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X-ray magnetic circular dichroism in ultrafast mode provides insight into spin relaxation in nickel on a femtosecond timescale, opening up new horizons for research into spin dynamics with the highest resolution.
Decorating a surface with a forest of microposts can either make it repel water or cause it to be sucked into the spaces between posts. In the latter case, the shape of a liquid on the surface can be controlled using simple design principles.
An emerging topic of research into conducting polymers revolves around their integration with living tissue. Using an organic electronic ion pump enables cell responses to be controlled, providing an intriguing avenue to further this area.
Controlled assembly of nanoparticles can increase their utility for a large range of applications. Selectively functionalizing the ends of hydrophilic nanorods with hydrophobic polymers is an elegant way to do this, as solvent composition provides structure control.
Nanoscale phase separation into a perfect two-dimensional chessboard structure is observed in a class of perovskite-based lithium-ion conductors. The periodicity can be controlled by varying the composition, which is an intriguing advance in materials design.
The mammalian sense of taste has an exquisite ability to differentiate subtle variations in flavour. An artificial tongue has now been developed with the ability to amplify and sense analytes that before may have gone unnoticed.
Interfaces between gold nanoparticle films and semiconductor substrates are found to behave like nearly ideal Schottky diodes. Moreover, the detailed electronic structure of the interfaces can be tuned by electrochemical charge-transfer.
The positive aspect of negative refraction is to open new possibilities for squeezing light into tight spaces. Now, a metallic nanostructure pushes all-angle negative refraction into the visible spectrum.
Metallo-porphyrin molecules play an important role in biological systems. The demonstration of substrate-induced switching of their magnetization suggests the possibility of their use in molecular spintronics devices.
Interfaces between certain insulating perovskite oxides show unexpected properties, such as high conductivity and magnetism. Oxygen vacancies seem to be important in these structures, but the puzzle is far from being understood.
