University Research | U.S. DOE Office of Science (SC)

Atomic Force Microscope Reveals Chemical Ghosts

A team of chemists and physicists from the University of California, Berkeley, and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory has taken snapshots of two molecules reacting on the surface of a catalyst, and found intermediate structures lasting for the 20 minutes or so it takes to snap a photo.

UCI Chemists Create Battery Technology with Off-the-Charts Charging Capacity

University of California, Irvine researchers have invented nanowire-based battery material that can be recharged hundreds of thousands of times, moving us closer to a battery that would never require replacement.

UT Researcher Sheds Light on 'Cosmic Dark Ages,' Re-Ionization

A team from the University of Texas at Austin are creating a massive simulation of the birth of the universe on the Titan supercomputer cluster housed at the Oak Ridge Leadership Computing Facility. The simulation spans over 300 million cubic light years on a grid made up of 4,096 cells on each axis — over 69 billion cells in total.

Biomass Blues: Breaking Up Not So Hard To Do

Using a chemical crowbar – actually, a solvent – made from the very organic matter it deconstructs, a University of Wisconsin—Madison spinoff business is advancing an audacious effort to convert biomass into three profitable streams of industrial chemicals.

New Method Stabilizes and Enhances Phosphorene

A team at Northwestern University has found that a covalently bonded, single-molecule-thick layer of aluminum oxide prevents phosphorene from degrading and also improves its electronic properties for possible use in transistors, optoelectronics, sensors, or even batteries.

Exploring Phosphorene, A Promising New Material

A team including researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) has developed a new method to quickly and accurately determine that orientation using the interactions between light and electrons within phosphorene and other atoms-thick crystals of black phosphorus.

The Light Stuff: A Brand-New Way to Produce Electron Spin Currents

Scientists led by Mingzhong Wu, professor of physics in CSU’s College of Natural Sciences, are the first to demonstrate using non-polarized light to produce what’s called a spin voltage – a unit of power produced from the quantum spinning of an individual electron.

UCI Maps Methane Leaks Across Los Angeles Basin

Hundreds of methane-emitting hot spots have been identified across the Los Angeles Basin, including a “clean ports” truck refueling facility near the Port of Long Beach, power plants, water treatment facilities, and cattle in Chino, according to new findings by the University of California, Irvine.

Hydrogen Peroxide Extends its Reach

A group of researchers from the United Kingdom and the United States has developed a method of producing hydrogen peroxide on demand through a simple, one-step process.

Physicists Create Magnetic 2-D Metal in Artificial Oxide Material

An international research group led by physicists at the University of Arkansas created magnetic two-dimensional metal in an artificial oxide material that could be used to make better transistors.

How Plants Protect Photosynthesis From Oxygen

New work from a team at Carnegie Science identified a protein needed for assembling the photosynthetic apparatus that may help us understand the history of photosynthesis back in the early days of life on Earth, a time when oxygen was not abundant in the atmosphere.

Collaborative Study of Tundra Soil Demonstrates Vulnerability of Ecosystem to Climate Warming

Findings from one of the first comprehensive field studies by a collaborative team of researchers demonstrate the active layer microbiome of tundra soil was significantly altered after only 1.5 years of experimental warming—a rapid response demonstrating high sensitivity of this ecosystem to warming.