Research Highlights in 2009

A new porous electrode can greatly improve the performance of solid oxide fuel cells.

Engineered polymer spheres deliver drugs only under the conditions found inside cells to minimize negative effects to the body.

Scientists have found a simple way to confine electrons in periodic bunches of smaller than ten nanometers along the length of a carbon nanotube.

One-step synthesis of nanoparticle clusters offers a new route to printable silver films.

Microscopic characterization of cobalt-doped zinc-oxide nanoparticles provides strong evidence of intrinsic ferromagnetism.

In iron-based superconductors, superconductivity occurs in small nanometer-sized ‘islands’.

Color-changing gold nanoparticles reveal the presence of melamine in tainted milk.

The efficiency of organic dye-sensitized solar cells is improved by encapsulating the dye molecule in a cyclodextrin molecule adsorbed onto an electron capture material.

The application of local pressure through the tip of a scanning probe microscope significantly enhances imaging resolution.

Composites containing cubic boron nitride and ceramics show potential for use in cutting tools for hard materials.

Organic light-emitting diodes simulate daylight from all times of the day by modulating the driving voltage.

The anomalous thermal expansion of water is found to be due to uniform changes in bond angles rather than localized changes in structural order.

Spin transistors with power gain at room temperature could lead to spin logic-based microprocessors.

Stacking three sheets of graphene together yields a material with unique electronic properties.

A surface can be made to adhere or repel water simply by changing its temperature.

Molecular machines take shape with new ultra-small gear-shaped devices.

A thin film of cobalt nanosheets could potentially lead to ultrahigh-capacity magnetic storage media.

Below two micrometers, the length of metallic carbon nanotubes is found to affect their electronic properties.

Magnetization experiments reveal both ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic interactions in graphene.

Light–matter interactions at the surface of 3D photonic crystals promise novel applications.