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Category: nanotechnology – Page 6

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.

Humans will achieve immortality by 2030, says futurist

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.

Exotic vibrations in new materials: New insights show universal applicability of carbyne as a sensor

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 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 . In experiments, scientists use Raman spectroscopy, in which light interacts with matter, to determine the vibrational eigenstates of the atomic nuclei of the samples.

The Space Elevator Construction Concept

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#

Self-stirring nanoreactors enhance reaction efficiency for chemical synthesis

Recent technological advances have opened new possibilities for the efficient and sustainable synthesis of various valuable chemicals. Some of these advances rely on nanotechnologies, systems or techniques designed to design and study materials or devices at the nanometer scale.

Nanoreactors are nanotechnologies designed to host and control within confined spaces. These small structures serve as tiny “reaction vessels” that enable the precise manipulation of the reactants, catalysts and conditions to elicit desired chemical reactions.

Researchers at Inner Mongolia University, Fudan University and Julin University in China recently developed a new paddle-like mesoporous silica nanoreactor that can stir itself when exposed to a rotating magnetic field. This nanoreactor, outlined in a paper published in Nature Nanotechnology, can mix chemicals at a , enhancing the efficiency of reactions and thus potentially enhancing the synthesis of various compounds.

Single-layer waveguide display uses achromatic metagratings for more compact augmented reality eyewear

Augmented reality (AR), the technology that overlays digital content onto what users see around them in real-time, is now widely used in the retail, gaming and entertainment industries, as well as in some educational settings and learning environments. A key component of AR systems are so-called waveguide displays, transparent optical layers that guide light from a projector to the eyes of users, allowing them to see projected images integrated on top of their surrounding environment.

Waveguide displays, mounted on most AR headsets or smart glasses, are typically made up of several substrates and grating couplers (i.e., structures that diffract light into the waveguide). While these multi-layered waveguide displays are widely used, they can sometimes distort colors while also setting limits on the extent to which AR headsets or glasses can be reduced in size.

Researchers at Samsung Electronics and Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH) have recently developed a new single-layer waveguide that could enable the realization of more compact AR headsets for everyday use while also boosting the brightness and color uniformity of images seen by users. The new display, introduced in a paper published in Nature Nanotechnology, was fabricated using achromatic metagratings, arrays of rectangular nanostructures that diffract red, green and blue light at identical angles.

High-resolution metalens doublet microscope enables compact biomedical imaging

Metalenses represent a revolutionary advancement in optical technology. Unlike conventional microscope objectives that rely on curved glass surfaces, metalenses employ nanoscale structures to manipulate light at the subwavelength level. Thanks to their ultrathin, lightweight, and flat architectures, metalenses can overcome the bulkiness of traditional lenses, making them ideal candidates for integration in electronic devices and compact imaging systems.

Despite their promising attributes for next-generation , metalenses face significant challenges in practical microscopy applications. Off-axis aberrations, which severely restrict metalens field of view (FOV) and resolution capabilities, are primary limitations.

The inherent trade-off between imaging resolution and FOV has prevented metalenses from achieving performance comparable to conventional microscopes. Although some prior metalens designs have achieved submicron resolution, they operated with an extremely restricted FOV, limiting their practical utility.

2D quantum sensor uses spin defects for precise magnetic field detection

A team of physicists at the University of Cambridge has unveiled a breakthrough in quantum sensing by demonstrating the use of spin defects in hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) as powerful, room-temperature sensors capable of detecting vectorial magnetic fields at the nanoscale. The findings, published in Nature Communications, mark a significant step toward more practical and versatile quantum technologies.

“Quantum sensors allow us to detect nanoscale variations of various quantities. In the case of magnetometry, quantum sensors enable nanoscale visualization of properties like current flow and magnetization in materials leading to the discovery of new physics and functionality,” said Dr. Carmem Gilardoni, co-first author of this study at Cambridge’s Cavendish Laboratory.

“This work takes that capability to the next level using hBN, a material that’s not only compatible with nanoscale applications but also offers new degrees of freedom compared to state-of-the-art nanoscale .”