Materials

Asia Research News monitors the latest research news in Asia. Some highlights that caught our attention this week are a biosensor to detect meat freshness, a cute and spooky sea creature, and how even shorter amounts of exercise can lead to benefits.

Metal-nitrogen-carbon (M-N-C) single-atom catalysts are a promising type of catalyst that could help provide cost-effective alternatives to platinum-based ones. However, there are still some aspects of their behavior that are misunderstood. To rectify this, a group of researchers delved into the intricacies of M-N-C catalysts, yielding promising results.

Coordination polymer crystals show promise as a new generation of light sources for industry and medicine.

A new method allows scientists to gather enough information about the properties of metals to enable the prediction of the properties of new materials.

Vaccines and therapies based on messenger RNA could be more readily delivered due to a non-toxic polymer that protects RNA and controls its release inside cells.

AI records rare bird footage, Lighting up IoT and smart cities, Crystal language designs new materials, Detecting toxins with mobile phones, and Dragonfly wings for better aerodynamics. Plus join us for SciCom coffee. Read all in the latest Editor's Choice.

Perovskite oxides have been touted as an alternative to noble metal catalysts. However, their application is still hampered by their poor electrical conductivity and low specific surface area. Now, a research team has created a new method that improves this, facilitating their application in hydrogen fuel cells.

A trained AI system learns to design cellular materials with specific target properties for a wide range of potential uses, including tissue engineering and energy storage.

A new coating for tiny vaccine carriers allows vaccines to remain in the body for longer.

A key innovation in photonic (light-driven) microelectromechanical components could transform computing technology, increasing efficiency while reducing power consumption and chip size.

Asia Research News monitors the latest research news in Asia. Some highlights that caught our attention this week are how exercising to music can help cognitive function, a material inspired by a mythological creature, and choking cancer cells using calcium.

A collaborative group of researchers has potentially developed a means of controlling spin waves by creating a hexagonal pattern of copper disks on a magnetic insulator. The breakthrough is expected to lead to greater efficiency and miniaturization of communication devices in fields such as artificial intelligence and automation technology.

Carbon nanostructures could become easier to design and synthesize thanks to a machine learning method that predicts how they grow on metal surfaces. The new approach, developed by researchers at Japan’s Tohoku University and China’s Shanghai Jiao Tong University, will make it easier to exploit the unique chemical versatility of carbon nanotechnology.

Asia Research News monitors the latest research news in Asia. Some highlights that caught our attention this week are a closer step towards artificial spider silk, rocks made from plastic, and why a flightless dinosaur developed small wings.

- Professor Kwon Hyuk-jun’s research team at DGIST develops a low-temperature solution process through exothermic response-induced combustion synthesis and implements synapse-simulating non-volatile semiconductor memory - It is expected to be applied to next-generation computing systems because of its superb durability and data storage capabilities even in high temperature

- DGIST Prof. Park Jin-hee and her team detected unknown sample components by analyzing color change patterns and developed a technology that allows analyzing concentrated amounts through a mobile phone camera - Expected to secure source technologies and open new avenues in the environmental sensor field

A team of researchers have opened new possibilities in bioanalytical application by developing a microfluidic device that allows for the precise and efficient manipulation of fluids in three-dimensional microscale environments.

Scientists are eager to harness the unique electrical properties of topological magnets for advancing thermoelectric materials. A collaborative research group has successfully induced positive and negative polarities, unlocking the potential for generating thermoelectric energy from materials with topological magnet properties.

Asia Research News monitors the latest research news in Asia. Some highlights that caught our attention this week are watching plants warn each other of danger, how even “harmless” addictions can have a serious side effects, and how to clear roads and railways faster using gold nanorods.

Researchers at Tohoku University have developed guidelines for a single-nanometer magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ), allowing for performance tailoring to meet the requirements of diverse applications, ranging from AI/IoT to automobiles and space technologies.

A research group led by Osaka Metropolitan University has discovered significant nonreciprocal optical absorption of LiNiPO4, referred to as the optical diode effect, in which divalent nickel (Ni2+) ions are responsible for magnetism, by passing light at shortwave infrared wavelengths used in optical communications. Furthermore, they have uncovered that it is possible to switch the optical diode effect by applying a magnetic field. This is a step forward in the development of an innovative optical isolator that is more compact and can control light propagation, replacing the conventional optical isolators with complex structures

Research by Assistant Professor Edison Ang Huixiang and his team from National Institute of Education/Nanyang Technological University Singapore

Unleashing stem cells from dog urine, Electronic Tongue, Tapping into human motion energy, How neurons network, and A radical use for plastic bags. Plus Communicating science two decades on. Read all in the latest Editor's Choice.

Asia Research News monitors the latest research news in Asia. Some highlights that caught our attention this week are how a King Kongesque ape went extinct, how antibodies can make you dizzy, and a material that can break down harmful chemicals using the sun.

An international research group has engineered a novel high-strength flexible device by combining piezoelectric composites with unidirectional carbon fiber. The new device transforms kinetic energy from the human motion into electricity, providing an efficient and reliable means for high-strength and self-powered sensors.

Identifying low-cost metal oxide electrocatalysts is essential to help us wean ourselves off fossil fuels. Yet doing so is a time-consuming process, with lots of trial and error required. A group of researchers has explored how data mining can be employed to help speed up this process.

A new study have compared the reinforcing efficiency of pineapple leaf fiber (PALF) and cultivated flax fiber in poly(butylene succinate) composites. PALF, a less explored but potentially sustainable alternative, outperformed flax at 20 wt.%, showcasing its potential in high-performance bio-composites and aligning with environmental goals.

Using conventional X-rays and lasers to detect the atomic state of hydrogen is challenging, given its small size. A group of researchers may have overcome this barrier by unveiling a new visualization technique that employs an optical microscope and polyaniline to paint a better picture of how hydrogen behaves in metals.

SUTD researchers developed an advanced system of breast cancer cell detection with improved speed and sensitivity, using a viral mechanism to enhance the tool’s sensing accuracy.

Riding the momentum of the environment-aware agenda, SUTD researchers were part of an international collaboration that developed a sustainable approach to discover and identify materials for next-generation electronics.