Conversion efficiency of 10.5 % achieved for thin-film microcrystalline silicon solar cells
A researcher with the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) has developed a novel light-trapping structure to enhance optical absorption inside thin-film silicon solar cells. ...
Study of alligator dental regeneration process may lead to tooth regeneration in humans
(Phys.org) —A team of researchers from the U.S., Taiwan and China analyzing tooth regeneration in alligators reports that a similar process might possibly be instigated in humans through artificial means. ...
Building protocells from inorganic nanoparticles
(Phys.org) —Researchers at the University of Bristol have led a new enquiry into how extremely small particles of silica (sand) can be used to design and construct artificial protocells in the laboratory. ...
Engineers manipulate a buckyball by inserting a single water molecule
(Phys.org) —Columbia Engineering researchers have developed a technique to isolate a single water molecule inside a buckyball, or C60, and to drive motion of the so-called "big" nonpolar ball through th ...
Solar discovery sets new record for low-grade silicon
(Phys.org) —Solar engineers from UNSW have developed an innovative method to dramatically improve the quality of low-grade silicon, promising to significantly improve electrical efficiency and reduce the cost of solar panels.
Quantum-assisted nano-imaging of living organism is a first
In science, many of the most interesting events occur at a scale far smaller than the unaided human eye can see. Medical researchers might realize a range of breakthroughs if they could look deep inside living ...
Researchers develop 'nanotrain' for targeted cancer drug transport
(Phys.org) —University of Florida researchers have developed a "DNA nanotrain" that fast-tracks its payload of cancer-fighting drugs and bioimaging agents to tumor cells deep within the body. The nanotrain's ability to ...
Discovery alters understanding of long-distance intercellular communication
(Phys.org) —In a finding likely to fundamentally reshape biologists' understanding of how vertebrate cells communicate, researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine and the UC-San Francisco ...
Changing cellulose-forming process may tap plants' biofuel potential
(Phys.org) —Changing the way a plant forms cellulose may lead to more efficient, less expensive biofuel production, according to Penn State engineers.
Nanostructures improve efficiency of solar cells
Researchers have been able to improve the efficiency of solar cells by coating the cell surface with extremely small nanoscale structures. The new technology has been shown to nearly eliminate the reflection losses of solar ...
Scientists image nanoparticles in action
(Phys.org) —The macroscopic effects of certain nanoparticles on human health have long been clear to the naked eye. What scientists have lacked is the ability to see the detailed movements of individual ...
High-powered microscopic techniques give scientists detailed view of a critical component of cellular infrastructure
The cellular interior is criss-crossed by protein-based cables known as microtubules, each formed from 13 'protofilaments' composed of the protein tubulin. Microtubules are also associated with a host of ...
Discovery brings hope of new tailor-made anti-cancer agents
Scientists at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute and their collaborators have tailor-made a new chemical compound that blocks a protein that has been linked to poor responses to treatment in cancer patients.
Plant protein shape puzzle solved by molecular 3-D model
(Phys.org) —Researchers from North Carolina State University believe they have solved a puzzle that has vexed science since plants first appeared on Earth.