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Volume 3 Issue 11, November 2008

Nanoparticle superlattices are promising for many applications, but conventional patterning methods are not suited to producing these structures. Dan Luo and co-workers have now overcome this problem with a process that involves moulding liquid microdroplets containing DNA-capped gold nanoparticles. They use a combination of moulding pressure and mould geometry to spatially control the de-wetting process that is central to the formation of the superlattices. The image on the cover is based on false-colour SEM micrographs of circular and hexagonal double-corral superlattice structures. The lines in the micrographs are about 70 nm wide.

Cover design by Karen Moore

Article p682

Editorial

  • Publishing a paper in a journal has traditionally marked the end of a research project, but increasing numbers of academics are becoming interested in the publication process itself.

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Commentary

  • International standards have a crucial role in supporting global trade and protecting human health and the environment. US government agencies and the private sector must become more involved in international efforts to establish such standards, and representatives from all nations must ensure that all standards are based on sound science.

    • Vladimir Murashov
    • John Howard
    Commentary
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Thesis

  • Do molecules have beauty? Is it possible to fall in love with one? Based on what Harry Kroto and others have written about buckminsterfullerene, Chris Toumey thinks that the answer to both these questions is yes.

    • Chris Toumey
    Thesis
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Research Highlights

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News & Views

  • Two teams of researchers have exploited defects in diamond to demonstrate a new approach to magnetic sensing and imaging at the nanoscale.

    • Christian Degen
    News & Views
  • As the evolution of new strains of bacteria that are resistant to antibiotics continues, a nanomechanical approach to understanding the interactions between them could help efforts to develop new antibiotics.

    • François Huber
    • Hans Peter Lang
    • Christoph Gerber
    News & Views
  • A new mathematical approach could lead to a better understanding of how events at the cellular level are related to the way the body functions.

    • Marco Saraniti
    News & Views
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Erratum

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Letter

  • The development of molecular devices will require functional molecules that can be integrated into larger architectures and addressed selectively. Now it has been shown that molecular switches, adsorbed in a homogeneous two-dimensional layer, can be collectively switched with spatial selectivity. The probability of a molecule switching is controlled by the surrounding molecules and the supporting surface.

    • Carlo Dri
    • Maike V. Peters
    • Leonhard Grill
    Letter
  • The first observation of saturating transistor characteristics in a graphene field-effect transistor is reported. The saturation velocity is attributed to scattering by interfacial phonons in the silicon dioxide layer supporting the graphene channels. These results demonstrate the feasibility of graphene devices for analogue and radio-frequency circuit applications without the need for bandgap engineering.

    • Inanc Meric
    • Melinda Y. Han
    • Kenneth L. Shepard
    Letter
  • Confining light below the diffraction limit is likely to be a feature of future optical data transmission systems, but it will be necessary to integrate such waveguides with diffraction-limited components. The coupling of light from a polymer optical waveguide into multiple silver nanowire plasmonic waveguides shows that this will be possible.

    • Anna L. Pyayt
    • Benjamin Wiley
    • Larry Dalton
    Letter
  • Polymer–silica nanocomposite gels can be used to culture cells in a three-dimensional environment, offering a way to propagate cells without using enzymes to dissociate them from the surface of conventional cell culture flasks. This approach relies on the dependence of the viscosity of the gel on stress

    • Y. Shona Pek
    • Andrew C. A. Wan
    • Jackie Y. Ying
    Letter
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Article

  • A combination of scanning transmission electron microscopy and electron energy loss spectroscopy has been used to produce and analyse images of free-standing graphene sheets with atomic resolution. The influence of microstructural peculiarities on the stability of the sheets and the evolution and interaction of point defects were also explored.

    • Mhairi H. Gass
    • Ursel Bangert
    • A. K. Geim
    Article
  • Nanoparticle superlattices are promising for many applications but the de-wetting processes normally used to produce these systems are not compatible with conventional patterning methods. Researchers have now developed an approach for patterning such superlattices that involves moulding microdroplets containing the nanoparticles and spatially regulating their de-wetting process.

    • Wenlong Cheng
    • Nokyoung Park
    • Dan Luo
    Article
  • The alarming growth of the antibiotic-resistant superbugs has created a demand for sensors that can investigate antibiotics and their modes of action. The label-free detection of the antibiotic vancomycin binding to mucopeptides on cantilever arrays, with 10 nM sensitivity and at clinically relevant concentrations in blood serum, could lead to improved biosensors and a better understanding of antibiotic drug action in bacteria.

    • Joseph Wafula Ndieyira
    • Moyu Watari
    • Rachel A. McKendry
    Article
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