Semiconductor nanowires grown with metal nanocatalysts are new materials that provide a basis for transformative improvements in diverse technologies including thermoelectrics and photovoltaics.
May 15, 2008 :: Northwestern University
Detection of Single Gold Atoms in Silicon Nanowires [Research]
May 2, 2008 :: University of Massachusetts Amherst
Chip Breakthrough Technology [Research]
A collaboration between researcher supported by the DOE and NSF-MRSEC’s at UC Santa Barbara and UMASS Amherst, and IBM has led to a revolutionary chip breakthrough that promises to be used in every future microelectronic device.
April 21, 2008 :: University of California at Santa Barbara
Squid Beaks use Novel Materials Trick to keep from Tearing Off [Research]
Researchers have figured out how a jumbo squid’s hard, razor-sharp beak can slice through the soft tissue of its prey–without tearing off from the stress. The work solves a longstanding mystery over a problem akin to anchoring a knife blade in Jell-O, according to the authors of the new study.
April 21, 2008 :: University of California at Santa Barbara
Traveling Display Booth for Promotion of the Materials Research Facilities Network [Facilities]
For the first time, a traveling exhibit promoting the MRSEC program and the Materials Research Facilities Network was presented at the 2008 NOBCChE (National Organization of Chemists and Chemical Engineers) meeting in Philadelphia.
April 7, 2008 :: University of Chicago
Self-Assembled Nanocrystal Membranes [Research]
Close-packed nanocrystal monolayers can be self-assembled by simple drop casting into ultra-thin free-standing membranes. Researchers at the University of Chicago MRSEC have shown that these membranes are remarkably strong, with a Young’s modulus on the order of several GPa, yet highly flexible. The arrays remain intact and able to withstand tensile stresses up to temperatures around 370K. The purely elastic response of these membranes, coupled with exceptional robustness and resilience at elevated temperatures makes them excellent candidates for a wide range of sensor applications.
April 7, 2008 :: University of Chicago
Generating well-defined gradients of adhesion molecules for the attachment of cells [Research]
The Ismagilov and Mrksich groups at the University of Chicago MRSEC have recently established that a microfluidic system utilized in conjunction with surface immobilization chemistries can be used to pattern surfaces with well-defined gradients of adhesion molecules for the attachment of cells. The image shows the patterned surface after placement in a suspension of B16F10 mouse melanoma cells and fixing and immunostaining with antibody against vinculin (found in the focal adhesion structures integrating the cytoskeleton with the extracellular matrix). Each gradient microisland contained a nonuniform distribution of active ligands for cell adhesion.
The general technique of preparing gradients of immobilized species with specific patterns is expected to be an important tool for understanding the influence of nonuniform microenvironments on cell function, including polarization and migration.