Materials – Page 4
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Research
Creating reconfigurable fluidic devices from liquid building blocks
Inspired by toy blocks, Chinese researchers have created, manipulated functional liquid devices by assembling and disassembling liquid droplets
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Research
Unique polymer can switch from rigid cutlery to an adhesive to malleable plastic
Process that mimics tempering of metals can even be reversed in multi-use plastic
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Research
Engineered enzymes break down silicon–carbon bonds in siloxane, an emerging pollutant
Directed evolution offers a way to tackle waste silicone
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Research
Slow Arrhenius process identified in molecular glasses
Findings challenge common ideas on glassy dynamics
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Research
MOF-based filter harvests energy from seawater evaporation
Prototype device generates sustained electric current as salt water evaporates
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Opinion
Shirley Meng: 'I think science is as beautiful as art'
The materials science pioneer on her Chinese heritage, experience as a female scientist, and the actual measure of success
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Research
Elusive ‘supersolid’ phase observed in experiments
Antiferromagnet Na2BaCo(PO4)2 shows serious promise for supercooling experiments
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Article
Microsoft’s AI and high-performance computing system powers new battery discovery
Azure Quantum Elements platform speeds up discovery of solid-state electrolyte from decades to weeks
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Feature
Editing polymer backbones
Changing the chemical makeup of a polymer backbone could revolutionise how we make, use and even recycle plastics. James Mitchell Crow reports
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Research
Polar bear-inspired material could be the future of insulating textiles
Encapsulated aerogel fibre can be stretched, dyed and washed without signs of degradation
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Research
New analysis raises doubts over autonomous lab’s materials ‘discoveries’
Experimental and computational issues flagged as researchers conclude that a fully automated lab failed to make new materials
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Research
Thermodynamically stable ‘plumber’s nightmare’ structure self-assembles from block copolymers
The crucial role of end group and linker chemistry enabled creation of the infamous structure, offering a new way to produce nanoscale architecture
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Research
Photoluminescent 3D printer inks made with crown-ether-stabilised perovskites
Light-emitting miniature Eiffel Towers made with perovskite-containing inks
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Research
Semiconducting graphene allows transistor creation in step toward silicon chip integration
Regular, ordered synthesis of epigraphene combines a bandgap with high electronic mobility addressing a key problem with the material
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Research
Nanoplastics make up around 90% of the plastic particles found in bottled water
Seven different types of plastic detected in three bottled water brands
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Opinion
Julia Kornfield: ‘I’ve often followed an instinct about a person’
The polymer expert on power imbalances and following her instinct
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Research
Bonding nanoparticles to rubber increases material’s fatigue resistance sixfold
Discovery puts rubber on the road to tougher tyres