http://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. (Phys.org) —Topological insulators (TIs) are an exciting new type of material that on their surface carry electric current, but within their bulk, act as insulators. Since the discovery of TIs about a decade ago, their unique characteristics (which point to potential applications in quantum computing) have been explored theoretically, and in the last five years, experimentally. http://phys.org/news284833756.html Physics Wed, 10 Apr 2013 17:29:56 EST news284833756 (Phys.org) —Plain-looking but inherently strange crystalline materials called 3D topological insulators (TIs) are all the rage in materials science. Even at room temperature, a single chunk of TI is a good insulator in the bulk, yet behaves like a metal on its surface. http://phys.org/news282383979.html Physics Wed, 13 Mar 2013 09:00:01 EST news282383979 (Phys.org)—University of Utah engineers demonstrated it is feasible to build the first organic materials that conduct electricity on their edges, but act as an insulator inside. These materials, called organic topological insulators, could shuttle information at the speed of light in quantum computers and other high-speed electronic devices. http://phys.org/news279986239.html Physics Wed, 13 Feb 2013 13:57:53 EST news279986239 (Phys.org)—Advances in miniaturization have made electronic devices cheaper and more powerful, but these procedures also create new challenges for materials scientists. For example, traditional silicon dioxide insulators used in field-effect transistors begin to leak small amounts of current at nanoscale dimensions. To combat this problem, researchers have developed insulators called 'high-k dielectrics' that link heavier elements, such as hafnium or zirconium, into insulating oxide films with exceptional charge-isolating capabilities. http://phys.org/news279965775.html Chemistry Wed, 13 Feb 2013 08:30:01 EST news279965775 (Phys.org)—In bulk, topological insulators (TIs) are good insulators, but on their surface they act as metals, with a twist: the spin and direction of electrons moving across the surface of a TI are locked together. TIs offer unique opportunities to control electric currents and magnetism, and new research by a team of scientists from China and the U.S., working with Berkeley Lab's Alexei Fedorov at beamline 12.0 at the Advanced Light Source, points to ways to manipulate their surface states. http://phys.org/news279550622.html Nanotechnology Fri, 08 Feb 2013 12:57:09 EST news279550622 Coating liquid metal droplets in a nanoparticle mix creates an extra strong non-stick conductive material that retains its shape even under high impact, Australian research has found. http://phys.org/news277378296.html Nanotechnology Mon, 14 Jan 2013 09:32:11 EST news277378296 Researchers at The University of Texas at Austin have designed a simulation that for the first time emulates key properties of electronic topological insulators. http://phys.org/news275316802.html Physics Fri, 21 Dec 2012 12:53:28 EST news275316802 In the relatively new scientific frontier of topological insulators, theoretical and experimental physicists have been studying the surfaces of these unique materials for insights into the behavior of electrons that display some very un-electron-like properties. http://phys.org/news270397378.html Physics Thu, 25 Oct 2012 15:23:16 EST news270397378 (Phys.org)—Making uniform coatings is a common engineering challenge, and, when working at the nanoscale, even the tiniest cracks or defects can be a big problem. New research from University of Pennsylvania engineers has shown a new way of avoiding such cracks when depositing thin films of nanoparticles.   http://phys.org/news269245423.html Nanotechnology Fri, 12 Oct 2012 07:30:42 EST news269245423 (Phys.org) -- Researchers at the University of Maryland and the NIST Center for Nanoscale Science and Technology have for the first time experimentally demonstrated surface-only charge conduction in a topological insulator [1], and have theoretically explained the conduction using techniques previously applied successfully to the understanding of graphene [2]. http://phys.org/news261299895.html Nanotechnology Thu, 12 Jul 2012 08:18:39 EST news261299895 (Phys.org) -- Strange new materials experimentally identified just a few years ago are now driving research in condensed-matter physics around the world. First theorized and then discovered by researchers at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) and their colleagues in other institutions, these “strong 3-D topological insulators” – TIs for short – are seemingly mundane semiconductors with startling properties. For starters, picture a good insulator on the inside that’s a good conductor on its surface – something like a copper-coated bowling ball. http://phys.org/news256282333.html Physics Tue, 15 May 2012 06:32:25 EST news256282333 A team of Duke University engineers has created a master "ingredient list" describing the properties of more than 2,000 compounds that might be combined to create the next generation of quantum electronics devices. http://phys.org/news256040770.html Physics Sun, 13 May 2012 13:00:01 EST news256040770 Harnessing the energy of sunlight can be as simple as tuning the optical and electronic properties of metal oxides at the atomic level by making an artificial crystal or super-lattice 'sandwich' says a Binghamton University researcher in a new study published in the journal Physical Review B. http://phys.org/news254048717.html Nanotechnology Thu, 19 Apr 2012 10:05:37 EST news254048717 It's never been easy to be a polar bear. They may have to go months without eating. Their preferred food, seal, requires enormous luck and patience to catch. Add to that the melting of Arctic sea ice due to climate change, and the poisoning of the Arctic by toxic chemicals, and it's easy to see why polar bears worldwide are in trouble. http://phys.org/news252236626.html Biology Thu, 29 Mar 2012 10:43:57 EST news252236626 (PhysOrg.com) -- An international team of scientists with roots at SLAC and Stanford has shown that ultra-thin sheets of an exotic material remain transparent and highly conductive even after being deeply flexed 1,000 times and folded and creased like a piece of paper. http://phys.org/news250417264.html Chemistry Thu, 08 Mar 2012 08:21:25 EST news250417264 Solar cells, light emitting diodes, displays and other electronic devices could get a bump in performance because of a discovery at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory that establishes new boundaries for controlling band gaps. http://phys.org/news249059677.html Chemistry Tue, 21 Feb 2012 15:15:40 EST news249059677 Exotic materials called topological insulators, discovered just a few years ago, have yielded some of their secrets to a team of MIT researchers. For the first time, the team showed that light can be used to obtain information about the spin of electrons flowing over the material’s surface, and has even found a way to control these electron movements by varying the polarization of a light source. http://phys.org/news242290788.html Physics Mon, 05 Dec 2011 07:00:39 EST news242290788 Scientists at IBM and ABB, the world's largest builder of electricity grids, are using supercomputers to study and potentially develop a new type of high-voltage insulator that will improve the efficiency of transmitting electricity. An improved insulator has the potential to transform the power grid by reducing energy loss and outages caused by material deterioration when exposed to weather. http://phys.org/news239442003.html Technology Wed, 02 Nov 2011 08:40:28 EST news239442003 After the Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded to two scientists in 2010 who had studied the material graphene, this substance has received a lot of attention. http://phys.org/news237804803.html Physics Fri, 14 Oct 2011 09:53:40 EST news237804803 (PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists at Stanford and SLAC have found a potential way to harness the amazing properties of topological insulators – materials that conduct electricity only along their surfaces – for use in electronics and other applications. http://phys.org/news237017988.html Nanotechnology Wed, 05 Oct 2011 07:19:57 EST news237017988 (PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists have reached a crucial milestone that could lead to a new class of materials with useful electronic properties. In research reported in the Sept. 5 issue of Nature Physics, the team sandwiched two nonmagnetic insulators together and discovered a startling result: The layer where the two materials meet has both magnetic and superconducting regions – two properties that normally can’t co-exist. http://phys.org/news234426849.html Physics Mon, 05 Sep 2011 07:35:10 EST news234426849 (PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers at the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory's Pulsed Field Facility at Los Alamos National Laboratory have set a new world record for the strongest magnetic field produced by a nondestructive magnet. http://phys.org/news233325008.html Physics Tue, 23 Aug 2011 13:30:42 EST news233325008 Black holes are some of the heaviest objects in the universe. Electrons are some of the lightest. Now physicists at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have shown how charged black holes can be used to model the behavior of interacting electrons in unconventional superconductors. http://phys.org/news218309125.html Physics Wed, 02 Mar 2011 17:26:47 EST news218309125 The matter that makes up the universe consists of particles such as electrons and protons, as well as their counterparts known as antiparticles. Particles and antiparticles that collide, however, annihilate each other in an intense flash of energy. Nevertheless, the Italian physicist Ettore Majorana proposed that some particles could exist that are their own antiparticles although physicists are yet to observe such particles. http://phys.org/news214222938.html Physics Fri, 14 Jan 2011 10:22:53 EST news214222938