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The wonderful world of microfluidics

$Worker using a tool to cut a channel in a rubber tree's trunk to direct the flow of latex into a collecting bowl tied to the tree$

Photonic glasses deliver angle-independent structural colour, including reds

Gold nanoparticles absorb blue light

Bird motifs coloured using the new photonic glass

Physicists create mechanical memory device from slap-bracelet-like structures

Placing the structures on a variably spinning turntable creates a scalable way of addressing single bits of memory

Research headlines

Particle size affects contact electrification

Researchers in Chile shed more light on the little-understood phenomenon of static electricity

Photo of the experimental apparatus in the laboratory, showing a tall, well-lit transparent box supported by a metal frame. A camera is mounted on a vertical track next to the box and there are ladders in the background.

Electron beams rearrange atoms in a 3D crystal

New technique could support atomic-scale manufacturing

Illustration of how an electron beam is used to modify a crystal

Why is rubber so resilient?

New molecular dynamics simulations may have provided the answer to this nearly century-old question

A pile of black charcoal against a white background

Ultrasound-activated nanoparticles shine a light deep within living tissues

Non-invasive technique could lead to new forms of light-based therapy for cancer and genetic conditions

Diagram showing the locations of the ultrasound applied to the mouse

Memory device breaks high-temperature performance record

New memristor works at temperatures above 700 °C thanks to a bottom electrode made from graphene

AI could help human scientists pick promising research topics

Large language models flag up novel combinations of concepts in materials science

An AI-generated knowledge network of technical terms. It looks like a mostly green inkblot splatter, with purple edges (representing less well-connected terms) and yellow and red splodges (representing better-connected terms) in the interior. Some labels are visible. For example, "mechanical property" and "particle size" are in the well-connected interior, while terms such as "peierls stress" and "dynamic recrystallization" are out on the edges.

Videos

Eco chic: clothing made from trees, inspired by spiders

Innovation in diamond applications from Element Six

Bristol print innovators make a strong impression

Researchers at the Centre for Print Research

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Tiny knotted fibre leaps into the air like a springtail bug

The fibre robot could find applications in agriculture and reforestation

researcher holding a tiny knotted robot with tweezers

Darkness can travel faster than light

Discovery of superluminal correlations within 2D hexagonal boron nitride could advance super-resolution electron microscopy

Conceptual illustration showing a glowing pool dotted with blue and orange vortices

Bat-inspired drone can navigate through dense fog and dodge obstacles

New low-power robot works using echolocation and could find applications in search and rescue missions in difficult-to-access spaces

Memristive synapses could reduce AI energy consumption

Hafnium-oxide based nanomaterial mimics the mechanisms of the human brain

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Atomic-scale devices and quantum platforms

Available to watch now, sponsored by IOP Publishing's journal, Nano Futures

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Epitaxial Si/SiGe multilayers for novel logic and memory devices

Discover the exciting world of epitaxial growth in view of advanced CMOS and 3D DRAM

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Advent Research Materials wordsearch

Try to find all the materials in this fiendish word search

Want to make a peptide material go from soft to stiff? Just add water

Discovery could facilitate the large-scale fabrication of materials that adapt to changing conditions

A 2x2 grid of diagrams. One column is labelled "high humidity" and the other is labelled "low humidity" The top row contains ball-and-stick chemical models, while the bottom row contains a more simplified, structural view. In both cases, the high humidity column has a hexagonal ordering, whereas the low humidity column shows a layered structure.

The dark heart of the lithium-ion battery revolution

James Dacey reviews The Elements of Power: a Story of War, Technology and the Dirtiest Supply Chain on Earth by Nicolas Niarchos

Dozens of mine workers on a hillside in normal clothing, no protective gear

‘Nano-aquariums’ deliver atomic-resolution imaging

Transmission electron microscopy probes solid–liquid interfaces

Illustration of the atomic structure of graphene

Magnetic microrobot swarm moves objects with water

Microrobots harness fluidic torque to move millimetre-sized objects without physical contact

Diamond films cool down electronics precisely where needed

Patterned diamond films could extend the lifespan of electronic devices by removing unwanted heat

Extracting entropy information from quantum dots

New work could help optimize quantum memories and information processing

Rechargeable liquid solar battery stores sunlight in molecules

A new bio-inspired material has a record-breaking energy density and outperforms lithium-ion batteries

Superfluid plasmon appears in a two-dimensional superconductor

New finding could advance our understanding of high-temperature superconductors

Self-healing materials could make automobile parts last over 100 years

Scientists have created a material with the ability to repeatedly and autonomously repair cracks

North Carolina State University researchers

Materials
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Cobalt dissolution from PtₓCo/C cathode catalysts in PEM fuel cells: in situ quantification and removal methods

Tracking Co²⁺ leaching from PtₓCo/C catalysts and recovering cation‑induced performance losses in PEM fuel cells. Learn more in this webinar

Metamaterial antennas enhance MR images of the eye and brain

Integrating metamaterials into radiofrequency antennas improves image sharpness and enables faster data acquisition using existing MRI scanners

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Materials | Conference Smart Materials: Self-Organizing Polymers at the Interface of Technology and Nature 21—25 June 2026 | Prague, Czechia
Condensed matter | Conference Condensed Matter and Quantum Materials 2026 30 June — 3 July 2026 | Loughborough, UK
Materials | Symposium The Tenth International Symposium on Dielectric Materials and Applications ISyDMA’10 1—3 July 2026 | Chisinau, Moldova

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