Volume 5 Issue 5, May 2010

Devices of all shapes and sizes are capable of lasing.

A bacteriophage can be used as a template for assembling catalytic nanostructures for the light-driven oxidation of water molecules.

Diamonds with a diameter of just 5 nm are capable of supporting colour centres and emitting fluorescence, and encapsulating these nanodiamonds in a polymer stops them blinking.

It is now possible to write and read magnetic information at the atomic scale by manipulating and imaging atoms on a magnetic template with a spin-polarized scanning tunnelling microscope.

An extended one-dimensional defect that has the potential to act as a conducting wire has been embedded in another perfect graphene sheet.

Reducing the particle size of some iron compounds can improve their bioavailability in rats, without increasing their tendency to cause colour and odour changes when added to foods.

Unzipping carbon nanotubes that have been mildly gas-phase oxidized results in graphene nanoribbons of very high quality.

A stable extended defect in graphene consisting of octagonal and pentagonal rings produces one-dimensional charge localization, allowing it to act as a metallic wire embedded in an otherwise perfect graphene sheet.

The response of polyhydroxy fullerene and other functionalized fullerenes to low levels of laser irradiation could be exploited in a variety of applications.

Metal nanoparticles can penetrate through a C₆₀ monolayer supported on gold in a matter of hours, but cannot penetrate two layers of C₆₀ or a C₆₀ monolayer resting on graphite.

Photocatalytic nanostructures can be created by using a genetically engineered virus as a scaffold to assemble organic photosensitizers and metal oxide catalysts in close proximity.

Nitrogen-vacancy colour centres have been observed in discrete 5-nm nanodiamonds at room temperature, and their blinking has been switched on and off by modifying the surface of the nanodiamonds.

The spin direction of a single cobalt atom can be determined and manipulated using a scanning tunnelling microscope.

A type of peroxidase enzyme found in certain white blood cells can degrade single-walled carbon nanotubes into products that do not cause inflammation in the lungs of mice, suggesting that the severity of toxic responses of carbon nanotubes may depend on the extent of its degradation.

Individual nanocrystals of TiO₂ have been imaged with a resolution of 70 picometres by a combination of electron diffractive imaging and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy.

The lateral and vertical integration of ZnO piezoelectric nanowires allows for voltage and power outputs sufficient to power nanowire-based sensors.

Reducing the particle size of poorly soluble iron and zinc compounds into the nano range increases their bioavailability in rats without accumulation in tissues; these nanocompounds can be used for food fortification without changing the colour of food.