Using a composite metamaterial to deliver a complex set of instructions to a beam of light, Boston College physicists have created a device to guide electromagnetic waves around objects such as the corner of a building or the profile of the eastern seaboard.

Photon Technology International (PTI), a known innovator in fluorescence with over 26 years of experience is once again expanding the frontiers of detection to attomolar levels with its new QuantaMaster 40 Spectrofluorometer.

CNRS researchers in France have come up with a system that could protect buildings from the most destructive seismic waves.

The Institute of Microelectronics, a research institute of the Agency for Science, Technology and Research, and Maradin Technologies Ltd, an innovative display projection start-up company, today announced their collaboration to develop an innovative application-specific integrated circuits (ASIC) chip for next generation high resolution displays of portable devices.

Researchers in Sweden are breaking boundaries in the field of nerve cell communication by creating the first artificial nerve cell capable of communicating with human nerve cells. The research will fuel understanding in the pathophysiology, molecular targets and therapies for the treatment of various nervous system disorders such as Parkinson's disease.

The project will produce gallium arsenide-based solar batteries for satellites and space stations, with battery efficiency increased from 15 to 32% compared to silicon-based batteries. The new batteries are made up of three-junction solar cells consisting of up to 30 interleaving layers, each measuring 10-15 nm in thickness.

Much attention of nanotechnology researchers has recently been paid to the fabrication of free-standing, ultra-thin films. These systems have been developed for use in a wide variety of fields such as nano-separation membranes or nanosensors for electrochemical and photochemical applications. In a first report on the fabrication of free-standing nanosheets for biomedical applications, scientists in Japan have developed a biodegradable thin film of only about 20 nanometers thickness that could replace surgical stitches. In experiments, they found that the sealing operation repaired the incision completely without scars and tissue adhesion. This approach would constitute an ideal candidate for an alternative to conventional suture/ligation procedures, from the perspective not only of a minimally invasive surgical technique but also reduction of operation times.

Graphane has the same honeycomb structure as graphene, except that it is 'spray-painted' with hydrogen atoms that attach themselves to the carbon. The resulting bonds between the hydrogen and carbon atoms effectively tie down the electrons that make graphene so conducting.

Neue Werkstoffe fuer die elektrochemische Energiespeicherung und Energiewandlung stehen im Fokus des Materialwissenschaftlichen Zentrums (MWZ), das am Karlsruher Institut fuer Technologie entstehen wird.

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