Materials

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A fullerene switch with incoming electron and incident red laser light pulses

Photoexcited electrons from fullerene help create high-speed switch

set-up for time reflection demonstration

Physicists perform first-ever measurement of ‘time reflection’ in microwaves

New demonstration of unusual phenomenon could help improve wireless communication

Nonlinear optics: we explore the science and its many applications

This podcast features two experts in nonlinear optics

Research headlines

Hydrogel for brain tissue reconstruction

Hydrogel helps grow new tissue in areas of brain damage

A novel hydrogel combined with transplanted neural stem cells could provide therapeutic brain tissue reconstruction

The cryostat insert used in the experiments

Quantum effects could help make twisted bilayer graphene a superconductor

BCS equations for superconductivity need to be modified for materials that have very slow-moving charges

Optical microscope images of larval crustaceans

Photonic nanospheres help baby shellfish hide from predators

A nanomaterial reflector overlies the eye pigments in certain larval crustaceans, allowing the creatures to appear completely transparent

Researchers grow electronics directly inside living tissue

An injectable gel uses the body’s metabolites to induce in vivo fabrication of organic bioelectronics

Thinner antiferroelectrics become ferroelectric

Size reduction can turn on unexpected properties in oxide materials

Scanning probe with a twist observes electron’s wavelike behaviour

New instrument reveals delocalized quantum properties

Videos

Innovation in diamond applications from Element Six

Researchers at the Centre for Print Research

Bristol print innovators make a strong impression

A female photographer wearing glasses, holding a camera

Are we living in the Age of Glass?

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Explore more in materials science

Gas-trapping structures improve tumour treatment

Oxygen-trapping materials can be injected directly into cancerous tissue to improve response to radiation and chemotherapies

Solar-driven hydrogel purifies contaminated water

Loofah-inspired material could supply enough drinking-quality water to meet a person’s daily requirements

Blocking electromagnetic interference opens channels for optical communications

Transparent and flexible silver mesh efficiently shields electromagnetic interference while allowing infrared wireless signals to pass through

Materials
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Quasiparticles appear in a classical setting, surprising physicists

Basic concepts of quantum matter physics might be applicable to classical systems

The angle and alignment of each layer enables the researchers to turn superconductivity on and off with a short electric pulse

Short electrical pulses switch superconductivity on and off in magic-angle graphene

New finding could help in the development of novel switchable superconducting electronics

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Sketch of a two-phase equilibrium in which yellow spherical particles float above a forest of purple-blue rod-like particles

Colloidal mixture exists in up to six phases at once

Finding could help scientists predict the phase stability of materials like paint and mayonnaise

Smart stitches could prevent infections at surgical sites

An antimicrobial suture containing iodine carbon nanoparticles can be imaged in the body using CT scanning, enabling wound monitoring after surgery while preventing infection

New type of fractal emerges in spin ices

Finding could have applications in magnetocaloric materials, spintronics, information storage and even quantum computing

Illustration showing sun shining on an array of solar-energy-to-hydrogen devices located in shallow water. A lens system directs UV and visible light to the devices and infrared light to heat the water around them.

Hydrogen-producing solar cells mimic photosynthesis

One device offers a record-breaking solar-to-hydrogen efficiency while a second harvests water from the air and turns it into hydrogen when exposed to sunlight

Coherent correlation imaging tracks fluctuations on the nanoscale

Imaging technique analyses spatial patterns using an advanced algorithm

This collage depicts elements related to ionocaloric cooling, a newly developed refrigeration cycle that researchers hope could help phase out refrigerants that contribute to global warming.

Ionocaloric cooling makes a new type of refrigerator

Technique could replace current systems that rely on vapour compression of powerful greenhouse gases

Illustration representing the friction between the tip of an atomic force microscope and graphene "Moiré" superstructures. The tip looks like a grey cone and the superstructures are represented by red hexagonal areas on a blue background

Friction at the microscale depends unexpectedly on sliding speed

New finding could have applications for hard disks and moving components for satellites or space telescopes

Single-celled marine algae light the way for solar energy

New analysis of diatom shells, or frustules, suggests possible improvements to solar energy harvesting devices

Sound waves break light transmission reciprocity

New technique could advance optical communications that encode information in the orbital angular momentum of light

At extremely high pressure – hundreds of times higher than that found at the bottom of the ocean – boron arsenide’s thermal conductivity begins to decrease

Surprising heat transfer behaviour seen in new semiconductor under pressure

The anomalous behaviour of boron arsenide under pressure could change the way we think about heat transport under extreme conditions, like those found in the Earth’s interior

Chiral logic gates create ultrafast data processors

Devices that work using circularly polarized light are a million times faster than current data processing technologies

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Materials | Conference Faraday joint interest group conference 2023 3—5 April 2023 | Sheffield, UK
Materials | Conference 3rd Materials Science and Nanotechnology Conference 27—28 April 2023 | Dubai, UAE
Quantum | Workshop Dynamical Control of Quantum Materials 22—26 May 2023 | Dresden, Germany

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