Engineering & Technology Materials Science and Engineering

Lithium metal is a prime contender for the next generation of rechargeable batteries. But in order to live up to that potential, scientists have had to try and find a solution to the dendrite problem. Lithium tends to grow into needle-like structures (dendrites) which reduce the battery life and create safety hazards. The answer may be like the key to most things in life: balance. Researchers from Tohoku University's Institute for Materials Research (IMR) discovered that, rather than increasing the amount of lithium salt in a battery, an optimal lithium concentration allows lithium to deposit evenly and form a stronger protective layer on the battery surface.

Scientists have found a way to spot early signs of skin aging, discovering that collagen's hidden internal structure begins to unravel before the fibers themselves break apart.

A recyclable enzyme catalyst could support cleaner production of flavour esters for food, drink and cosmetics.

A patented portable filter offers a practical route to cleaner drinking water during droughts, floods and contamination events.

Catalysts are everywhere—from fertilizer production to clean energy—but making them more active without sacrificing stability has remained a major challenge. Researchers have now engineered a gold-platinum nanocluster catalyst that can be activated at lower temperatures while maintaining its precise atomic structure, boosting low-temperature carbon monoxide oxidation performance. Yet a clever ligand design could pave the way for more efficient and durable catalysts.

A study shows palm oil can replace aromatic oil in natural rubber composites while supporting greener rubber products.

An AI assistant for high-entropy alloy (HEA) electrocatalysis named ChatHEA provided a helping hand not just to extract data from the literature, but provide suggestions for promising catalysts, design experiments, and analyze data.

Pineapple leaf fibres gain strength through alkali treatment, supporting stronger and more sustainable biobased composites.

Researchers break a fundamental rule to create a new concept: heat that can be directed and “programmed”. In most materials, heat absorption and heat emission are linked, meaning a surface that absorbs thermal radiation well from a particular direction will also emit it in the same way. A team from OMU in Japan has designed a reconfigurable device that breaks this symmetry, enabling heat to be absorbed and emitted differently depending on the direction of absorption. This technology could eventually lead to smarter thermal-management systems and infrared sensors.

Researchers at Tohoku University have discovered a promising strategy that converts harmful carbon dioxide into valuable fuels and chemicals by precisely altering nanoclusters made of copper.

The abundance of sulfur not only makes lithium-sulfur batteries cheaper to manufacture, but they also boast superior energy-storage capacity to current lithium-ion technologies. But one problem preventing practical deployment is polysulfide shuttling—when polysulfides formed during battery cycling escape the cathode and drift into unwanted areas and cause the battery to erode. Now, a group of researchers from Tohoku University has solved this problem with a molecularly designed covalent organic framework (COF)–graphene interlayer. Like a security checkpoint that both identifies threats and efficiently streams people where they need to go, the interlayer combines chemical trapping, rapid charge transport, and sulfur-conversion promotion.

Magnets can store data – but there is a limit. To improve the data density of memory devices, researchers at Tohoku University delved into ways to exert precise control over a unique material called metallic helimagnets.

A research team from City University of Hong Kong (CityUHK) has recently overcome a technological bottleneck that has persisted for over a decade. They successfully “turned waste into treasure” by recycling triplet excitons and converting them into effective charge carriers for electricity generation. Using this new approach, they achieved an efficiency of 20.5% in OPV cells.

The end of colored plastic downgrading could be near with new approach

Researchers developed a hybrid supercapacitor electrode by anchoring two-dimensional vanadium disulfide nanosheets onto one-dimensional porous graphitic carbon nitride nanotubes. The mixed-dimensional structure improves ion transport, charge storage, and cycling stability, offering a promising strategy for fast and durable energy storage.

A research group has developed “TP-An,” a molecule that enables even low-energy, long-wavelength light to be used more effectively by solar cells and photocatalysts. The molecule can be used even at high concentrations that are difficult for traditional materials, suggesting their usefulness in technology.

Catalysts play a vital role in the chemical reactions used to produce fertilizers, fuels, pharmaceuticals, and hydrogen, to name a few. AI-driven catalyst discovery is revolutionizing the field of materials science. But AI is only as reliable as the data it learns from. Therefore, researchers from Tohoku University have introduced an AI-powered digital catalysis platform that serves as a one-stop source for experimental data, theoretical calculations, and scientific literature.

A new electrochemical system simultaneously converts plant-derived materials and nitrate pollutants into valuable industrial chemicals. Developed by Tohoku University researchers, the system provides a more sustainable way to manufacture chemicals while helping address wastewater pollution.

Hydrogen can store renewable energy, but then what stores the hydrogen? A new AI-powered, logic-based method provides probable materials for the job – and explains the reasoning behind its decision.

Janus 2D materials, named after the two-faced Roman god, boast bottom surfaces composing two different elements. This asymmetry gives them unique properties, and Janus two-dimensional semiconductors are becoming more common. While scientists have long known how to produce Janus 2D materials, they have yet to grasp the underlying physics behind the process. Now, researchers from Tohoku University have solved the mystery.

An international research team has discovered a method to precisely synthesize extremely small Iridium Nanoclusters that outperform conventional, commercially available iridium catalysts by 1.5 times in mass activity. This breakthrough could result in improved production of green hydrogen.

Kanazawa University-led researchers developed a one-step recycling method that recovers toxic lead (Pb) and valuable metals including gold (Au) and indium (In) from flexible perovskite solar cells, supporting sustainable solar energy technologies.

Sweet power nanogenerator, Cosmic fossil, Dopamine and Alzheimer's link, Sustainable 3D printing, Quantum dots for brain diseases, Smart trolley and Bamboo and bone. Read all in the latest Editor's Choice. Plus SciCom Coffee talk: Inside a University Merger.

New “GMBU” procedure reveals band structures in finite, curved nanomaterials, linking nano‑ARPES and theory for next‑generation device design.

Researchers at Kanazawa University, in collaboration with Diamond and Carbon Applications (Germany), have developed a buried-growth process for nitrogen–vacancy (NV) centers in diamond using microwave plasma chemical vapor deposition (MPCVD). By employing nitrogen-radical selective etching, which simultaneously enhances metal-mask durability through nitridation, the team enabled a continuous etching–growth sequence within a single MPCVD process. Optical measurements confirmed highly aligned NV centers selectively buried in predefined regions. This integrated approach provides a stable and scalable platform for orientation-controlled diamond qubits and future room-temperature quantum technologies.

Wrinkles or dents appearing on material surfaces are often regarded as signs of damage or deformation. In a recent collaborative review paper published in the internationally recognised journal Nano-Micro Letters and titled Harnessing Surface Instabilities for Functional Materials: Mechanics, Morphology, and Emerging Applications, researchers from Lingnan University propose that naturally formed surface textures in materials could in future be combined with artificial intelligence (AI)-assisted design to develop novel functional materials. The technology would potentially support applications in intelligent anti-counterfeiting, artificial organs, and stretchable batteries.

Spin waves are a promising way to reduce the energy-consumption of computing. New research shows that sending spin waves along a zig-zag path boosts the signal over 5,000 times compared to previous methods.

Humans have evolved to be able to link intentions to emotions or physical actions. This is why we may approach someone with open arms but flee if someone approaches using threatening body language. While AI can accurately identify emotions, it struggles to derive intention from them. A research group, with the help of performers from Japan and Taiwan, has helped facilitate a means to bridge this gap.

The study from National Taiwan University reveals a single-layer zigzag-type metallic glass film with precisely tunable emissivity for thermal infrared camouflage technology.

Researchers from Tohoku University have developed a new kind of filter that overcomes a long-standing challenge, creating a special material that makes separating CO2 from other gases both fast and highly accurate.