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Conventional sensors consume power continuously to monitor the environment, even when there is no relevant data to be detected, limiting their battery lifetime and increasing the cost of deployment and maintenance. Now, Rinaldi and co-workers have developed a digitizing sensor capable of detecting and discriminating an event of interest through its infrared spectral signature, while consuming zero power in standby. The cover image shows a false-colour scanning electron microscope image of this zero-power sensor, consisting of micromechanical photoswitch contacts and an infrared-absorbing plasmonic head.
Outreach activities, like those related to National Nanotechnology Day, contribute to building a science culture, narrowing the gap between science and the public.
The unique photoresponse of a porous silicon nanowire can be harnessed to make a highly efficient photon-gated transistor with an on–off ratio comparable to that of a conventional electronic switch.
A thermally activated micromechanical switch delivers an electrical readout signal only when irradiated by a narrowband mid-infrared light, thanks to a metamaterial element that converts light into heat.
The use of time-resolved X-ray microscopy allows a direct visualization of the magnetization switching for nanomagnets under the effect of spin–orbit torques.
Phase-coherent caloritronics is an emerging field of nanoscience based on the possibility to control and manipulate heat currents thanks to the long-range phase coherence of the superconducting condensate
The electric field generated by a gate electrode is exploited to trigger a reversible ferromagnetic–paramagnetic phase transition in a magnetic topological insulator close to a quantum critical point.
Coplanar photonic bandgap resonators are used to implement an all-electrical method for controlling neutral 31P and 75As donor nuclear spins in silicon.
Arrayed nanochannels can be used to controllably transfect and reprogram tissues in vivo for applications in regenerative medicine and cell-based therapies.
Time-resolved X-ray microscopy reveals the mechanism and speed of current-induced magnetization switching of Co/Pt dots under the combined effect of spin-orbit torques and Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya interaction.
Lithium alloy nanoparticles are encased inside few-layer graphene to yield a chemically stable, high-capacity anode with promising performance in a full-cell configuration.
Localized surface plasmon resonance can be used to control the energy flow in plasmonic core-shell Ag–Pt nanocubes and excite energetic charge carriers in the thin Pt shell, which can then drive CO oxidation.
A proof-of-principle study shows that electromagnetic field-based in vivo lineage conversion can be used as a therapeutic strategy for the treatment of neurodegenerative disorders.
Universities and institutions in the United States are getting ready to celebrate nanotechnology and its achievements for National Nanotechnology Day. Lisa Friedersdorf, Quinn Spadola and Brendan Ryan share students' plans for the occasion.