Category archives: Materials

Engineering hybrid graphene nanoribbons with active electronic properties

Engineering hybrid graphene nanoribbons with active electronic properties

Condensed matterMaterialsNanotechnology

By DIPC

Graphene nanoribbons (GNRs), are strips of graphene with ultra-thin width (<50 nm). Graphene ribbons, introduced as a theoretical model by Mitsutaka Fujita and coauthors to examine the edge and nanoscale size effect in graphene, have emerged as a promising material for nanoelectronics, as they combine many of the extraordinary properties of graphene with a high […]

On-demand spectral response of phonon polaritons in van der Waals materials

On-demand spectral response of phonon polaritons in van der Waals materials

Condensed matterMaterialsNanotechnology

By DIPC

In the quantum theory of many-body systems, collective oscillations are called collective excitations. In a quantum context, everything is quantized. Hence, collective excitations become quantized modes because of the cooperative motion of the whole system as a result of interactions between particles. They may be electronic excitations in atoms and are referred excitons. In most […]

A universal tool for the measurement of electron−phonon coupling in conducting low-dimensional systems

A universal tool for the measurement of electron−phonon coupling in conducting low-dimensional systems

Condensed matterMaterialsNanotechnology

By DIPC

Superconductivity is a physical phenomenon in which some materials exhibit zero electrical resistance when cooled down below a certain critical temperature. As surprising as it can be, the critical temperature of these materials can be modified by reducing the sample size to about a million times the size of the objects we are used to […]

Controlling single molecule conductance with a new class of covalent bond formation

Controlling single molecule conductance with a new class of covalent bond formation

ChemistryMaterialsNanotechnology

By DIPC

One of the greatest inventions of the 20th century, if not the greatest, was the transistor. It revolutionized the electronics industry and changed the way people around the world lived, learned, worked, and played. Its invention marked the beginning of solid state electronics which quickly reduced the size and power requirements of existing electronic tube […]

How chirality information can transfer over long distances

How chirality information can transfer over long distances

ChemistryCondensed matterMaterialsNanotechnologyQuantum physics

By DIPC

Usually, optical activity is understood as the ability some substances have to change the handedness of polarized light when it goes through them. Molecules that show optical activity have no plane of symmetry. The commonest case of this is in organic compounds in which a carbon atom is linked to four different groups. An atom […]

Metal atoms enhance quantum dot coupling in metal-organic nanoporous networks

Metal atoms enhance quantum dot coupling in metal-organic nanoporous networks

ChemistryCondensed matterMaterialsQuantum physics

By DIPC

A quantum dot (QD) is a nanometric crystalline structure of semiconductor materials. In a QD electrons are confined in a region of space, thus creating a well defined structure of energy levels that depends very much on the size and shape of the quantum dot. This structure resembles that of atoms, that is why sometimes […]

An additional contribution to the spin Hall effect induced by an electric current

An additional contribution to the spin Hall effect induced by an electric current

Condensed matterMaterialsPhysicsTheoretical physics

By DIPC

The interactions between moving charges and magnetic fields can be quite complicated; more if we consider the quantum effects. One example is the collection of Hall effects. Imagine that we have a conductor or a semiconductor through which a current is flowing. Then we apply a strong transverse magnetic field. As a result, we can […]

Huisgenases, new protein catalysts which are not enzymes

Huisgenases, new protein catalysts which are not enzymes

ChemistryDIPC BiochemistryMaterials

By DIPC

Proteins can perform a huge number of biological functions with amazing efficiency. In order to achieve these different functions, proteins rely on the precise 3D arrangement of functional groups which are referred to as the protein fold. Some of these functions include acting as a catalyst in biochemical reactions; in these cases proteins are called […]

Quantum atomic fluctuations stabilize the crystal responsible for superconductivity at 250 K

Quantum atomic fluctuations stabilize the crystal responsible for superconductivity at 250 K

Condensed matterMaterialsQuantum physics

By DIPC

Achieving room temperature superconductivity is among the most pursued but elusive goals of scientists. I n December 2014 researchers claimed to have observed superconductivity as high as 200 K in hydrogen sulfide at high pressure, breaking all the records thus far. This meant that cuprates could be knocked from their position as the highest temperature […]

A local quantum emitter can be used to sense the environment of a molecule with the minimal quantum of energy

A local quantum emitter can be used to sense the environment of a molecule with the minimal quantum of energy

Condensed matterMaterialsNanotechnologyQuantum physicsTheoretical physics

By DIPC

Plasmonic nanostructures confine light to dimensions far smaller than the free-space wavelength, as they mix optical fields with electronic excitations. It was not until the 1990s, with the appearance of accurate and reliable nanofabrication techniques, that plasmonics blossomed. It was found then that local fields around nanostructures could be directly measured by near-field scanning optical […]