Technology Update

Researchers in Singapore have found that carbon-60 molecules, or “buckyballs”, can be used to make graphene quantum dots that are geometrically well defined.

A new technique for manipulating the way light scatters in graphene has been proposed by researchers at the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab and the University of California in the US.

Researchers in France investigated the impact of a daily ration of food containing gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) of two sizes on zebrafish.

Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), United States, have devised a new way to detect internal damage to advanced composite materials, such as those being used by many airplane manufacturers.

Donald Ewert, the director of field services for nanoTox, a safety consulting company based in the United States, has an idea about how to tackle the seemingly impossible task of addressing and regulating the potential toxicity of nanomaterials.

The United States National Organic Program (NOP), in December 2010, voted to accept the recommendation of the U.S. National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) to prohibit engineered nanomaterials from the production, processing and packaging of certified organic products. According to this article, “The decision was made with little fanfare, but has big implications.”

Researchers at Brown University, United States, have developed a formula to help seal prosthetics against infection.

A team of engineers at Case Western Reserve University, United States, has found that catalysts made of carbon nanotubes dipped in a polymer solution equal the energy output and otherwise outperform platinum catalysts in fuel cells.

A two-day sympo sium, “Safety Issues of Nanomaterials along their Life Cycle”, will be held from May 4-5, 2011, in Barcelona, Spain.

This study, conducted by researchers in Japan, was designed to examine the skin penetration, cellular localization and cytotoxic effects of amorphous silica particles ranging in size from 70 to 1000 nanometers.

Scientists from Princess Margaret Hospital, Canada, have created an organic nanoparticle that is completely non-toxic, biodegradable, and able to use light and heat to treat cancer and deliver drugs.

A new book, “Nanotechnology: Engines On”, published by NanoWiki, looks at how nanotechnology is contributing to solving vital challenges, such as controlling climate change, abandoning dependency on fossil fuels, and creating conditions for sustainable development.

An extremely sensitive sensor that opens up new ways of detecting a wide range of substances, such as cancer and hidden explosives, has been invented by researchers at Princeton University, United States.

Researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, United States, have developed a three-dimensional nanostructure for battery cathodes that results in dramatically faster charging and discharging without sacrificing energy storage capacity.

Porous Si and Al2O3 have been used extensively as negative templates to form ferroelectric nanostructures by various methods.

All nanoparticles are not made equal. This becomes evident when we consider their motion under blood flow in blood vessels of tumours.

Researchers in New Zealand have designed a new synthesis process, which combines the advantages of low-depth low-concentration ion implantation and high-temperature electron beam annealing to produce surface metallic nanoclusters on silica.

Researchers at Columbia University and Brookhaven National Laboratories in New York have succeeded in measuring both the conductance and the force across a nanoscale junction.

Researchers in the Netherlands, Israel and the US have studied how “multiple exciton generation” in certain larger-sized quantum dots depends on their composition.

A Canadian-based biotechnology start-up, ViveNano, is hoping to use nanotechnology to diminish residual chemicals in agricultural runoff.

The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) will send a nanotechnology expert and provide related equipment to the Sri Lanka Institute of Technology (SLINTEC) under a deal signed this week.