Scientists in Germany have achieved a world first by moving individual atoms from one position to a precisely defined final one using magnetism, unlocking the potential for controlled atomic motion in nanotechnology and data storage.
The research team from the University of Kiel (CAU) and the University of Hamburg used a highly sensitive scanning tunneling microscope (STM) to manipulate atoms on a specially engineered magnetic surface.
In the coming years, batteries so tiny yet powerful could revolutionize everything from smartphones to supercomputers.
Energy storage is about to take a massive leap forward, with the new concept of “topological quantum battery” at the forefront.
A theoretical study by researchers at the RIKEN Center for Quantum Computing and Huazhong University of Science and Technology has shown how to efficiently design a quantum battery.
Researchers from the University of Waterloo have achieved a feat previously thought to be impossible—getting a sphere to roll down a totally vertical surface without applying any external force.
The spontaneous rolling motion, captured by high-speed cameras, was an unexpected observation after months of trial, error, and theoretical calculations by two Waterloo research teams.
“When we first saw it happening, we were frankly in disbelief,” said Dr. Sushanta Mitra, a professor of mechanical and mechatronics engineering and executive director of the Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology.
Posted in chemistry, computing, nanotechnology, particle physics, quantum physics, sustainability | Leave a Comment on Towards topological quantum batteries: Theoretical framework addresses two long-standing challenges
Researchers from the RIKEN Center for Quantum Computing and Huazhong University of Science and Technology have conducted a theoretical analysis demonstrating how a “topological quantum battery”—an innovative device that leverages the topological properties of photonic waveguides and quantum effects of two-level atoms—could be efficiently designed. The work, published in Physical Review Letters, holds promise for applications in nanoscale energy storage, optical quantum communication, and distributed quantum computing.
With increasing global awareness of the importance of environmental sustainability, developing next-generation energy storage devices has become a critical priority. Quantum batteries—hypothetical miniature devices that, unlike classical batteries that store energy via chemical reactions, rely on quantum properties such as superposition, entanglement, and coherence—have the potential to enhance the storage and transfer of energy.
From a mechanistic perspective, they offer potential performance advantages over classical batteries, including improved charging power, increased capacity, and superior work extraction efficiency.
Posted in bioengineering, biotech/medical, nanotechnology, neuroscience | Leave a Comment on Promising breakthroughs in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis treatment through nanotechnology’s unexplored frontier
This review explores the transformative potential of nanotechnology in the treatment and diagnosis of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a progressive neurodegenerative disorder characterized by motor neuron degeneration, muscle weakness, and eventual paralysis. Nanotechnology offers innovative solutions across various domains, including targeted drug delivery, neuroprotection, gene therapy and editing, biomarker detection, advanced imaging techniques, and tissue engineering. By enhancing the precision and efficacy of therapeutic interventions, nanotechnology facilitates key advancements such as crossing the blood-brain barrier, targeting specific cell types, achieving sustained therapeutic release, and enabling combination therapies tailored to the complex pathophysiology of ALS.
The application of nanotechnology to the field of medicine and healthcare offers the possibility to produce innovative nanoengineering techniques in the repair and regeneration of tissues and organs.
We are currently facing the possibility of achieving immortality for humans by 2030. This prediction comes from renowned futurist Ray Kurzweil, who has a history of making accurate predictions. He anticipates that with the ongoing progress in genetics, robotics, and nanotechnology, we will soon have nanobots coursing through our bloodstream, which could enable us to live forever. It’s truly remarkable to consider that this could be a reality within just seven years.
Nanobots, which are small robots sized between 50–100 nm in width, are currently being used in various clinical medical applications. They are used in research as DNA probes, imaging materials for cells, and targeted delivery vehicles for cells. According to Kurzweil, nanobots represent the future of medicine.
They will be capable of repairing our bodies at a cellular level, making us resistant to diseases, aging, and, ultimately death. Additionally, he theorizes that humans may be able to transfer their consciousness into digital form, leading to immortality.
For the design of future materials, it is important to understand how the individual atoms inside a material interact with each other quantum mechanically. Previously inexplicable vibrational states between carbon chains (carbyne) and nanotubes have puzzled materials scientists.
Researchers from Austria, Italy, France, China and Japan led by the University of Vienna have now succeeded in getting to the bottom of this phenomenon with the help of Raman spectroscopy, innovative theoretical models and the use of machine learning. The results, published in Nature Communications, show the universal applicability of carbyne as a sensor due to its sensitivity to external influences.
For the design of future materials, it is important to understand how matter interacts on an atomic scale. These quantum mechanical effects determine all macroscopic properties of matter, such as electrical, magnetic, optical or elastic properties. In experiments, scientists use Raman spectroscopy, in which light interacts with matter, to determine the vibrational eigenstates of the atomic nuclei of the samples.
Scientists develop QLED-inspired shell for nanodiamonds, transforming them into quantum sensors that can operate within living cells.
Obayashi pursues the potential for the future of the space elevator from a construction standpoint, and describes a newly-designed, whole-space elevator system, including its construction process, which we designed on the basis of work by construction engineers who completed the world’s tallest free-standing tower, TOKYO SKYTREE®, in 2012.
In the following animation, a space elevator which climbs from the Earth Port as a departure port for people to Geostationary Earth Orbit Station at a height of 36,000 km is featured.
The space elevator is planned to be built by the year 2050 with a capacity to carry 100-ton climbers. It is composed of a 96,000-km carbon nanotube cable, a 400-m diameter floating Earth Port and a 12,500-ton counter-weight. Other facilities include Martian/Lunar Gravity Centers, an Low Earth Orbit Gate, a Geostationary Earth Orbit Station, a Mars Gate and a Solar System Exploration Gate.-Jacob’s Ladder 🤔 https://www.obayashi.co.jp/en/news/detail/the_space_elevator…cept.html#
