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FREE ACCESS to MRS Bulletin Special Issue—
Materials & Engineering: Propelling Innovation
MRS Bulletin celebrates its 40th anniversary with a Special Issue for December 2015 on Materials & Engineering: Propelling Innovation. This issue captures the unique relationship between materials science and engineering—two disciplines that are closely intertwined—and how this relationship continues to grow with the expanding social demand for new products and processes.
Enjoy free access. |
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JMR Paper of the Year Award
Nominate the paper that you feel has been most influential and impactful from the 2015 volume year of Journal of Materials Research! See www.mrs.org/jmr-award for details.
Nomination Deadline: 5:00 pm (ET), January 22. |
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Introducing MRS Advances … First Papers Published!
MRS Advances, a peer-reviewed and online-only multidisciplinary journal devoted to publishing new and emerging materials science, has published its first papers. Learn more about the newly launched journal and how to submit your manuscript here.
Online access to MRS Advances is FREE to MRS Members. Log in and view the first published papers. |
MATERIALS NEWS
Keep up with materials research news through MRS!
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Materials in Focus
Photonic crystal nanolasers shown to be highly sensitive biosensors |
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Move over, ELISA. While the Enzyme-Linked ImmunoSorbent Assay has long been one of the most popular ways of detecting and quantifying the presence of antibodies or antigens in solution, nanolasers may be poised to share the spotlight on the biosensor stage.
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Charge transport measurements suggest new applications for carbon nitrides |
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Polymeric graphitic carbon nitrides are structurally similar to graphene in that both materials are stacked sheets of an aromatic organic polymer. However, recent measurements of charge transport in carbon nitrides show that the materials have electronic properties that are different from those of graphene.
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Artificial skin feels touch, texture, heat, and hears sounds |
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Researchers have made an artificial skin that can detect temperature, pressure, texture, as well as sound. The device is based on flexible microstructured films made of polymers and graphene. It closely mimics the pattern of grooves on human fingertips and the microscopic sensory structures inside human skin.
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Simple “breath figures” method promises low-cost flexible touch sensors |
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Researchers from Stanford University have developed a simple, low-cost fabrication approach to making flexible pressure sensors from biocompatible materials that could enable technologies like touch-sensitive prosthetics and wearable heart monitors.
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Titanium produced with ultrafine-grain strength and coarse-grain ductility |
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If there is one requirement for metals used to make cars, bridges, planes, and buildings, obviously it is that they be strong. As is known, with strength, however, comes a compromise: lower ductility. Because of this, when strong metals fail, they often do so catastrophically and without warning, as happened in 2007, when Minneapolis’ I-35W bridge suddenly collapsed during evening rush hour.
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Selective area epitaxial growth of oxide film on GaN surface |
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An understanding of the surface chemistry and morphology of dielectric films that grow on wide bandgap semiconductors is fundamental for the precise control of interfaces and for the development of novel device structures. Researchers have previously used various methods of selective area epitaxy (SAE) for the deposition of materials on surfaces. Now researchers have introduced a new SAE method for the local growth of MgO thin films laterally on a gallium nitride (GaN) III–V semiconductor surface based on surface chemistry modification. |
Clever strategy yields hydrogel superglue |
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Researchers have devised a simple strategy to attach hydrogels that are mostly water to solid surfaces like metal, glass, and plastic. Until now, it has been impossible to get a tough bond between water-laden hydrogels and nonporous surfaces.
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Nano Focus: Block copolymers enable nano-scale patterning of metal oxides |
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The size scale for semiconductor components such as metal oxide is soon expected to dip below the 10-nm-size range. Current top-down fabrication techniques such as lithography are being stretched to their limits. A bottom-up approach, such as self-assembly of a block copolymer (BCP) avoids some of the challenges inherent to lithography; however, current BCP materials and processes cannot produce ultrasmall features.
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Nano Focus: Structural details elicit color variety in photonic balls |
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The bright, iridescent hues of a monarch butterfly’s wing or a peacock’s tail result from the micro- and nanoscale structure. Color arises from structural periodicities that match the wavelength of visible light, and this is called structural color. Along with pigmentation and bioluminescence, structural color represents one of the three main routes by which nature creates color. On the other hand, the ability to fabricate new photoactive materials with the desired color is a highly sought-after goal in materials science. Now researchers have identified and controlled three modes of light interaction with “photonic balls” that they were able to precisely tailor in size using microfluidics technology.
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People in Focus
American Academy of Arts and Sciences Awards Rumford Prize to Two Leading Scientists
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences has named physicist Federico Capasso and electrical engineer Alfred Cho as the recipients of the 2015 Rumford Prize in recognition of their contributions to the field of laser technology. At Bell Laboratories in 1994, Federico Capasso and Alfred Cho invented the quantum cascade (QC) laser, a concept first proposed by Rudolf Kazarinov and Robert Suris in 1971. A revolutionary new light source, the QC laser is widely used as a source of radiation for chemical sensing and spectroscopy.
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Federico Capasso
Harvard John A. Paulson School
of Engineering and Applied Sciences
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Alfred Cho
Alcatel-Lucent’s Bell Labs |
Industry Focus
How Ford is innovating with materials science
Henry Ford would be proud that his namesake company is leading the automotive industry’s charge to work advanced materials into vehicles and high-tech systems into factories. It was the founder, after all, who in 1941 introduced the Soybean Car, the world’s first plastic people carrier.
Taking lessons in engineering from tuna
Nature, it seems, knows a lot more than we do—now marine researchers at Rolls-Royce are taking a quantum leap to discover what it can teach us. The bluefin tuna attains speeds of 110 kph yet its metabolism can only produce a couple of horsepower of thrust. A human-made equivalent would require more than 100 hp to match the tuna’s performance.
Policy Focus
NSF and NNI present “Generation Nano Challenge”
The National Science Foundation (NSF) and the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) are excited to introduce "Generation Nano: Small Science, Superheroes!" This competition asks high school students to design a costume, gadget, vehicle or other gear for an original superhero that uses technology extrapolated from current nanotechnology research. Winners will receive cash prizes and the opportunity to showcase their creation at the 2016 USA Science & Engineering Festival in Washington, D.C.
For more science policy news, follow @MaterialsSciPol
OF INTEREST TO THE MATERIALS COMMUNITY
Ceramic-matrix composites take the heat
US air carriers consume tens of billions of gallons of fuel a year. Though their fuel consumption dropped 15% between 2000 and 2014, rising oil prices meant that fuel costs increased more than 300% during that time. Even when oil prices drop, airlines still want to improve efficiency.
More
Norway faces windy road to offshore wind
There is little that the world can teach Norway about renewable energy. Around 96% of its electricity already comes from hydropower, and it is so cheap that some is exported to its neighbors, including Germany and Denmark. But there is limited capacity to building more hydropower in Norway, according to Jon Samseth, adjunct professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology in Trondheim.
More
MEETINGS UPDATE
Critical Meeting Deadlines
2016 MRS Spring Meeting & Exhibit
March 28-April 1, 2016
Phoenix, Arizona
exhibit opportunities available |
SAVE THE DATE
Preregistration Opens Mid-January
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74th Device Research Conference (DRC 2016)
June 19-22, 2016
Newark, Delaware
exhibit opportunities available |
SAVE THE DATE
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58th Electronic Materials Conference
(58th EMC)
June 22-24, 2016
Newark, Delaware
exhibit opportunities available |
CALL FOR PAPERS
Abstract Submission Deadline
—January 29, 2016
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American Conference on Neutron Scattering
(ACNS 2016)
July 10-14, 2016
Long Beach, California
exhibit opportunities available |
SAVE THE DATE
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18th International Conference on Metal Organic Vapor Phase Epitaxy
(ICMOVPE-XVIII)
July 10-15, 2016
San Diego, California
exhibit opportunities available |
CALL FOR PAPERS
Abstract Submission
Deadline
—February 29, 2016
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5th International Conference on Metal-Organic Frameworks & Open Framework Compounds
(MOF 2016)
September 11-15, 2016
Long Beach, California
exhibit opportunities available |
SAVE THE DATE
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International Workshop on Nitride Semiconductors
(IWN 2016)
October 2-7, 2016
Orlando, Florida
exhibit opportunities available |
SAVE THE DATE
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PUBLICATIONS UPDATE
Critical Publications Deadlines
JUST PUBLISHED
Get your free Android App or iOS App for MRS Communications for full mobile access to this journal.
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Materials transform designs and equations into articles. Engineering, in turn, enables this transformation. Advancements in one propel advances in the other, creating new materials and well-integrated technologies. The relationship between materials and applications is the focus of this special issue.
Enjoy Free Access | Video
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Materials & Engineering: Propelling Innovation
V.S. Arunachalam and Gopal R. Rao
Materials and engineering: An evolving landscape
Dipankar Banerjee and James C. Williams
Advanced lightweight materials and manufacturing processes for automotive applications
Alan I. Taub and Alan A. Luo
The energy-storage frontier: Lithium-ion batteries and beyond
George Crabtree, Elizabeth Kócs, and Lynn Trahey
Materials considerations for aerospace applications
R.R. Boyer, J.D. Cotton, M. Mohaghegh, and R.E. Schafrik
At the intersection of materials, engineering, and new business creation
Gregory J. Galvin, Peng Zhou, Timothy J. Davis, Shahyaan Desai, and Shane Collins
Materials in the 21st century: What will we dream up next?
Mark Miodownik
Advertise in MRS Bulletin.
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A selection of papers:
Engineered 2D nanomaterials–protein interfaces for efficient sensors
Kiran Kumar Tadi, Tharangattu N. Narayanan, Sivaram Arepalli, Kaustav Banerjee, Sowmya Viswanathan, Dorian Liepmann, Pulickel M. Ajayan and Venkatesan Renugopalakrishnan
A polydopamine coated polyaniline single wall carbon nanotube composite material as a stable supercapacitor cathode in an organic electrolyte
Xu Wang and Pooi See Lee
Strong visible light emission from silicon-oxycarbide nanowire arrays prepared by electron beam lithography and reactive ion etching
Vasileios Nikas, Natasha Tabassum, Brian Ford, Lloyd Smith, Alain E. Kaloyeros and Spyros Gallis
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From Volume 1721, 2014 MRS Fall Meeting,
Symposium E – Hard-Soft Interfaces in Biological and Bioinspired Materials—Bridging the Gap between Theory and Experiment
Synthesis of Nanoporous Rutile Nanocrystals under Mild Conditions
Kairat Sabyrov, Virany M. Yuwono and R. Lee Penn
From Volume 1723, 2014 MRS Fall Meeting,
Symposium G – Plasma Processing and Diagnostics for Life Sciences
Plasma Deposition of Biomolecules for Enhanced Biomedical Applications
Liam O’Neill, Barry Twomey, Peter Dobbyn and John O’Donoghue
From Volume 1723, 2014 MRS Fall Meeting,
Symposium G – Plasma Processing and Diagnostics for Life Sciences
Comparative Study on the Pulmonary Toxicity of Indium Hydroxide, Indium-Tin Oxide, and Indium Oxide Following Intratracheal Instillations into the Lungs of Rats
Akiyo Tanaka, Miyuki Hirata, Nagisa Matsumura, Kazunori Koga, Masaharu Shiratani and Yutaka Kiyohara
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SCIENCE AS ART
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The Hidden Snowflakes
by Yu-Shiuan Lai,
National Dong Hwa University, Taiwan
SEM image of perovskite halides with snowflakes
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A finalist in the Science as Art competition at the 2015 MRS Spring Meeting
Copyright for all Science as Art images belongs to the Materials Research Society.
To request permission to re-use the images, please contact Anita Miller.
EDITOR'S CHOICE VIDEO
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Materials & Engineering: Propelling Innovation—MRS Bulletin Special Issue
This Special Issue focuses on the intertwining of materials research and engineering applications. |
NEW PRODUCTS FOCUS
| LED Microscope Illuminator |
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Prior Scientific recently announced two additions to their wide range of illumination products for microscopy—the new LDB100F and LDB101F Brightfield LEDs. Using a Brightfield LED with a 550 nanometre flip-in filter in the light path reduces background fluorescence attributed to stray light. The Brightfield LED replaces the standard light source and provides all the advantages of LED illumination in a flexible package that can be fitted to most modern upright and inverted microscope systems. Available in two varieties, the Prior Scientific Brightfield LED can be either used as a stand-alone light source with its own power supply (the LDB101F) or controlled by Prior’s ProScan® III control system (the LDB100F).
Contact: [email protected] or 44-1223-881711 |
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| Programmable Dispenser for Battery Manufacturing |
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Fluid Metering, Inc. recently introduced the new PDS-100 Programmable Dispenser for battery manufacturing process applications requiring precision, maintenance-free fluid control. The PDS-100 is designed for dispensing and metering electrolytes, slurries, and metal forming lubricants used in the manufacture of AA, AAA, C, D, and button cell batteries. The PDS-100 integrates FMI’s patented CeramPump® design with precision programmable stepper motor control. The pump electronics are housed in a rugged anodized aluminum enclosure suitable for desktop or wall mounting and features intuitive front panel programming of dispense and continuous metering modes.
Contact: [email protected] or 516-922-6050 |
To suggest items for inclusion in Industry News and New Products Focus,
please contact Mary Kaufold at 724-779-2755.
ABOUT MATERIALS360®
Materials360 is edited by Judy Meiksin, News Editor, and produced by Joe Yzquierdo, Electronic Communications Assistant, Materials Research Society.
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© Materials Research Society, 2015. All rights reserved. |
