Optical spectroscopy articles within Nature Materials

Featured

• Letter | 13 February 2011

  Scanning tunnelling microscopy and spectroscopy of ultra-flat graphene on hexagonal boron nitride

  Using boron nitride as a substrate for graphene has been suggested as a promising way to reduce the disorder in graphene caused by space fluctuations. It is now shown by scanning tunnelling microscopy that graphene conforms perfectly to boron nitride and the charge fluctuations are minimal compared with the conventionally used substrate, silica. Boron nitride could really be the natural graphene substrate.

  • Jiamin Xue
  • , Javier Sanchez-Yamagishi
  •  & Brian J. LeRoy

• Article | 09 January 2011

  From local structure to nanosecond recrystallization dynamics in AgInSbTe phase-change materials

  Phase-change materials are key components in rewritable optical disks and are promising for non-volatile electronic memories. The very different structure and ultrafast recrystallization dynamics of another class of phase-change materials, Sb–Te-based alloys, now suggests their use in future memory applications.

  • Toshiyuki Matsunaga
  • , Jaakko Akola
  •  & Rie Kojima

• News & Views | 01 September 2010

  Carrier characteristics

  Combining optical spectroscopy and transport measurements illuminates the conduction mechanism in high-quality, polycrystalline films.

  • Douglas Natelson

• Article | 16 May 2010

  In situ NMR observation of the formation of metallic lithium microstructures in lithium batteries

  The formation of lithium dendrites on the metal electrode surface of lithium batteries can lead to short circuits, making them potentially unsafe and unusable. The use of in situ NMR spectroscopy provides time-resolved and quantitative information about the nature of metallic lithium deposited on lithium-metal electrodes.

  • Rangeet Bhattacharyya
  • , Baris Key
  •  & Clare P. Grey