https://phys.org/nanotech-news/ en-us Nanotechnology. The latest news on nanoscience, nanoelectronics, science and technology. Updated Daily. As materials become thinner—now reaching the thickness of single atoms—it has become increasingly difficult to create sufficiently large sheets and transfer them without cracking them into tiny flakes. Recent work by a broad Amsterdam-based team of scientists, published in the journal ACS Nano, presents a new technique that solves this problem using an unexpected material found in any home kitchen. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-kitchen-centimeter-scale-ultrathin-electronics.html Nanophysics Wed, 29 Jul 2026 14:40:06 EDT news704544001 Spin waves (SWs), or magnons, are collective excitations of magnetization in magnetic materials arising from electron spins. They have attracted considerable attention as information carriers and have shown promise in logic circuits, memory devices and physical neural networks. Among the emerging platforms for manipulating SWs are magnonic crystals (MCs), engineered magnetic materials with periodic structures designed to control magnon propagation. These periodic structures give rise to magnonic band structures and mode profiles, much like semiconductor crystals control electron transport. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-inverse-2d-magnonic-crystals-widen.html Nanophysics Tue, 28 Jul 2026 17:00:07 EDT news704470382 A new quantum sensing technique could enable measurements of single protein structures and other important molecules, with potential applications in drug discovery and structural biology. A research team from the Institute for Quantum Computing (IQC) at the University of Waterloo developed a new method that uses a single molecule as a quantum sensor. Quantum sensors use unique properties of quantum mechanics to make ultra-precise measurements that traditional sensors cannot achieve. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-molecule-quantum-sensor-imaging-proteins.html Bio & Medicine Tue, 28 Jul 2026 15:00:06 EDT news704463661 Social amoebae are unicellular organisms that act in concert, requiring extensive communication. Pierre Stallforth and colleagues studied modes of communication among cells of the social amoeba Dictyostelium discoideum, using fluorescent labeling and various imaging techniques. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-social-amoebae-nanotube-networks-linking.html Bio & Medicine Tue, 28 Jul 2026 13:00:05 EDT news704458747 Imagine a smart bandage that could continuously monitor an infected wound, alerting doctors when bacteria spread or when treatment begins to work. That vision is one step closer to reality with new research from Virginia Tech. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-nanoscale-sensor-personalized-medicine.html Bio & Medicine Tue, 28 Jul 2026 11:20:05 EDT news704450881 Nanoporous material-based separation technology is vital in many applications because it can precisely distinguish between and separate nearly identical chemical or biochemical molecules. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-dynamic-nanopore-maximize-efficiency-molecule.html Bio & Medicine Tue, 28 Jul 2026 10:40:06 EDT news704450222 Cancer cells survive by hiding from the immune system's surveillance. A KAIST research team has developed a new anticancer platform that makes cancer cells send out their own danger signals—prompting immune cells to attack—while simultaneously delivering gene therapy. The approach is expected to offer a new treatment strategy that combines cancer immunotherapy and gene therapy in a single nanoparticle. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-helical-nanoparticles-trigger-cancer-alarms.html Bio & Medicine Tue, 28 Jul 2026 09:20:04 EDT news704448901 Nanocarbons are molecular-scale carbon structures considered to be the building blocks for next-generation materials. Until now, scientists have built them by fusing small, flat carbon molecules together at their edges. Modifying the inside of a molecule was considered challenging because inner bonds are locked into flat, rigid structures that resist change. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-scientists-rebuild-molecules-chiral-nanocarbons.html Nanomaterials Tue, 28 Jul 2026 05:00:01 EDT news704364241 Many of today's electronic devices—from the semiconductors in your cell phone to the photovoltaic cells in your solar panels—are built on thin-film substrates. The thin film is an electrically conductive material, while the substrate is an inert material. Or is it? https://phys.org/news/2026-07-thin-substrates-longer-inert-path.html Nanophysics Mon, 27 Jul 2026 18:00:05 EDT news704382661 Next-generation energy devices like fuel cells and water electrolyzers depend on ion-exchange membranes that allow only water and certain ions to pass through. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-membrane-nanostructures-reshape-revealing-route.html Nanomaterials Mon, 27 Jul 2026 17:50:01 EDT news704388422 Scientists at Houston Methodist Research Institute have developed a biodegradable implant designed to deliver cancer-fighting immunotherapy drugs directly into tumors over an extended period, a strategy that could improve treatment effectiveness while reducing side effects. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-biodegradable-implant-cancer-immunotherapy-healthy.html Bio & Medicine Mon, 27 Jul 2026 16:50:01 EDT news704387282 Photographs can reveal things that are otherwise impossible for the naked eye to see, be they distant galaxies or microscopic cells. Researchers at Osaka Metropolitan University have developed a practical and versatile imaging technique that makes another usually invisible phenomenon visible: surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs), light waves that travel along metal surfaces. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-quantum-dots-reveal-hidden-metal.html Nanophysics Fri, 24 Jul 2026 14:40:07 EDT news704113602 Photonic microchips can process data at extremely high speeds and are embedded in a wide variety of today's technologies. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) and Harvard University have now succeeded in developing three functional components for such chips that are up to 500 times smaller than conventional designs. The researchers used inverse design, a computer algorithm, to achieve this. The results are published in Nature Communications. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-algorithms-foundry-ready-photonic-circuits.html Nanophysics Fri, 24 Jul 2026 13:40:08 EDT news704113562 Researchers, including those from the University of Tokyo, found a way to optimize how cells bind to small packages they release called extracellular vesicles. By coating the vesicles with metal ions, they made cells and their corresponding vesicles stick together more strongly than they would naturally. This reduced the time needed for cells to capture their own vesicles, even in mixtures containing billions of other vesicles. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-metal-ion-coating-extracellular-vesicles.html Bio & Medicine Fri, 24 Jul 2026 11:00:02 EDT news704109301 Researchers at Queen Mary University of London and University of Cambridge in collaboration with colleagues at HHMI Janelia and NIH, have created some of the most detailed three-dimensional maps ever generated of human airway cells, revealing how the specialized cells that protect our lungs are built and organized. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-3d-nanoscale-human-airway-epithelium.html Bio & Medicine Thu, 23 Jul 2026 15:50:01 EDT news704038861 Immune cells protect and heal the human body. In medicine, they are specifically activated through biochemical reactions to treat certain diseases. Researchers at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon, ETH Zurich, Humboldt University of Berlin, Charité Berlin and Inselspital Bern have now discovered that immune cells also respond to the surface structure of materials—without chemistry. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-nanopores-human-cells-biochemical.html Bio & Medicine Thu, 23 Jul 2026 15:00:03 EDT news704030701 Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is the most common form of head and neck cancer, and the number of new cases is predicted to rise by 30% in the next decade. Despite decades of cancer research, treating OSCC remains a challenge. The five-year survival rate is approximately 50%, and standard treatments such as ablative surgery and radiation often leave patients with permanent disfigurement or profound, lifelong impairment of essential oral functions such as speaking and swallowing. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-lipid-nanoparticles-resistant-oral-tumors.html Bio & Medicine Thu, 23 Jul 2026 12:00:02 EDT news704019430 Microplastics are an increasing global concern, with growing evidence of their presence in water systems. RMIT University researchers have developed a water treatment material that rapidly removes micro- and nanoplastics and some PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances), bringing the technology closer to real-world use. The invention builds on the team's 2022 breakthrough in microplastics removal, extending its performance to much smaller particles and more complex wastewater. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-reusable-magnetic-microplastics-pfas.html Nanomaterials Wed, 22 Jul 2026 17:20:02 EDT news703947001 Researchers at the University of Twente have developed an optical method that follows the shape changes of a single protein in liquid without attaching anything to it. It reads the protein's structure from its own molecular vibrations, free from the labels or tags that other techniques rely on. The method could help researchers study how proteins respond to drugs, toxins and other biomolecules. The paper is published in the journal ACS Nano. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-optical-method-proteins-shift.html Bio & Medicine Wed, 22 Jul 2026 15:20:01 EDT news703943222 In a promising development for cancer treatment, a collaborative research team has overcome two issues that have prevented photothermal therapy, a much less invasive treatment option than surgery and/or radiation, from becoming more common. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-combined-nanoparticle-internal-laser-method.html Bio & Medicine Wed, 22 Jul 2026 11:20:07 EDT news703935118 For decades, water utilities have relied on giant tanks filled with ion-exchange resin beads to remove perchlorate, a harmful industrial pollutant, from drinking water. The system works by attracting negatively charged perchlorate ions to positively charged resin beads, allowing purified water to flow out of the tanks. But the process leaves behind a difficult problem: resin beads loaded with perchlorate that must be regenerated or disposed of as hazardous waste. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-ruthenium-nanoparticles-captured-perchlorate-harmless.html Bio & Medicine Tue, 21 Jul 2026 19:40:01 EDT news703865297 QUT researchers have overcome a challenge that has limited next-generation energy-harvesting materials for more than two decades, opening the door to more powerful wearable electronics and new ways of turning wasted heat into electricity. The breakthrough centers on carbon nanotubes, which are flexible, conductive microscopic rods that have long shown promise for wearable technologies but have been difficult to control. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-molecules-carbon-nanotubes-clumping-electricity.html Nanomaterials Mon, 20 Jul 2026 17:40:06 EDT news703781761 Researchers from Skoltech, in collaboration with the Harbin Institute of Technology and Jiangsu University (China), have published a study presenting the first empirical model to explain and predict the sensing behavior of hierarchical tri-phase carbon nanotube systems across a wide temperature range (from -170°C (-274°F) to 90°C (194°F)). The study has been published in the Carbon journal. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-carbon-nanotube-reveals-smart-sensors.html Nanophysics Mon, 20 Jul 2026 17:20:05 EDT news703780670 Researchers from the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore (NUS Medicine), have developed a swallowable nanoscale delivery platform designed to transport therapeutic enzymes through the stomach's acidic environment and activate a cancer-killing reaction at tumor sites. Early preclinical findings suggest that the approach may offer a new strategy for treating gastric cancer more precisely while reducing damage to healthy tissue. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-acid-resistant-nanocage-gastric-cancer.html Bio & Medicine Mon, 20 Jul 2026 16:20:07 EDT news703779842 The immune system, the body's defense network against infections and injuries, can sometimes become too active. In these cases, it can produce too many immune mediators, fragments of genetic material or proteins that regulate immune responses. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-nanoparticles-immune-molecules-blood.html Bio & Medicine Sat, 18 Jul 2026 13:40:01 EDT news703402994 Electrical interconnects may very well be the unsung heroes of modern microchips. These tiny wires—typically made of copper due to its high conductivity—string together the billions of transistors that drive our computers and electronic devices. But as the technology advances and additional transistors are piled on, the components must shrink to the nanoscale. And that's when copper begins to fail. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-thinner-wires-faster-electrons-quantum.html Nanomaterials Fri, 17 Jul 2026 11:40:01 EDT news703497286 University of Arizona researchers have demonstrated a promising new application for graphene nanoribbons, a nanoscale semiconductor material with the potential to withstand extreme environments. The team's findings could help clear a key hurdle to bringing fusion energy to the electric grid. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-graphene-nanoribbons-survive-gamma-revealing.html Nanophysics Thu, 16 Jul 2026 16:23:15 EDT news703437770 Some researchers are leaning into biology for inspiration in computing. In particular, neuromorphic computing offers a brain-inspired approach to hardware that replaces traditional binary processing with systems that function more like neurons and synapses. Now, a new study, published in Nature Communications, describes an innovative design for a fluidic memristor that uses its own self-heating mechanism to induce a history-dependent memory effect. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-brain-nanopore-device-current-memory.html Nanophysics Thu, 16 Jul 2026 13:40:03 EDT news703417766 Many of the advanced electronic components surrounding us in everyday life rely on polar materials to function. Polar materials have an uneven distribution of electric charge. This gives them a positive and a negative side even in the absence of an external electric field. The most important among these are ferroelectric materials, in which the direction of polarization can be reversed by applying an electric field. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-hybrid-material-antiferroelectricity-coexist-switchable.html Nanophysics Thu, 16 Jul 2026 13:20:01 EDT news703410647 Nanocrystals are so useful that they formed the basis of the 2023 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. But despite their usefulness, scientists have so far been able to make these microscopic crystals from only a limited palette of materials. A group of chemists at the University of Chicago and Argonne National Laboratory has announced a way to make nanocrystals from a useful class of materials known as metal nitrides—a previously impossible task. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-chemists-gallium-nitride-material-nanocrystals.html Nanomaterials Thu, 16 Jul 2026 10:20:07 EDT news703405455