2015 | U.S. DOE Office of Science (SC)

Graphene Nanoribbon Finding Could Lead to Faster, More Efficient Electronics

University of Wisconsin-Madison engineers have discovered a way to grow graphene nanoribbons with desirable semiconducting properties directly on a conventional germanium semiconductor wafer.

Molecular Scientists Unexpectedly Produce New Type of Glass

UChicago researchers co-led experiments that produced glass with an organized molecular structure, a material previously thought to be entirely amorphous and random.

Challenge to Classic Theory of 'Organic' Solar Cells Could Improve Efficiency

New research findings at Purdue University contradict a fundamental assumption about the functioning of "organic" solar cells made of low-cost plastics, suggesting a new strategy for creating inexpensive solar technology.

Nanoscale Solution to the Big Problem of Overheating in Microelectronic Devices

A research team led by Matthew Mecklenburg of University of Southern California (USC) and Chris Regan of University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), presented findings that are a major step forward in understanding temperatures in microelectronic devices.

How Iron Feels the Heat

Recent work at Caltech in the Division of Engineering and Applied Science provides evidence for how iron's magnetism plays a role in the arrangement of when the iron atoms changes several times before melting—an understanding that could help researchers develop better and stronger steel.

Rutgers-Led Research Team Makes Major Stride in Explaining 30-Year-Old ‘Hidden Order’ Physics Mystery

Findings may lead to new kinds of materials for electronics and superconducting magnets.

UCLA Physicists Offer a Solution to the Puzzle of the Origin of Matter in the Universe

Alexander Kusenko, a professor of physics and astronomy in the UCLA College, and colleagues propose that the matter-antimatter asymmetry could be related to the Higgs boson particle.

High-temperature Superconductor 'Fingerprint' Found

Theorists and experimentalists working together at Cornell may have found the answer to a major challenge in condensed matter physics: identifying the smoking gun of why “unconventional” superconductivity occurs.

3D 'Pop-up' Silicon Structures: New Process Transforms Planar Materials into 3D Microarchitectures

Researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign describe a unique process for geometrically transforming two dimensional (2D) micro/nanostructures into extended 3D layouts by exploiting mechanics principles similar to those found in children’s ‘pop-up’ books.

Unraveling Root Growth Control Network

Researchers at UC Davis and the University of Massachusetts Amherst have for the first time described part of the network of genetic controls that allows a plant to grow.

Iowa State Nuclear Physicist Makes the Case for Studying the Strong Nuclear Force

Iowa State's John Lajoie recently made the case for nuclear physics research and the multi-million-dollar experiments and huge collaborations it takes to make discoveries.

“Assassin” Targets Supernovae in Our Neighborhood of the Universe

While many astronomical collaborations use powerful telescopes to target individual objects in the distant universe, a new project at The Ohio State University is doing something radically different: using small telescopes to study a growing portion of the nearby universe all at once.