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Some of the most famous images in nanoscience and technology have been produced by scanning probe microscopes but, as Chris Toumey explains, there is much more to these images than meets the eye.
The discovery of carbon nanotubes by Sumio Iijima in 1991 is one of the landmarks in the history of nanotechnology. Nature Nanotechnology spoke to him about the events leading up to the discovery, possible applications of nanotubes and his attitude to research.
Researchers have shown that it is possible to control the coupling between two quantum dots in a semiconducting nanowire, and also to count the charges on these dots with a third quantum dot in a different nanowire.
The combination of two scanning probe microscopy techniques has led to a label-free method of detecting charged molecules at the nanoscale and offers a general approach to biosensing with improved resolution, sensitivity and speed.
Researchers have combined carbon nanotubes and nanoporous cellulose to make lithium-ion batteries and supercapacitors that are both lighter and more flexible than existing devices.
Carbon nanoparticles are a by-product of making carbon nanotubes in an arc melter and have potentially useful optical properties. A recent discovery shows that these particles can be obtained by simply lighting a candle.
It is possible to modify the electronic structure of a naturally patterned gold surface in potentially useful ways by allowing layers of silver or copper atoms to self-assemble into arrays of nanostructures.