2017 | U.S. DOE Office of Science (SC)

Newly Discovered Semiconductor Dynamics May Help Improve Energy Efficiency

Researchers examining the flow of electricity through semiconductors have uncovered another reason these materials seem to lose their ability to carry a charge as they become more densely “doped.”

Making Better Material for Fuel Cells

University of Delaware researchers make material to make fuel cells more durable and less expensive.

Rice U. Solubility Study Could Impact Energy, Biology, Environment

Rice University chemical engineers have used the most realistic computer model yet devised to simulate the precise atomic and molecular interactions that come into play when water mixes with alkanes, a family of hydrocarbons that includes methane, propane and other products refined from petroleum and natural gas, such as paraffin.

Coral Skeletons May Resist the Effects of Acidifying Oceans

New research from Pupa Gilbert, a professor of physics at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, provides evidence that at least one species of coral, Stylophora pistillata, and possibly others, build their hard, calcium carbonate skeletons faster, and in bigger pieces, than previously thought.

Triple-Layer Catalyst Does Double Duty

Splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen to produce clean energy can be simplified with a single catalyst developed by scientists at Rice University and the University of Houston.

New Computational Model of Chemical Building Blocks May Help Explain the Origins of Life

A research team from the Stony Brook University Laufer Center for Physical and Quantitative Biology and the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have developed a computational model explaining how certain molecules fold and bind together to grow longer and more complex, leading from simple chemicals to primitive biological molecules.

New Research at Pitt Engineering Reveals Potential for Synthetic Materials Systems that Can “Count” and Sense their Size

Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh’s Swanson School of Engineering have utilized computational modeling to mimic such quorum sensing behavior in synthetic materials, which could lead to devices with the ability for self-recognition and self-regulation.

University Researchers Contribute to DUNE, the World's Biggest Neutrino Experiment

A large international team of researchers — including Kansas State University scientists — is turning to tiny particles to address big questions about dark matter, black holes and the origins of the universe.

An Experiment Proposed by Stanford Theorists Finds Evidence for the Majorana Fermion, a Particle that’s its Own Antiparticle

In a discovery that concludes an 80-year quest, Stanford and University of California researchers found evidence of particles that are their own antiparticles. These 'Majorana fermions’ could one day help make quantum computers more robust.

DOE Funds Major Bioenergy Research Center at Illinois Through iSEE, IGB

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is doubling down on energy research at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, funding a multimillion-dollar Bioenergy Research Center to provide scientific breakthroughs for a new generation of sustainable, cost-effective biofuels and bioproducts.

ISU Physics Professor Ed Tatar Working on Mega-Science Neutrino Experiment

Idaho State University physics Professor Ed Tatar and his students are participating in a global mega-science experiment involving 1,000 other researchers from 30 countries who are studying neutrinos, which are subatomic particles with most unusual properties.

Researchers Find Path to Discovering New Topological Materials, Holding Promise for Technological Applications

An international team of researchers has found a way to determine whether a crystal is a topological insulator — and to predict crystal structures and chemical compositions in which new ones can arise.