Nanoscience and technology articles within Nature Communications

Featured

  • Article |

    The unusual electronic and optical properties of graphene are finding increasing applications for terahertz and mid-infrared plasmonics. Here, the authors show how monolayers of graphene separated by thin dielectric layers can act as tunable structures for plasmonic device platforms.

    • J.S. Gomez-Diaz
    • , C Moldovan
    •  & J Perruisseau-Carrier
  • Article
    | Open Access

    The photocurrent and luminescence of carbon nanotubes is governed by excitonic processes with diverse uses in nano-photonics. Here, Jiang et al.generate optical pulses from individual air-suspended carbon nanotubes under an application of square-wave gate voltages with control over pulse timing and duration.

    • M Jiang
    • , Y Kumamoto
    •  & Y. K. Kato
  • Article |

    There is a growing interest in the development of narrowband photodiodes for full-color imaging and visible-blind near-infrared detection. Armin et al.show a sub-100 nm response by tuning the spectral bandwidth through regulating the charge collection efficiency in a thick organic bulk heterojunction.

    • Ardalan Armin
    • , Ross D. Jansen-van Vuuren
    •  & Paul Meredith
  • Article |

    Silicon is a promising anode material for lithium ion batteries, but suffers from structural degradation during operations. Here, the authors combine silicon with a room temperature ionic liquid to stabilize the electrode-electrolyte interface and achieve long-term cyclability.

    • Daniela Molina Piper
    • , Tyler Evans
    •  & Se-Hee Lee
  • Article |

    Optical frequency combs in the mid-infrared are required for molecular gas detection applications but their realization in compact microresonator-based platforms is challenging. Here, Griffith et al. demonstrate on-chip broadband comb generation on a silicon microresonator spanning from 2.1 to 3.5 μm.

    • Austin G. Griffith
    • , Ryan K.W. Lau
    •  & Michal Lipson
  • Article |

    The integration of silicon optoelectronic devices in a fibre platform has great potential, but drawing such fibres is difficult. Using a simple, low cost and scalable method, Hou et al. fabricate a metre-long crystalline silicon-core, silica-clad fibre from a preform not containing elemental silicon.

    • Chong Hou
    • , Xiaoting Jia
    •  & Yoel Fink
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Phase-coherent frequency combs in the mid-infrared have important potential applications but their fabrication remains challenging. Here, Kuyken et al. demonstrate an octave-spanning frequency comb in the mid-infrared using a highly nonlinear dispersion-engineered silicon waveguide on a silicon-on-insulator chip.

    • Bart Kuyken
    • , Takuro Ideguchi
    •  & Nathalie Picqué
  • Article |

    Mouldable hydrogels find a variety of applications in the biomedical industry. Here, Appel et al. show a method to fabricate hydrogels through a self-assembly process based on the interaction between biopolymers and functional nanoparticles for multistage drug delivery in vivo.

    • Eric A. Appel
    • , Mark W. Tibbitt
    •  & Robert Langer
  • Article |

    Cracks in material are not always unwanted; sometimes, they can be manipulated to produce micro and nanoscale patterns. Here, Kim et al. report a cracking-assisted nanofabrication technique based on conventional photolithography process, which allows accurate control over the geometry of the nanopatterns in arbitrary shape.

    • Minseok Kim
    • , Dogyeong Ha
    •  & Taesung Kim
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Bimodal atomic force microscopy is a promising approach in obtaining high-quality image contrast and material property mapping. Here, the authors show that by considering nonlinear response in bimodal atomic force microscopy, significant improvements in image contrast and material discrimination can be achieved.

    • Daniel Forchheimer
    • , Robert Forchheimer
    •  & David B. Haviland
  • Article |

    Nanopore sensors provide a useful way of analysing single molecules, such as DNA. Here, the authors present a nanopore-based single-molecule reactor, into which DNA can be fed and removed, and which also acts as an entropic cage allowing for DNA chemical modifications.

    • Xu Liu
    • , Mirna Mihovilovic Skanata
    •  & Derek Stein
  • Article
    | Open Access

    The development of magnetism in metallic atomic chains is a widely debated phenomenon, of relevance to atomic-scale spintronics. Here, Strigl et al. measure the magneto-conductance of platinum break junctions stretched over sub-atomic distances, evidencing the evolution of distinct magnetic order.

    • Florian Strigl
    • , Christopher Espy
    •  & Torsten Pietsch
  • Article |

    Nanobubbles in liquid phase are puzzling, because their internal pressure is estimated to be unphysically large. Here, Shin et al. visualize the dynamics of nanobubbles in water encapsulated by graphene membrane and show fast gas diffusion through ultrathin water layer between two coalescing bubbles.

    • Dongha Shin
    • , Jong Bo Park
    •  & Konstantin S Novoselov
  • Article |

    Ferromagnetic nanoantennas support plasmons and exhibit magneto-optical activity under external magnetic fields. Maccaferri et al. show how designed phase compensation in the electric response of these nanostructures enables them to act as ultrasensitive label-free molecular sensors with high figures of merit.

    • Nicolò Maccaferri
    • , Keith E. Gregorczyk
    •  & Paolo Vavassori
  • Article
    | Open Access

    The functionality of Josephson junctions—a thin insulating layer between two superconducting regions—is greatly enhanced by using hybrid material systems. Here, the authors incorporate graphene into a Josephson junction and demonstrate ballistic transport through the atom-thick layer.

    • Gil-Ho Lee
    • , Sol Kim
    •  & Hu-Jong Lee
  • Article |

    Although synthesis of high-quality MoS2 has been demonstrated, growth of monolayer MoS2at controlled locations is highly desirable for applications. Here, the authors introduce a method where patterned seeds of molybdenum source material are used to grow isolated flakes at predetermined locations.

    • Gang Hee Han
    • , Nicholas J. Kybert
    •  & A. T. Charlie Johnson
  • Article |

    Nitrogen-vacancy centres in diamond have established themselves as excellent candidates for solid-state quantum memories due to their optical addressability and long coherence times. Here, the authors report on a diamond-nanocavity system with improved spin-photon interface performances.

    • Luozhou Li
    • , Tim Schröder
    •  & Dirk Englund
  • Article |

    The detection of high-frequency radiation emitted by a quantum conductor is promising but current approaches exhibit limited sensitivity. Here, Jompol et al. propose on-chip radiation detection based on photo-assisted shot noise and show the response to be independent of the nature and geometry of the quantum conductor.

    • Y. Jompol
    • , P. Roulleau
    •  & D. C. Glattli
  • Article |

    The non-volatile modulation of charge carriers in graphene could be useful for future electronic devices. Here, the authors demonstrate that fields arising from ferroelectric polarization in periodically poled LiNbO3substrates can lead to a carrier modulation in adjacent graphene films.

    • Christoph Baeumer
    • , Diomedes Saldana-Greco
    •  & Lane W. Martin
  • Article |

    High nucleation density has thus far limited the quality and grain size of CVD-grown hexagonal boron nitride. Here, by optimizing the Ni ratio in Cu–Ni substrates, the authors successfully reduce nucleation density and report single-crystal hexagonal boron nitride grains up to 7500 μm2.

    • Guangyuan Lu
    • , Tianru Wu
    •  & Mianheng Jiang
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Oxidants currently used in the preparation of graphene oxide (GO) require long reaction times, relatively high temperatures and costly waste treatment. Here, the authors propose the use of a strong green oxidant, K2FeO4, establishing a fast, safe, toxicity-free route to GO production.

    • Li Peng
    • , Zhen Xu
    •  & Chao Gao
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Birds and many other animals can sense the Earth’s magnetic field, but not human beings. Here, Melzer et al. develop a type of artificial skin based on giant magnetoresistive sensor foils with micrometre thickness, which can be stretched up to >250% without sacrifices in device performance.

    • Michael Melzer
    • , Martin Kaltenbrunner
    •  & Oliver G. Schmidt
  • Article |

    Single-walled carbon nanotube arrays have been proposed for use in electronics, but getting the tubes aligned and in high density is a very challenging task. Hu et al. show that catalyst particles dissolved in a substrate can slowly be brought to the surface, allowing continued controlled growth of nanotubes.

    • Yue Hu
    • , Lixing Kang
    •  & Jin Zhang
  • Article |

    Reading out the state of quantum bits is an essential requirement that any quantum computer implementation must satisfy. Gonzalez-Zalba et al. now show that in situresonant gate-based detection can be a more sensitive approach than external electrometers while reducing the qubit architecture’s complexity.

    • M. F. Gonzalez-Zalba
    • , S. Barraud
    •  & A. C. Betz
  • Article |

    Evidence for exciton coherence in photosynthetic complexes raises questions about whether quantum processes can play a role in biological environments, which are warm and wet. Cassette et al. now demonstrate long-lived electronic coherence in colloidal nanoplatelets in solution and at room temperature.

    • Elsa Cassette
    • , Ryan D. Pensack
    •  & Gregory D. Scholes
  • Article
    | Open Access

    The optoelectronic properties of semiconducting polymers are controlled by altering chemical structure and/or inter-chain order. Perevedentsev et al. propose a nanopatterning approach whereby the geometry of polymer chain segments is modified to engineer metamaterial structures for visible light.

    • Aleksandr Perevedentsev
    • , Yannick Sonnefraud
    •  & Donal D. C. Bradley
  • Article |

    Photochromic Förster resonance energy transfer endows nanosensors with photoswitchable fluorescence properties. Diaz et al. present a system with two photostationary end states, one of which exhibits constant quenching of the quantum dot donor independent of its mean distance to the photochromic acceptors.

    • Sebastián A. Díaz
    • , Florencia Gillanders
    •  & Thomas M. Jovin
  • Article
    | Open Access

    There is a trade-off between increasing thickness of active layers in organic photovoltaic cells to be compatible with modern printing techniques and decreasing it to improve the device performance. Sun et al.report a nematic liquid crystalline molecular electron donor material used in thick layers.

    • Kuan Sun
    • , Zeyun Xiao
    •  & David J. Jones
  • Article |

    Pickering emulsions are particle-stabilized droplets suspended in an immiscible liquid, and the study of individual droplet coalescence has yielded many interesting findings. Here, Wu et al. move towards larger droplet numbers to investigate the influence of population on coalescence.

    • Tong Wu
    • , Haitao Wang
    •  & Chongzheng Na
  • Article |

    All-optical magnetization switching holds significant potential for future ultrafast high-density recording applications. Here, Le Guyader et al.demonstrate sub-100 ps sub-wavelength magnetization reversal by passive focussing of a single femtosecond laser pulse in micro-patterned GdFeCo thin films.

    • L. Le Guyader
    • , M. Savoini
    •  & F. Nolting
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Optical methods allow for the excitation of diverse magnetic phenomena in nanostructured materials. Here, Uchida et al. demonstrate how pure spin current may be generated across a Pt/BiY2Fe5O12thin film interface by optically exciting surface plasmon resonance in embedded gold nanoparticles.

    • K. Uchida
    • , H. Adachi
    •  & E. Saitoh
  • Article |

    Particle tracking with ultra-high resolution in optical and magnetic tweezers has so far relied on laser detection through photodiodes. Here, Huhle et al. demonstrate three-dimensional particle tracking with Ångström accuracy and real-time GPU-accelerated data processing at kHz rates using camera-based imaging.

    • Alexander Huhle
    • , Daniel Klaue
    •  & Ralf Seidel
  • Article |

    The polysulfide shuttle is a major problem leading to capacity decay in lithium–sulfur batteries. Here, the authors show that in-situ-generated thiosulfate species on a manganese oxide nanosheet act as a polysulfide mediator, which effectively prevents polysulfide dissolution, leading to enhanced cyclability.

    • Xiao Liang
    • , Connor Hart
    •  & Linda F. Nazar
  • Article |

    Biocompatibility is a limiting factor in the use of electronic sensors in physiological applications. Here, the authors present a flexible and conductive polymer gel as an adhesive interface material for electronic biosensors, also demonstrating in vivoheart attachment and monitoring.

    • Sungwon Lee
    • , Yusuke Inoue
    •  & Takao Someya
  • Article |

    Lindlar catalysts are widely used for partial hydrogenation of alkynes, however they can be somewhat limited by toxicity of lead and low selectivity. Here, the authors report that the modification of palladium nanoparticles with boron atoms in the interstitial sites yields selective hydrogenation catalysts.

    • Chun Wong Aaron Chan
    • , Abdul Hanif Mahadi
    •  & Shik Chi Edman Tsang
  • Article |

    Temperature jump technique is widely used to probe the fast dynamics of protein and DNA folding, but constrained to modest temperature control. Here, the authors use a microfluidic device combined with an infrared laser to heat or cool DNA hairpins up to 70 °C on a microsecond time scale.

    • Mark E. Polinkovsky
    • , Yann Gambin
    •  & Ashok A. Deniz
  • Article
    | Open Access

    Controlling the coherent evolution of cavity quantum electrodynamics systems is key for future quantum networks. Here Pagliano et al.demonstrate dynamic control of the coupling of a single exciton to a photonic micro-resonator using electrical tuning of the exciton energy in a photonic crystal cavity diode.

    • Francesco Pagliano
    • , YongJin Cho
    •  & Andrea Fiore
  • Article
    | Open Access

    DNA is a useful molecule with which to construct nanomaterials with controllable functionalities. Here, the authors fabricate photonic wires by appending dye molecules at set positions along DNA structures, and show how FRET performance can be tuned by modifying dye separation.

    • Susan Buckhout-White
    • , Christopher M Spillmann
    •  & Igor L. Medintz
  • Article |

    An integrated electronic platform with site-specific sensitivity is highly needed for medical applications. Here, Kim et al.report a stretchable prosthetic skin composed of ultrathin single crystalline silicon nanoribbon array, which can sense strain, pressure and temperature spontaneously.

    • Jaemin Kim
    • , Mincheol Lee
    •  & Dae-Hyeong Kim
  • Article |

    Infrared spectral mapping offers the non-destructive analyses of samples; however, the spatial resolution is restricted to >10 microns. Here, the authors present a new infrared technique capable of sub-micron scale mineral identification, demonstrated using a chondrule and a cometary dust grain.

    • Gerardo Dominguez
    • , A. S. Mcleod
    •  & D. N. Basov