavenging+energy&ss_campaign_sent_date=2021-06-09T17%3A08%3A10Z

MIT engineers have discovered a new way of generating electricity using tiny carbon particles that can create a current simply by interacting with liquid surrounding them…. https://nano-magazine.com/news/2021/6/7/carbon-nanotubes-can-generate-electricity-by-scavenging-energy-from-their-environment?ss_source=sscampaigns&ss_campaign_id=60c08e1292b5507c135fde9c&ss_email_id=60c0f573e2afaf0cdd4a4f47&ss_campaign_name=Carbon+nanotubes+can+generate+electricity+by+scavenging+energy&ss_campaign_sent_date=2021-06-09T17%3A08%3A10Z

As more private data is stored and shared digitally, researchers are exploring new ways to protect data against attacks from bad actors. Current silicon technology exploits microscopic differences between computing components to create secure keys, but artificial intelligence (AI) techniques can be used to predict these keys and gain access to data. Now, Penn State […]

An international research team with ICMAB and IMB-CNM involvement has developed a rapid diagnostic device for the detection of heart failure through saliva samples. It is a quick, low-cost and portable instrument based on nanotechnology to use as a Point-of-Care system to detect the disease, the main cause of mortality in Europe up until 2019. […]

New research led by a team at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) points to a promising strategy to boost tumors’ intake of cancer drugs, thereby increasing the effectiveness of chemotherapy treatments. The group’s findings are published in Nature Nanotechnology. https://nano-magazine.com/news/2021/5/7/scientists-discover-how-to-trick-cancer-cells-to-consume-toxic-drugs?ss_source=sscampaigns&ss_campaign_id=609b9c63cf992806c4a1c47d&ss_email_id=609c0b8ef9d07f13bd3b4906&ss_campaign_name=Scientists+discover+how+to+trick+cancer+cells+to+consume+toxic+drugs&ss_campaign_sent_date=2021-05-12T17%3A17%3A35Z

The project was kickstarted in 2017 when a delegation of YTC America (subsidiary of Yazaki Corporation) visited Kazan Federal University. https://www.azonano.com/news.aspx?newsID=37907&utm_source=azonetwork_newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=graphene_and_nanotubes_newsletter_27_april_2021

Graphene is touted for several applications due to its beneficial properties and the synergistic benefits brought about by utilizing its different properties. There are already many applications where graphene is having a real-world, commercial impact and there are several emerging applications. It is also thought that graphene will play a role in industrial automation in […]

New materials with improved mechanical properties are constantly needed to keep up with the rapid advancements in the mechanical industry. Graphene and carbon nanotube-reinforced metal matrix composites (MMCs) are promising types of materials that can be used as an alternative to improve the properties of common metals such as aluminum. https://www.azonano.com/article.aspx?ArticleID=5707&utm_source=azonetwork_newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=graphene_and_nanotubes_newsletter_27_april_2021

New research on an atomically-thin semiconductor demonstrates how a material’s magnetism can be controlled using small amounts of strain. Published in Nature Nanotechnology, this study provides key insights for applications ranging from new spintronic devices to faster hard drives. This research was conducted by graduate student Zhuoliang Ni and led by assistant professor Liang Wu […]

Fouling is a natural phenomenon that describes the tendency of proteins in water to adhere to nearby surfaces. It’s what causes unwanted deposits of protein to form during some food production or on biomedical implants, causing them to fail. Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute are harnessing this process, which is typically considered a persistent challenge, […]

Researchers in South Korea have developed a plasmonic isothermal recombinase polymerase amplification (RPA) array chip. This first plasmoinc isothermal PCR technology can detect eight types of pathogens (four bacteria and four viruses) that cause acute respiratory infectious diseases; the analysis takes only 30 minutes. The research was led by Dr. Sung-Gyu Park and Dr. Ho […]

As light as possible and as strong as possible at the same time: These are the requirements for modern lightweight materials, such as those used in aircraft construction and the automotive industry. A research team from Helmholtz-Zentrum Geesthacht (HZG) and Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH) has now developed a new materials’ design approach for future […]

Tiny fluorescent semiconductor dots, called quantum dots, are useful in a variety of health and electronic technologies but are made of toxic, expensive metals. Nontoxic and economic carbon-based dots are easy to produce, but they emit less light. A new study that uses ultrafast nanometric imaging found good and bad emitters among populations of carbon […]

Now, in ACS Nano (“Gold Nanocomposite Contact Lenses for Color Blindness Management”), researchers report infusing contact lenses with gold nanoparticles to create a safer way to see colours. https://nano-magazine.com/news/2021/3/4/gold-nanocomposite-contact-lenses-that-correct-color-blindness?ss_source=sscampaigns&ss_campaign_id=6048aa3ee45f7f1298df2de4&ss_email_id=604902680001155a00eb3315&ss_campaign_name=Gold+nanocomposite+contact+lenses+that+correct+colour+blindness&ss_campaign_sent_date=2021-03-10T17%3A32%3A46Z

A team of researchers from the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) has succeeded in obtaining a nanomaterial capable of eliminating the coronavirus and using face masks, fabrics, doorknobs, or handrails. https://nano-magazine.com/news/2021/2/17/material-that-eliminates-the-covid-19-virus-could-be-used-in-face-masks?ss_source=sscampaigns&ss_campaign_id=602d05ee89b7c63cdf4687c7&ss_email_id=602d5b32a156651c8cec6ba1&ss_campaign_name=Graphene+could+be+used+to+make+quick%2C+reliable+tests+for+viruses&ss_campaign_sent_date=2021-02-17T18%3A14%3A30Z

Physicists claim to have made the smallest microchips ever which could help computers and smartphones run thousands of times faster. https://nano-magazine.com/news/2021/2/16/physicists-build-nanomaterial-microchip-using-graphene?ss_source=sscampaigns&ss_campaign_id=602d05ee89b7c63cdf4687c7&ss_email_id=602d5b32a156651c8cec6ba1&ss_campaign_name=Graphene+could+be+used+to+make+quick%2C+reliable+tests+for+viruses&ss_campaign_sent_date=2021-02-17T18%3A14%3A30Z

Researchers at the University of Colorado Boulder have developed a new, low-cost wearable device that transforms the human body into a biological battery. https://nano-magazine.com/news/2021/2/12/new-wearable-device-turns-the-body-into-a-battery?ss_source=sscampaigns&ss_campaign_id=602d05ee89b7c63cdf4687c7&ss_email_id=602d5b32a156651c8cec6ba1&ss_campaign_name=Graphene+could+be+used+to+make+quick%2C+reliable+tests+for+viruses&ss_campaign_sent_date=2021-02-17T18%3A14%3A30Z

MIT researchers and colleagues have discovered an important—and unexpected—electronic property of graphene, a material discovered only about 17 years ago that continues to surprise scientists with its interesting physics. The work, which involves structures composed of atomically thin layers of materials that are also biocompatible, could usher in new, faster information-processing paradigms. One potential application […]

An intelligent material that learns by physically changing itself, similar to how the human brain works, could be the foundation of a completely new generation of computers. Radboud physicists working toward this so-called “quantum brain” have made an important step. They have demonstrated that they can pattern and interconnect a network of single atoms, and […]

A new kind of wearable health device would deliver real-time medical data to those with eye or mouth diseases, according to Huanyu ‘Larry’ Cheng, Dorothy Quiggle Career Development Professor in the Penn State Department of Engineering Science and Mechanics (ESM). https://nano-magazine.com/news/2021/2/2/wearable-sensor-monitors-health-administers-drugs-using-saliva-and-tears?ss_source=sscampaigns&ss_campaign_id=601a8c90ecd1a816d54a3c43&ss_email_id=601ae504d5bef31539b1b25e&ss_campaign_name=Nanotechnology+powered+mass+testing+is+key+to+unlocking+Covid-19+lockdowns%E2%80%A6&ss_campaign_sent_date=2021-02-03T18%3A06%3A16Z