Nanotechnology News - November 2007 Archives

Nano-sized voltmeter measures electric fields deep within cells (11/30/2007)

A wireless, nano-scale voltmeter developed at the University of Michigan is overturning conventional wisdom about the physical environment inside cells. It may someday help researchers tackle such tricky medical issues as why cancer cells grow out of control and how damaged nerves might be mended. ...> Full Article

Researchers outline structure of largest nonvirus particle ever crystallized (11/27/2007)

Findings will make it easier to engineer nanoparticle containers for use in targeted drug therapy ...> Full Article

Remote-control nanoparticles deliver drugs directly into tumors (11/22/2007)

Scientists have devised remotely controlled nanoparticles that, when pulsed with an electromagnetic field, release drugs to attack tumors. The innovation, reported in the Nov. 15 online issue of Advanced Materials, could lead to the improved diagnosis and targeted treatment of cancer. ...> Full Article

UD teams with Koreans on nanotechnology research (11/22/2007)

A team that includes two faculty affiliated with UD's Center for Composite Materials (CCM) and researchers from the Korea Institute of Materials (KIMS) has been selected to receive a $5 million grant from the Korea Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) for work in the area of nanotechnology. Tsu-Wei Chou, Pierre S. du Pont Chair of Engineering, and Erik Thostenson, assistant professor of mechanical engineering, will lead the UD effort in the nine-year program. ...> Full Article

Nature and electronics meet: How to make a tiny wire and connect it to DNA (11/21/2007)

Using the structure of DNA as electrical circuitry in computer chips may shrink the costs of production in the field of nano-electronics. ...> Full Article

Researchers control nature's self-organization (11/16/2007)

Atom vacancies in a monatomic layer of gallium atoms on a silicon surface are shown to 'selforganize' into a nanoscale pattern of almost perfectly straight lines. ...> Full Article

Pioneering research seeks to harness force of nature (11/15/2007)

A pioneering team from the University of Leicester is seeking to harness a force of nature- only measured accurately a decade ago - to help develop the technology of tomorrow. ...> Full Article

Student photovoltaic initiatives energizing Berkeley campus (11/11/2007)

Harnessing renewable energy from the sun is a research challenge firing student interest across the campus ...> Full Article

A Giant Step toward Infinitesimal Machinery (11/9/2007)

What are the ultimate limits to miniaturization? ...> Full Article

Novel Nanostructure Response Opens Possibilities for Electrical Devices (11/8/2007)

A University of Arkansas physicist and her colleagues have examined dielectric susceptibilities of nanostructures (that is the response of their polarization to electric fields) and found novel, seemingly contradictory properties that may change how such materials can be used by scientists and engineers to build electronic devices. ...> Full Article

Gold nanorods shed light on new approach to fighting cancer (11/7/2007)

Researchers have shown how tiny "nanorods" of gold can be triggered by a laser beam to blast holes in the membranes of tumor cells, setting in motion a complex biochemical mechanism that leads to a tumor cell's self-destruction. ...> Full Article

Nanotube forests grown on silicon chips for future computers, electronics (11/6/2007)

Engineers have shown how to grow forests of tiny cylinders called carbon nanotubes onto the surfaces of computer chips to enhance the flow of heat at a critical point where the chips connect to cooling devices called heat sinks. ...> Full Article

Research predicts size-induced transition to nanoscale half-metallicity (11/5/2007)

How big does a cluster of metal atoms actually have to be before it starts acting like a metal: ductile, malleable and a conductor? ...> Full Article

New Facility Expands Yale Capability for Fabricating Nano-Devices (11/5/2007)

Yale dedicated the new Center for Microelectronics Materials and Structures Clean Room, an $8 million, 2,600-square-foot facility for fabricating micro- and nano-scale devices for engineering research. ...> Full Article

Researchers works toward 'smart' optical microchips (11/5/2007)

A new theory developed at MIT could lead to "smart" optical microchips that adapt to different wavelengths of light, potentially advancing telecommunications, spectroscopy and remote sensing. ...> Full Article

Atomic-level microscopy now 100 times faster (11/4/2007)

Using an existing technique in a novel way, researchers have made the scanning tunneling microscope (STM) -- which can image individual atoms on a surface -- at least 100 times faster. ...> Full Article

Radio Waves Fire Up Nanotubes Embedded in Tumors, Destroying Liver Cancer (11/4/2007)

Cancer cells treated with carbon nanotubes can be destroyed by non-invasive radio waves that heat up the nanotubes while sparing untreated tissue, a research team led by scientists at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center and Rice University has shown in preclinical experiments. ...> Full Article

Researchers develop 'tractor beam' for manipulation of cells on silicon (11/4/2007)

Tool could manipulate tiny objects on a chip ...> Full Article

Engineers Teach Nature to 'Grow' High-Tech Components (11/3/2007)

Computers don't grow on trees, but with a little prodding from engineers, nature can produce computer components. ...> Full Article

New Mini-Sensor May Have Biomedical and Security Applications (11/3/2007)

A tiny sensor that can detect magnetic field changes as small as 70 femtoteslas-equivalent to the brain waves of a person daydreaming-has been demonstrated at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). The sensor could be battery-operated and could reduce the costs of non-invasive biomagnetic measurements such as fetal heart monitoring. The device also may have applications such as homeland security screening for explosives. ...> Full Article

Scientists have used elastic carbon nanotubes to stop bullets penetrating material (11/2/2007)

Bulletproof jackets do not turn security guards, police officers and armed forces into Robocops, repelling the force of bullets in their stride. New research in carbon nanotechnology however could give those in the line of fire materials which can bounce bullets without a trace of damage. ...> Full Article

Researchers Create First Fully Functional Nanotube Radio (11/2/2007)

Make way for the real nanopod and make room in the Guinness World Records. A team of researchers with the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) and the University of California at Berkeley have created the first fully functional radio from a single carbon nanotube, which makes it by several orders of magnitude the smallest radio ever made. ...> Full Article

Could Nanotechnology Revolutionize Natural Gas Industry? (11/1/2007)

Nanotechnology could revolutionize the natural gas industry across the whole lifecycle from extraction to pollution reduction or be an enormous missed opportunity, claim two industry experts writing in Inderscience's International Journal of Nanotechnology. They suggest that nanotechnology could help us extract more fuel and feedstock hydrocarbons from dwindling resources. However, industry inertia and a lack of awareness of the benefits could mean a missed opportunity. ...> Full Article