News from the NNI Community - Research Advances Funded by Agencies Participating in the NNI

Stacking ultrathin complex oxide single-crystal layers allows researchers to create new structures with hybrid properties and multiple functions. Now, using a new platform developed by engineers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, researchers will be able to make these stacked-crystal materials in virtually unlimited combinations. The engineers combined their expertise to create ultrathin complex oxide single-crystal layers by using graphene as the peel-away intermediate.

A team of researchers led by Rutgers University has developed a gold nanoparticle-based tool to monitor influenza A virus mutations in real time, which could help virologists learn how to stop viruses from replicating. It is the first time in virology that experts have used imaging tools with gold nanoparticles to monitor mutations in influenza with unparalleled sensitivity.

A team of researchers led by Rutgers University has developed a gold nanoparticle-based tool to monitor influenza A virus mutations in real time, which could help virologists learn how to stop viruses from replicating. It is the first time in virology that experts have used imaging tools with gold nanoparticles to monitor mutations in influenza with unparalleled sensitivity.

Chemical engineers from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have demonstrated how to make the conversion process from carbon dioxide to methanol more efficient by using a highly effective separation membrane they produced. The membrane contains small pores — known as water-conduction nanochannels — that can carefully and quickly let water go through them without losing gas molecules. This breakthrough, the researchers said, could improve a number of industry processes that depend on chemical reactions where water is a byproduct.

Chemical engineers from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have demonstrated how to make the conversion process from carbon dioxide to methanol more efficient by using a highly effective separation membrane they produced. The membrane contains small pores — known as water-conduction nanochannels — that can carefully and quickly let water go through them without losing gas molecules. This breakthrough, the researchers said, could improve a number of industry processes that depend on chemical reactions where water is a byproduct.

Researchers at the University of Michigan have proven the viability of a 3-D camera that can provide high-quality 3-D imaging while determining how far away objects are from the lens. This information is critical for 3-D biological imaging, robotics, and autonomous driving. Instead of using opaque photodetectors traditionally used in cameras, the proposed camera uses a stack of transparent photodetectors made from graphene to simultaneously capture and focus in on objects that are at different distances from the camera lens.

Researchers at the University of Michigan have proven the viability of a 3-D camera that can provide high-quality 3-D imaging while determining how far away objects are from the lens. This information is critical for 3-D biological imaging, robotics, and autonomous driving. Instead of using opaque photodetectors traditionally used in cameras, the proposed camera uses a stack of transparent photodetectors made from graphene to simultaneously capture and focus in on objects that are at different distances from the camera lens.

Researchers at the University of Rochester have demonstrated that using powerful femto-second laser pulses to etch metal surfaces with nanoscale structures could help create highly efficient solar power generators. The researchers found that tungsten, which is commonly used as a thermal solar absorber, has the highest solar absorption efficiency when treated with the new nanoscale structures.

Researchers at the University of Rochester have demonstrated that using powerful femto-second laser pulses to etch metal surfaces with nanoscale structures could help create highly efficient solar power generators. The researchers found that tungsten, which is commonly used as a thermal solar absorber, has the highest solar absorption efficiency when treated with the new nanoscale structures.

New research by engineers at MIT, the University of Central Florida, the University of Texas at Austin, Brookhaven National Laboratory, and Hong Kong Polytechnic University could lead to batteries that can pack more power per pound and last longer, based on the long-sought goal of using pure lithium metal as one of the battery's two electrodes, the anode. To form the anode, the researchers developed a three-dimensional nanoarchitecture in the form of a honeycomb-like array of hexagonal tubes, partially infused with solid lithium metal. The hexagonal tubes are about 100 to 300 nanometers in diameter and tens of microns in height.