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Volume 5 Issue 4, April 2010

Superconductivity is a macroscopic quantum phenomenon that occurs when a material is cooled below a critical transition temperature. Much research has focused on increasing this transition temperature and making longer superconducting wires for applications. But how small can a sample of superconducting material be and still display superconductivity? To address this question Saw-Wai Hla and co-workers deposited (BETS)2GaCl4 molecules on a silver surface and used scanning tunnelling spectroscopy to examine the molecular islands and chains that formed. They observed a superconducting gap below about 10 K. Moreover, the size of the gap depended on the length of the chains and could still be seen in chains that contained just four molecules. In this scanning tunnelling microscope image, which measures 18.5 nm across, the silver surface is mostly blue/purple and six chains of molecules (orange) can be seen.

Cover design by Karen Moore

Letter p261; News & Views p244

Editorial

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Thesis

  • It is 20 years since researchers at IBM spelt out the name of their company with atoms. Chris Toumey looks at the story behind a landmark in nanotechnology.

    • Chris Toumey
    Thesis
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Research Highlights

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News & Views

  • Complex nanoscale patterns can be generated by combining the self-assembly of block-copolymer thin films with minimal top-down templating.

    • Justin E. Poelma
    • Craig J. Hawker
    News & Views
  • In an experimental tour de force involving ultrahigh vacuum and low-temperature scanning probe techniques, researchers have created organic nanostructures that show evidence of unconventional superconductivity.

    • James S. Brooks
    News & Views
  • Electron tunnelling can be used to selectively identify the basic constituents of DNA, indicating that the approach could be used to efficiently read a DNA sequence.

    • Thomas Thundat
    News & Views
  • Computer simulations have shown that hydrophobic nanoparticles encapsulated in a deformable shell can repair surfaces in a manner that is similar to the way white blood cells work in the body.

    • Scott R. White
    • Philippe H. Geubelle
    News & Views
  • Salt water can be separated into desalted and saltier streams by a nanochannel-based device that requires only low-voltage electricity.

    • Mark A. Shannon
    News & Views
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Letter

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Article

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