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Category: nanotechnology – Page 19

Surprising versatility of boron nitride nanotubes displayed in fusion of art and science

In an elegant fusion of art and science, researchers at Rice University have achieved a major milestone in nanomaterials engineering by uncovering how boron nitride nanotubes (BNNTs)—touted for their strength, thermal stability and insulating properties—can be coaxed into forming ordered liquid crystalline phases in water. Their work, published in Langmuir, was so visually striking it graced the journal’s cover.

That vibrant image, however, represents more than just the beauty of science at the nanoscale. It captures the essence of a new, scalable method to align BNNTs in using a common bile-salt surfactant—sodium deoxycholate (SDC)—opening the door to next-generation materials for aerospace, electronics and beyond.

“This work is very interesting from the fundamental point of view because it shows that BNNTs can be used as model systems to study novel nanorod liquid crystals,” said Matteo Pasquali, the A.J. Hartsook Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, professor of chemistry, materials science and nanoengineering and corresponding author on the study.

Engineering biology applications for environmental solutions: potential and challenges

Engineering biology applies synthetic biology to address global environmental challenges like bioremediation, biosequestration, pollutant monitoring, and resource recovery. This perspective outlines innovations in engineering biology, its integration with other technologies (e.g., nanotechnology, IoT, AI), and commercial ventures leveraging these advancements. We also discuss commercialisation and scaling challenges, biosafety and biosecurity considerations including biocontainment strategies, social and political dimensions, and governance issues that must be addressed for successful real-world implementation. Finally, we highlight future perspectives and propose strategies to overcome existing hurdles, aiming to accelerate the adoption of engineering biology for environmental solutions.

The scale of global environmental challenges requires a multi-pronged approach, which utilises all the technologies at our disposal. Here, authors provide their perspective on the potential of engineering biology for environmental biotechnology, summarizing their thoughts on the key challenges and future possibilities for the field.

Photo-switchable DNA condensates enable remote-controlled microflow systems

Remote-controlled microflow using light-controlled state transitions within DNA condensates has been reported by scientists from the Institute of Science Tokyo, Japan. By switching between ultraviolet light (UV) and visible light irradiation, the researchers demonstrated that the novel DNA motifs containing azobenzene can dissociate or reassemble. Furthermore, localized photo-switching within a DNA liquid condensate generated two distinct directional motions. This study can fuel the development of innovative fluid-based diagnostic chips and molecular computers.

Advancements in micro-and nano-scale fabrication technologies have given rise to diverse micrometer-sized entities such as microgels and liposomes, which are widely utilized in therapeutic formulations and microfluidic sensors. The precise control of the structure and function permits the adoption of micro-scale objects in various applications. However, the remote controllability of miniaturized fluidic objects has not yet been realized.

A recent study by scientists from the Institute of Science Tokyo (Science Tokyo), Japan, represents a significant step toward the development of remotely controllable microfluidic objects that are capable of performing mechanical actions. The research team comprised Professor Masahiro Takinoue and Specially Appointed Assistant Professor Hirotake Udono, both from the Department of Computer Science, along with Associate Professor Shin-ichiro M. Nomura from the Department of Robotics, Graduate School of Engineering, Tohoku University. Their research findings were published online in Nature Communications on May 14, 2025.

Glass nanostructures reflect nearly all visible light, challenging photonics assumptions

A research team led by SUTD has created nanoscale glass structures with near-perfect reflectance, overturning long-held assumptions about what low-index materials can do in photonics.

For decades, glass has been a reliable workhorse of optical systems, valued for its transparency and stability. But when it comes to manipulating light at the nanoscale, especially for high-performance optical devices, glass has traditionally taken a backseat to higher refractive index materials. Now, a research team led by Professor Joel Yang from the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) is reshaping this narrative.

With findings published in Science Advances, the team has developed a new method to 3D-print glass structures with nanoscale precision and achieve nearly 100% reflectance in the . This level of performance is rare for low-refractive-index materials like silica, and it opens up a broader role for glass in nanophotonics, including in wearable optics, integrated displays, and sensors.

Light-as-a-feather nanomaterial extracts drinking water from air

An international scientific collaboration has developed a novel nanomaterial to efficiently harvest clean drinking water from water vapor in the air. The nanomaterial can hold more than three times its weight in water and can achieve this far quicker than existing commercial technologies, features that enable its potential in direct applications for producing potable water from the air.

The collaboration is led by the Australian Research Council Center of Excellence for Carbon Science and Innovation (ARC COE-CSI) UNSW Associate Professor Rakesh Joshi and Nobel Laureate Professor Sir Kostya Novoselov. Prof Joshi is based at the School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of New South Wales (UNSW). Prof Novoselov is based at the National University of Singapore.

A United Nations report estimates that 2.2 billion people lack safely managed drinking water.

Phonon-mediated heat transport across materials visualized at the atomic level

Gao Peng’s research group at the International Center for Quantum Materials, School of Physics, Peking University, has developed a breakthrough method for visualizing interfacial phonon transport with sub-nanometer resolution. Leveraging fast electron inelastic scattering in electron microscopy, the team directly measured temperature fields and thermal resistance across interfaces, unveiling the microscopic mechanism of phonon-mediated heat transport at the nanoscale.

The study is published in Nature under the title “Probing transport dynamics across an interface by .”

Phonons are central to heat conduction, electrical transport, and light interactions. In modern semiconductor devices, phonon mismatches at material interfaces create significant thermal resistance, limiting performance. Yet, existing methods lack the spatial resolution needed for today’s sub-10 nm technologies.

Startup’s biosensor makes drug development and manufacturing cheaper

In the biotech and pharmaceutical industries, ELISA tests provide critical quality control during drug development and manufacturing. The tests can precisely quantify protein levels, but they also require hours of work by trained technicians and specialized equipment. That makes them prohibitively expensive, driving up the costs of drugs and putting research testing out of reach for many.

Now the Advanced Silicon Group (ASG), founded by Marcie Black ’94, MEng ’95, PhD ’03 and Bill Rever, is commercializing a new technology that could dramatically lower the time and costs associated with protein sensing. ASG’s proprietary sensor combines silicon nanowires with antibodies that can bind to different proteins to create a highly sensitive measurement of their concentration in a given solution.

The tests can measure the concentration of many different proteins and other molecules at once, with results typically available in less than 15 minutes. Users simply place a tiny amount of solution on the sensor, rinse the sensor, and then insert it into ASG’s handheld testing system.

“We’re making it 15 times faster and 15 times lower cost to test for proteins,” Black says. “That’s on the drug development side. This could also make the manufacturing of drugs significantly faster and more cost-effective. It could revolutionize how we create drugs in this country and around the world.”

Advanced Silicon Group, founded by MIT alumna Marcie Black, developed a protein sensor that could make drug development and manufacturing much faster and less expensive.

Gene-editing nanoparticle system targets multiple organs simultaneously

A gene-editing delivery system developed by UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers simultaneously targeted the liver and lungs of a preclinical model of a rare genetic disease known as alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency (AATD), significantly improving symptoms for months after a single treatment, a new study shows. The findings, published in Nature Biotechnology, could lead to new therapies for a variety of genetic diseases that affect multiple organs.

“Multi-organ diseases may need to be treated in more than one place. The development of multi-organ-targeted therapeutics opens the door to realizing those opportunities for this and other diseases,” said study leader Daniel Siegwart, Ph.D., Professor of Biomedical Engineering, Biochemistry, and in the Harold C. Simmons Comprehensive Cancer Center at UT Southwestern.

Gene editing—a group of technologies designed to correct disease-causing mutations in the genome—has the potential to revolutionize medicine, Dr. Siegwart explained. Targeting these technologies to specific organs, tissues, or will be necessary to effectively and safely treat patients.

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