Lifeboat Foundation

Modern computer chips can have features built on a nanometer scale. Until now it has been possible to form such small structures only on top of a silicon wafer, but a new technique can now create nanoscale features in a layer below the surface. The approach has promising applications in both photonics and electronics, say its inventors, and could one day enable the fabrication of 3D structures throughout the bulk of the wafer.

The technique relies on the fact that silicon is transparent to certain wavelengths of light. This means the right kind of laser can travel through the surface of the wafer and interact with the silicon below. But designing a laser that can pass through the surface without causing damage and still carry out precise nanoscale fabrication below is not simple.

Researchers from Bilkent University in Ankara, Türkiye, achieved this by using spatial light modulation to create a needlelike laser beam that gave them greater control over where the beam’s energy was deposited. By exploiting physical interactions between the laser light and the silicon, they were able to fabricate lines and planes with different optical properties that could be combined to create nanophotonic elements below the surface.

Researchers from the University of California, Berkeley have developed cutting-edge nanoscale optical imaging techniques to provide unprecedented insights into the ultrafast carrier dynamics in advanced materials. Two recent studies, published in Advanced Materials (“Transient Nanoscopy of Exciton Dynamics in 2D Transition Metal Dichalcogenides”) and ACS Photonics (“Near-Field Nanoimaging of Phases and Carrier Dynamics in Vanadium Dioxide Nanobeams”), showcase significant progress in understanding the carrier behaviors in two-dimensional and phase-change materials, with implications for next-generation electronic and optoelectronic devices.

The research team, led by Prof. Costas P. Grigoropoulos, Dr. Jingang Li, and graduate student Rundi Yang, employed a novel near-field transient nanoscopy technique to probe the behavior of materials at the nanoscale with both high spatial and temporal resolution. This approach overcomes the limitations of traditional optical methods, allowing researchers to directly visualize and analyze phenomena that were previously difficult to observe.

Schematic of the near-field transient nanoscopy. (Image: Adapted from DOI:10.1002/adma.202311568, CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

In a recent study published in Neuron, researchers discovered that microglia, the brain’s immune cells, use tunneling nanotubes…

Scheiblich et al. uncover a novel mechanism by which microglia use tunneling nanotubes to connect with α-syn-or tau-burdened neurons, enabling transfer of these proteins to microglia for clearance. Microglia donate mitochondria to restore neuronal health, shedding light on new therapeutic strategies for neurodegenerative diseases.

Nano-MIND Technology for Wireless Control of Brain Circuits with Potential to Modulate Emotions, Social Behaviors, and Appetite.

Researchers at the Center for Nanomedicine within the Institute for Basic Science (IBS) and Yonsei University in South Korea have unveiled a groundbreaking technology that can manipulate specific regions of the brain using magnetic fields, potentially unlocking the secrets of high-level brain functions such as cognition, emotion, and motivation. The team has developed the world’s first Nano-MIND (Magnetogenetic Interface for NeuroDynamics) technology, which allows for wireless, remote, and precise modulation of specific deep brain neural circuits using magnetism.

The human brain contains over 100 billion neurons interconnected in a complex network. Controlling the neural circuits is crucial for understanding higher brain functions like cognition, emotion, and social behavior, as well as identifying the causes of various brain disorders. Novel technology to control brain functions also has implications for advancing brain-computer interfaces (BCIs), such as those being developed by Neuralink, which aim to enable control of external devices through thought alone.

Continue reading “New Technology to Control the Brain Using Magnetic Fields Developed” »

In a scientific breakthrough, an international research team from Korea’s IBS Center for Quantum Nanoscience (QNS) and Germany’s Forschungszentrum Jülich developed a quantum sensor capable of detecting minute magnetic fields at the atomic length scale. This pioneering work realizes a long-held dream of scientists: an MRI-like tool for quantum materials.

The research team utilized the expertise of bottom-up single-molecule fabrication from the Jülich group while conducting experiments at QNS, utilizing the Korean team’s leading-edge instrumentation and methodological know-how to develop the world’s first quantum sensor for the atomic world.

The diameter of an atom is a million times smaller than the thickest human hair. This makes it extremely challenging to visualize and precisely measure physical quantities like electric and magnetic fields emerging from atoms. To sense such weak fields from a single atom, the observing tool must be highly sensitive and as small as the atoms themselves.

In a paper in Physical Review Letters scientists from the department Living Matter Physics at the Max Planck Institute for Dynamics and Self-Organization (MPI-DS) propose a mechanism on how energy barriers in complex systems can be overcome. These findings can help to engineer molecular machines and to understand the self-organization of active matter.

Using two optically-trapped glass nanoparticles, researchers observed a novel collective Non-Hermitian and non-linear dynamic driven by non-reciprocal interactions. This contribution expands traditional optical levitation with tweezer arrays by incorporating non-conservative interactions.

A novel quantum sensor with exceptional resolution transforms atomic-level material analysis, paving the way for advancements in quantum technologies and sciences.

In a scientific breakthrough, an international research team from Germany’s Forschungszentrum Jülich and Korea’s IBS Center for Quantum Nanoscience (QNS) developed a quantum sensor capable of detecting minute magnetic fields at the atomic length scale. This pioneering work realizes a long-held dream of scientists: an MRI-like tool for quantum materials.

Quantum Sensor Development

Minimally invasive cellular-level target-specific neuromodulation is needed to decipher brain function and neural circuitry. Here nano-magnetogenetics using magnetic force actuating nanoparticles has been reported, enabling wireless and remote stimulation of targeted deep brain neurons in freely behaving animals.