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Excitons in organic semiconductors: Unraveling their quantum entanglement and dynamics

Excitons, encountered in technologies like solar cells and TVs, are quasiparticles formed by an electron and a positively charged “hole,” moving together in a semiconductor. Created when an electron is excited to a higher energy state, excitons transfer energy without carrying a net charge. While their behavior in traditional semiconductors is well understood, excitons act differently in organic semiconductors.

Recent research led by condensed matter physicist Ivan Biaggio focuses on understanding the mechanisms behind dynamics, quantum entanglement, and dissociation in organic molecular crystals.

The paper is published in the journal Physical Review Letters.

Mercedes Reveals Solar Paint That Adds 20,000 km of Range to EVs Each Year

Mercedes-Benz recently presented a brand new solar paint technology that aims to improve an EV’s driving range through the use of solar power. In the best-case scenario, this novel evolution could probably enable EVs to produce sufficient electrical energy for about 20,000 km (12,427 miles) of yearly driving.

The Science Behind Mercedes Solar Paint

Solar paint is a new Mercedes-Benz innovation that embeds highly efficient photovoltaic plates into the car’s body. Unlike ordinary solar panels, commonly seen on rooftops, or as accessories, this paint facilitates conversion of sunlight into electricity without needing to change the car’s appearance. These are tiny photovoltaic cells that are embedded in paint to capture sunlight and convert it to electricity that is needed to recharge the electric vehicle’s battery.

China’s Tiangong experiments generate oxygen, rocket fuel in exploration advance

A series of experiments on board China’s space station have for the first time produced oxygen and the ingredients for rocket fuel – key steps that are considered essential for human survival and the future exploration of space.

The Shenzhou-19 crew aboard the Tiangong space station successfully conducted the world’s first in-orbit demonstration of artificial photosynthesis technology, producing oxygen, as well as the ingredients necessary for rocket fuel, paving the way for long-term space exploration, including a crewed moon landing before 2030.


Shenzhou-19 astronauts simulate natural photosynthesis, bringing long-haul crewed missions a step closer to reality.

Unlocking the Secret World of Dark Excitons for Next-Gen Energy

Scientists have unlocked the secret world of dark excitons — tiny energy carriers crucial for the future of solar power and LEDs.

Using an advanced microscopy technique, researchers have mapped their formation in unprecedented detail, opening new doors for improving energy efficiency in cutting-edge materials.

Tracking invisible energy carriers in next-gen technology.

Our quantum world

Lasers. MRIs. Precision timekeeping. Solar cells. SI units of measure. High-contrast, high-efficiency display devices. Ultraprecise sensors. Optimized drug development. Secure communications. Most of us don’t think about it, but we interact with quantum-enabled devices and applications on a regular basis, and that’s only going to accelerate.

Transparent device harvests radio frequency and solar power to improve power outputs

Wireless communications technology has transformed the world, but the devices, which are quickly growing in number, require a consistent and ample source of power. Dong et al. developed a transparent device that harvests energy from two sources — radio waves and the sun — to power a wide range of wireless devices.

The breakthrough represents a significant step forward in optimizing energy conversion, since previous systems typically focused on harvesting either radio frequency or solar power, but not both. For example, coupling the energy harvester device with a solar cell increases the solar cell’s maximum power output by 13.11%. Furthermore, the device demonstrates an optical transparency of over 80 percent, allowing it to be invisibly integrated into many next-generation wireless technologies as both an energy harvester and a light transmitter.


Device may make smart windows and the Internet of Things more energetically sustainable.

This Groundbreaking Hydrogel Generates Hydrogen and Oxygen via Artificial Photosynthesis (Using Water and Light)

In a major leap toward sustainable energy, a team of Japanese researchers has developed an artificial photosynthesis system that could help generate hydrogen and oxygen from just water and light. The breakthrough is thanks to a new type of hydrogel, which mimics the natural process of photosynthesis and performs these reactions without requiring external energy. This innovation opens up exciting possibilities for clean energy production, potentially transforming the way we think about renewable resources.

Artificial photosynthesis has long been a goal for scientists looking to replicate the natural process plants use to convert light into energy. The concept is simple in theory: use light to drive chemical reactions that produce useful energy, such as hydrogen. However, previous attempts to harness this process have been hampered by the need for external energy to trigger the reactions, making the systems inefficient and difficult to scale.

Enter hydrogels —a promising new solution. These polymer-based materials are capable of responding to external stimuli like temperature, light, and pH. The challenge, however, has been that these materials often suffer from self-aggregation, where the molecules clump together and hinder the energy conversion process. The Japanese researchers, however, have overcome this obstacle by designing a hydrogel that maintains the precise arrangement of its molecules, enabling a more effective energy transfer.

Ultrafast imaging advance tracks dark excitons precisely in time and space

How can the latest technology, such as solar cells, be improved? An international research team led by the University of Göttingen is helping to find answers to questions like this with a new technique. For the first time, the formation of tiny, difficult-to-detect particles—known as dark excitons—can be tracked precisely in time and space. These invisible carriers of energy will play a key role in future solar cells, LEDs and detectors. The results are published in Nature Photonics.

Dark excitons are tiny pairs made up of one electron together with the hole it leaves behind when it is excited. They carry energy but cannot emit light (hence the name “dark”). One way to visualize an is to imagine a balloon (representing the electron) that flies away and leaves behind an empty space (the hole) to which it remains connected by a force known as a Coulomb interaction. Researchers talk about “particle states” that are difficult to detect but are particularly important in atomically thin, two-dimensional structures in special semiconductor compounds.

In an earlier publication, the research group led by Professor Stefan Mathias from the Faculty of Physics at the University of Göttingen was able to show how these dark excitons are created in an unimaginably short time and describe their dynamics with the help of quantum mechanical theory.