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Category: materials – Page 12

Dynamic visualizations expose how domain walls shift in ferroelectrics

As demand for energy-intensive computing grows, researchers at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory have developed a new technique that lets scientists see—in unprecedented detail—how interfaces move in promising materials for computing and other applications. The method, now available to users at the Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences at ORNL, could help design dramatically more energy-efficient technologies.

The research is published in the journal Small Methods.

Data centers today consume as much energy as small cities, and that usage is skyrocketing. To counter the trend, scientists are studying such as ferroelectrics that could store and process information far more efficiently than silicon, which is traditionally used. But realizing the potential depends on understanding the processes occurring at dimensions thousands of times smaller than a —specifically, at the ferroelectric material’s , which are the boundaries between areas of the material that exhibit different magnetic or electric properties.

Researchers uncover why cracks in materials break their symmetry while spreading

The materials that make up all the structures and physical systems around us, including our own bodies, are not perfect—they contain flaws in the form of tiny cracks. When one of these cracks suddenly and rapidly spreads, it can be life-threatening, but the rich, intricate patterns formed by cracks can also be spectacular and intriguing.

Until now, physicists have struggled to provide a theoretical framework explaining why often branch out and deviate from their expected path, slowing down as a result.

Two recent studies from the Weizmann Institute of Science bring order to the disorderly propagation of cracks and show that, although each crack may seem unique, there are quantitative physical parameters that shape the propagation process and explain the formation of asymmetrical crack patterns.

Physicists Discover First Room-Temperature 2D Altermagnet

The study identifies a new class of layered antiferromagnets with spin-valley locking, offering efficient spin control without relying on spin–orbit coupling.

Altermagnets are a newly recognized class of materials that show momentum-dependent spin splitting without requiring spin-orbit coupling (SOC) or net magnetization. These materials have recently garnered international attention.

A research team led by Prof. Junwei Liu from the Department of Physics at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST), together with experimental collaborators, published groundbreaking findings in Nature Physics.

How water vapor is powering the next generation of soft robots

Phase-change actuation has been revived for the era of untethered, electrically driven soft robots. Our team at the University of Coimbra have developed a phase transition soft actuator designed to power electric soft robots that require high force and precision. Our innovation leverages the liquid-to-gas phase transition of water to generate mechanical motion in a way that is simple, scalable, and remarkably powerful.

Unlike traditional soft actuators, which often rely on bulky pneumatics, exotic materials, or high voltages, our design exploits a well-known process: boiling. Using a tiny embedded heater, our transforms water into steam, generating internal pressure that drives motion in soft, flexible structures. As a result, our actuator can operate at voltages as low as 24 V, deliver forces exceeding 50 N, and achieve pressurization rates of up to 100 kPa/s.

Our findings are published in Nature Communications.

Water-assisted microwave synthesis of porous COF materials for lithium-ion batteries

In our recent study published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, our team from the National University of Singapore has developed a rapid and eco-friendly method for synthesizing imide-linked covalent organic frameworks (COFs) using a water-assisted microwave approach.

This innovative technique significantly reduces the synthesis time and eliminates the need for toxic organic solvents, marking a major advancement in the field of materials science.

Bismuth-based hybrid materials enable highly sensitive, eco-friendly X-ray detectors

X-ray imaging is indispensable in medical diagnostics and material characterization. To generate an image, a detector converts X-rays that pass through the object into electrical signals. Higher detector sensitivity enables lower radiation doses, which is particularly important in medical applications.

Currently used X-ray detectors consist of inorganic compounds of elements with medium to high atomic numbers. In recent years, inorganic perovskite compounds have also been tested as X-ray detectors with very good results.

A recently realized ferroelectric topology in nanomembranes enables light field manipulation

Ferroelectrics are a class of materials that exhibit so-called spontaneous electric polarization, which is the separation of electric charges that can be reversed when an external electric field is applied to them. The dipole moments (i.e., pairs of equal and opposite charges) in these materials can sometimes be arranged in complex configurations known as topological textures.

The topological structures of some ferroelectric materials can interact with light in interesting and unexpected ways, which could have interesting implications for the development of optical technologies and . The size of ferroelectric polar topologies unveiled and studied to date, however, is not aligned with that of laser light modes, which limited their previous use for the development of optical technologies.

Researchers at Nanjing University recently realized a micrometer-scale center-convergent ferroelectric topology using barium titanate (BaTiO3) membranes that enables the precise spatial control of light fields.

Cracking the Quantum Mirror: Hidden Chirality Found in a Symmetrical Crystal

A Princeton team uncovered a surprising chiral quantum state in a supposedly non-chiral material, shedding light on elusive symmetry-breaking effects and opening doors to new quantum technologies. Chirality, the property of being different from one’s mirror image, has fascinated scientists in fie

Next-generation membrane cuts toluene crossover to boost hydrogen storage performance

A Korean research team has developed a new proton exchange membrane (PEM) that significantly enhances the performance of electrochemical hydrogen storage systems. The work was published as a cover article in the Journal of Materials Chemistry A.

Dr. Soonyong So of the Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology (KRICT) and Professor Sang-Young Lee of Yonsei University have developed a next-generation PEM for LOHC-based electrochemical hydrogen storage using a hydrocarbon-based polymer called SPAES (sulfonated poly(arylene ether sulfone)).

This SPAES membrane reduces toluene permeability by over 60% compared to the commercially available perfluorinated PEM Nafion and improves the Faradaic efficiency of hydrogenation to 72.8%.