News from the NNI Community - Research Advances Funded by Agencies Participating in the NNI

Among the unique qualities of graphene is that layers of it can be stacked on top of each other, like Lego pieces, to create artificial electronic materials. But efficient methods for building these structures – and, more generally, atomically thin graphene-like materials that are placed on top of each other – are still lacking. Now, a team of researchers from New York University and the National Institute for Materials Science in Japan has found a versatile method for the construction of these structures.

Among the unique qualities of graphene is that layers of it can be stacked on top of each other, like Lego pieces, to create artificial electronic materials. But efficient methods for building these structures – and, more generally, atomically thin graphene-like materials that are placed on top of each other – are still lacking. Now, a team of researchers from New York University and the National Institute for Materials Science in Japan has found a versatile method for the construction of these structures.

Among the unique qualities of graphene is that layers of it can be stacked on top of each other, like Lego pieces, to create artificial electronic materials. But efficient methods for building these structures – and, more generally, atomically thin graphene-like materials that are placed on top of each other – are still lacking. Now, a team of researchers from New York University and the National Institute for Materials Science in Japan has found a versatile method for the construction of these structures.

Among the unique qualities of graphene is that layers of it can be stacked on top of each other, like Lego pieces, to create artificial electronic materials. But efficient methods for building these structures – and, more generally, atomically thin graphene-like materials that are placed on top of each other – are still lacking. Now, a team of researchers from New York University and the National Institute for Materials Science in Japan has found a versatile method for the construction of these structures.

A research team at The City University of New York, in collaboration with The University of Texas at Austin, National University of Singapore, and Monash University in Australia, has used ''twistronics'' concepts (the science of layering and twisting two-dimensional materials to control their electrical properties) to manipulate the flow of light. The findings hold the promise for advances in a variety of light-driven technologies, including nano-imaging devices; high-speed, low-energy optical computers; and biosensors.

A research team at The City University of New York, in collaboration with The University of Texas at Austin, National University of Singapore, and Monash University in Australia, has used ''twistronics'' concepts (the science of layering and twisting two-dimensional materials to control their electrical properties) to manipulate the flow of light. The findings hold the promise for advances in a variety of light-driven technologies, including nano-imaging devices; high-speed, low-energy optical computers; and biosensors.

Place a single sheet of carbon atop another at a slight angle, and remarkable properties emerge, including the resistance-free flow of current known as superconductivity. Now, a team of researchers at Princeton has looked for the origins of this unusual behavior in a material known as magic-angle twisted bilayer graphene and detected signatures of a cascade of energy transitions that could help explain how superconductivity arises in this material. 

Place a single sheet of carbon atop another at a slight angle, and remarkable properties emerge, including the resistance-free flow of current known as superconductivity. Now, a team of researchers at Princeton has looked for the origins of this unusual behavior in a material known as magic-angle twisted bilayer graphene and detected signatures of a cascade of energy transitions that could help explain how superconductivity arises in this material. 

Scientists at Texas A&M University have developed a new class of 2D nanosheets that can adsorb near infrared light and convert it into heat. Near-infrared light can penetrate deep inside human tissue compared to other types of light, including ultraviolet and visible light, and can be used to stimulate natural biological repair mechanisms in deep tissue. Due to their high-surface area, the nanosheets can stick to the outer membrane of a cell and transmit a cellular signal to the nucleus, thereby controlling the cell’s behavior.

Scientists at Texas A&M University have developed a new class of 2D nanosheets that can adsorb near infrared light and convert it into heat. Near-infrared light can penetrate deep inside human tissue compared to other types of light, including ultraviolet and visible light, and can be used to stimulate natural biological repair mechanisms in deep tissue. Due to their high-surface area, the nanosheets can stick to the outer membrane of a cell and transmit a cellular signal to the nucleus, thereby controlling the cell’s behavior.