Volume 5 Issue 8, August 2010

30-inch graphene films have been manufactured on a continuous basis with a roll-to-roll process and used to make a touch-screen device.

Using temperature-sensitive ion channels and magnetic nanoparticles attached to membranes of cells, the electrical activity in neurons can be controlled by an externally applied magnetic field.

Freeze-dried cellulose nanofibres from bacteria can act as templates for making highly flexible, porous and lightweight magnetic aerogels and stiff magnetic nanopaper.

Linearly polarized light that does not possess any angular momentum can be used to rotate a gold nanostructure that can, in turn, rotate a much larger silica microdisk.

Nanomaterials have recently been developed for various oral health-care products, and this Progress Article outlines the development of suitable nanomaterials for the prevention and treatment of tooth decay.

Linearly polarized light can be used to generate a rotational force in a plasmonic nanostructure that is capable of rotating a much larger microdisk.

Graphene films with electrical and optical characteristics superior to indium tin oxide are produced in a roll-to-roll process and used to construct devices with flexible touch-screen panels.

Computer simulations show that the shape and initial orientation of nanoparticles on a lipid bilayer can affect the way they penetrate it, thus offering new insights for the design of nanocarriers for various biological applications.

Bacterial cellulose is used as templates to make highly flexible and lightweight magnetic aerogels and stiff magnetic nanopaper that are useful as responsive actuators and functional magnetic materials.

Hysteresis-free operation of carbon nanotube transistors in ambient air is demonstrated by using self-aligned on-chip shadow masks to suspend ultraclean nanotubes from needle-like metallic contacts.

Electrons confined to a ferromagnetic metallic nanoparticle in a semiconductor matrix have spin-relaxation times two orders of magnitude longer than any previously measured in a metal, with potential applications for spintronic devices.

Carbon nanotube tips containing imprints within a non-conducting polymer coating can detect proteins with high sensitivity, offering a label-free alternative to sensors based on biomolecule recognition.

Radiofrequency magnetic-field heating of nanoparticles can activate temperature-sensitive ion channels, offering an alternative to optical methods for stimulating cells remotely.

Carbon-black nanoparticles activated by femtosecond laser pulses can facilitate cell uptake of small molecules, proteins and DNA while maintaining high cell viability.

A technique that employs surface-diffusion-mediated deposition has been used to form ‘soft’ electronic contacts on molecular layers with excellent yields and reproducibility.

Dithiocarbamates are used to form contacts between metal electrodes and molecules, producing molecular junctions that display a low contact resistance and good thermal stability.