Mechanical Engineering: Research Guide

An unexpected discovery surprised a scientist at the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems in Stuttgart: Nanometer-sized diamond particles, which were intended for a completely different purpose, shone brightly in a magnetic resonance imaging experiment—much brighter than the actual contrast agent, the heavy metal gadolinium.

Using an ultrasensitive photonic crystal, TU/e researchers were able to detect single particles down to 50 nanometers in diameter. The new research has just been published in the journal Optica.

Researchers at the University of São Paulo (USP) in Brazil have developed a bioelectronic chip that simultaneously detects vitamins C and D in body fluids. It is flexible and easy to see and can be adapted for use in a wearable device to assist with a personalized diet. Details are described in an article published in ACS Applied Nano Materials.

As a typical two-dimensional material, MoS2 exhibits unique optical and electrical properties due to its atomic thickness in the vertical dimension, making it a research hotspot in the field of optoelectronic detection.

The need for sustainable and environment-friendly solutions has accelerated the global demand for green and renewable technologies. In this regard, semiconductor photocatalysts have emerged as an attractive solution, owing to their potential in mitigating pollutants and harnessing solar energy efficiently. Photocatalysts are materials that initiate chemical reactions when exposed to light.

Molecular computer components could represent a new IT revolution and help us create cheaper, faster, smaller, and more powerful computers. Yet researchers struggle to find ways to assemble them more reliably and efficiently.

Using waste to purify water may sound counterintuitive. But at TU Wien, this is exactly what has now been achieved. Researchers have developed a special nanostructure to filter a widespread class of harmful dyes from water.

Medical implants could fail less often when coated with a microscopically crinkled, ceramic material designed by researchers at the University of Michigan. The coating is described in a paper published in ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces.

A new model developed by scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Dynamics and Self-Organization (MPI-DS) extends the theory of elastic phase separation towards nanoscopic structures. Such patterns are frequent in biological systems and also used in nano-engineering to create structural color. With their new insights, the scientists can predict the length scale of nanoscopic patterns and thus control them during production. The model is published in the journal Physical Review X.

In a significant leap towards sustainable environmental management and antimicrobial strategies, a team of international researchers has successfully synthesized a fluorescent carbon dot (CD) and reduced graphene oxide (RGO) nanocomposite from papaya peel waste. The study, published in the Journal of Bioresources and Bioproducts, details a one-step hydrothermal method to fabricate the nanocomposite, which was then characterized using various spectroscopic and microscopic techniques.

Researchers from Skoltech, MIPT, and elsewhere have found a fast and inexpensive way to create geometric patterns in carbon nanotube films. The resulting films turned out to have superior properties for manufacturing components for 6G communication devices and flexible and transparent electronics—such as wearable health trackers. The patterning method is detailed in a paper in the Chemical Engineering Journal.

Acoustofluidics elegantly merges acoustics with fluid mechanics, enabling precise manipulation of fluids and particles on both micro and nanoscales. This interdisciplinary field plays a crucial role in biomedicine, tissue engineering, and nanoparticles synthesis. However, the effectiveness and potential of traditional acoustofluidic devices are often curtailed by their dependency on the specific geometries of fluidic chambers, thus limiting their adaptability and versatility.

In the relentless battle against airborne viruses, researchers have developed a new spray coating to improve the antiviral efficacy of personal protective equipment, notably face masks. The study is published in the journal ACS Applied Nano Materials.

Magnetic two-dimensional materials consisting of one or a few atomic layers have only recently become known and promise interesting applications, for example for the electronics of the future. So far, however, it has not been possible to control the magnetic states of these materials well enough.

In a first demonstration of "electron videography," researchers have captured a microscopic moving picture of the delicate dance between proteins and lipids found in cell membranes. The technique can be used to study the dynamics of other biomolecules, breaking free of constraints that have limited microscopy to still images of fixed molecules, say University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign researchers and collaborators at the Georgia Institute of Technology.

An international team at the world's largest X-ray laser European XFEL at Schenefeld near Hamburg has scrutinized the properties of an important nanogel that is often used in medicine to release drugs in a targeted and controlled manner at the desired location in a patient's body. The team has now published the results in the journal Science Advances.

Carbon dots (CDs) are an intriguing class of nanomaterials that have attracted a great deal of attention in recent years. These carbon-based materials possess excellent fluorescence properties, making them highly appealing for a wide range of applications.

SUNY Polytechnic Institute (SUNY Poly) Associate Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering Technology Dr. Iulian Gherasoiu and peers have published research in the Journal of Applied Electrochemistry titled "MoVN-coated MoNi4-MoO2 nanorods as a bifunctional electrode for electrochemical water splitting."

Scientists have created conducting two-dimensional polymers exhibiting electron mobility comparable to graphene. Their research has been featured in the online edition of Chem.

EPFL researchers have developed the first comprehensive model of the quantum-mechanical effects behind photoluminescence in thin gold films; a discovery that could drive the development of solar fuels and batteries.

Electrostatic capacitors play a crucial role in modern electronics. They enable ultrafast charging and discharging, providing energy storage and power for devices ranging from smartphones, laptops and routers to medical devices, automotive electronics and industrial equipment. However, the ferroelectric materials used in capacitors have significant energy loss due to their material properties, making it difficult to provide high energy storage capability.

As an important chemical raw material, hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is widely applied in various aspects of industry and life. The industrial anthraquinone method for H2O2 production has the serious flaws, such as high pollution and energy consumption. By using ubiquitous mechanical energy, piezocatalytic H2O2 evolution has been proven as a promising strategy, but its progress is hindered by unsatisfied energy conversion efficiency.

Human mini-lungs grown by University of Manchester scientists can mimic the response of animals when exposed to certain nanomaterials. The study is published in Nano Today.

Making ever smaller and more powerful chips requires new ultrathin materials: 2D materials that are only 1 atom thick, or even just a couple of atoms. Think about graphene or ultra-thin silicon membrane for instance.

Flow-through reactors packed with enzymes can produce certain chemicals in a gentle and careful way. However, their performance has so far been limited. A research team from the Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon and RWTH Aachen University has now been able to increase the yield a thousandfold.

It is a common hack to stretch a balloon out to make it easier to inflate. When the balloon stretches, the width crosswise shrinks to the size of a string. Noah Stocek, a Ph.D. student collaborating with Western physicist Giovanni Fanchini, has developed a new nanomaterial that demonstrates the opposite of this phenomenon.

A research team has engineered a "broadband nanogap gold spectroscopic sensor" using a flexible material capable of bending to create a controlled gap. With the developed technology, it is possible to rapidly test various types of materials, including infectious disease viruses, using only a single nano-spectroscopic sensor to find molecular fingerprints. The research findings have been published in Nano Letters.

Chattering squirrels, charming coypus, and tail-slapping beavers—along with some other rodents—have orange-brown front teeth. Researchers have published high-resolution images of rodent incisors in ACS Nano, providing an atomic-level view of the teeth's ingenious enamel and its coating. They discovered tiny pockets of iron-rich materials in the enamel that form a protective shield for the teeth but, importantly, don't contribute to the orange-brown hue—new insights that could improve human dentistry.

Researchers at ICIQ in Tarragona have developed a simple technique to produce microscopic crystals that activate in the presence of light, releasing silver ions with antimicrobial activity.

Silicon-based electronics are approaching their physical limitations and new materials are needed to keep up with current technological demands. Two-dimensional (2D) materials have a rich array of properties, including superconductivity and magnetism, and are promising candidates for use in electronic systems, such as transistors. However, precisely controlling the properties of these materials is extraordinarily difficult.