Engineering & Technology Materials Science and Engineering

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.

Researchers from The University of Osaka discovered a mechanism that greatly improves the efficiency of endothermic singlet exciton fission. By combining singlet-fission molecules with quantum dots, the team created hybridized electronic states at the material interface that act as intermediate energy pathways. This allows one absorbed photon to generate two excited states with high efficiency, potentially allowing solar technologies to exceed current efficiency limits.

What if some of the most important scientific discoveries are already hidden in data collected years ago? Researchers at Tohoku University are exploring how AI and data-driven science can reveal new insights from past experiments and scientific literature. Their review highlights how old data could help accelerate discoveries in chemistry and materials science.

Researchers at Tohoku University have uncovered a new principle that could help accelerate the development of cheaper and more efficient fuel cells. The team discovered that dual-atom catalysts follow a previously unknown “dual-Sabatier optima” pattern, overturning long-standing assumptions in catalyst science and opening new possibilities for clean energy technologies.

A photocurable resin that can be recycled at least 10 times

Engineered carbon-based nanomaterials can interfere with the aggregation of misfolded proteins linked to neurodegenerative diseases, offering a new direction for future therapeutic exploration.

A tiny change to the arrangement of organic molecules in nanoparticle systems can result in a massive change to material properties. By synthesizing gold nanoparticles coated with two different types of organic molecules, a research team has uncovered new insights into this phenomenon.

Dolphin secrets, Iron-rich Moon, Squeezing diamonds, Sweat the small stuff, Muonic molecules. Read all in the latest Editor's Choice. Plus: SciCom Coffee speaker.

Researchers in Japan showed that growing Eu-doped GaN on a semipolar GaN plane selectively forms highly efficient Eu luminescent centers while suppressing inefficient Eu clusters. The approach increased room-temperature red emission by 3.6 times, reduced efficiency droop, and points to brighter, wavelength-stable red LEDs for monolithically integrated full-color micro-LED displays using the GaN materials platform.

Biodegradable plastics are great. They provide the ductility of plastics whilst reducing the materials environmental downsides. However, in the quest for greater degradability, improving durability has received scant attention. A research group recently rectified this with the development of a new bamboo composite that emphasised both biodegradability and strength. The group also developed a means to predict how the material breaks down in water.

Engineers at NIMS develop a system that captures all the elements of trial and error in material design, enabling reliable reproduction of the reasoning processes and results

Floatable beads made from chitosan and cellulose acetate and enhanced with bentonite were engineered to effectively clean oil from water. The beads showed good oil adsorption capacity while remaining easy to collect from the water surface.

Researchers reveal a powerful new way to precisely tune quantum defects, opening the door to ultra-sensitive next-generation sensors

Researchers have created a new database that employs AI to filter jargon and eliminate the need for users to have specialist programming skills. Called StableOx-Cat, the database identifies stable metal oxide electrocatalysts, making it easier to discover better materials for clean energy technologies.

What if AI could discover breakthrough materials before we even test them? A new physics-informed AI model makes discovery faster and more reliable. This approach could reshape the future of electronics.

Researchers from National Taiwan University break traditional frameworks by unveiling a new symmetry-transition mechanism in ZrO2 thin films, achieving ultra-stable antiferroelectric behavior for up to one hundred million cycles.

Researchers in Japan have developed a new LED structure that generates circularly polarized light from a single chip. The advance could support smaller and more energy-efficient optical devices for AR/VR, 3D displays, quantum communication, and optical security. By combining a semipolar InGaN light-emitting structure with a stripe-shaped silicon nitride metasurface, the team created a compact light source that reduces energy-conversion loss and operates at room temperature. This advancement could help bring ultra-compact, durable light sources closer to practical use in AR/VR, 3D displays, quantum communication, and optical security.

A research team led by Prof. Boseok Kang at Sungkyunkwan University has uncovered the origin of polarity inversion—a long-standing phenomenon in polymer semiconductors that occurs only in certain materials—attracting significant attention.

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The approach uses 3D printing to produce WC–Co cemented carbides—ultra-hard materials used in cutting and construction tools—while reducing the waste and cost of conventional manufacturing.

A new tool offers researchers a better way of exploring and understanding catalyst data.

When aluminum alloys get exposed to sodium chloride solutions, it causes a process known as pitting corrosion. Since aluminum alloys are widely used in transportation equipment, scientists are constantly looking for ways to improve the means of monitoring corrosion. Now, researchers from Tohoku University have developed a new technique to do so.

A simple tablet could change the way deadly breathing disorders are treated, with no need for electricity, machines, or gas tanks.