Latest Materials science Stories

Optical Society of America Light 'jumping the tracks' enables enhanced data processing, better sensing Optical fibers –the backbone of the Internet–carry movies, messages, and music at the speed of light. But for all their efficiency, these ultrathin strands of pristine glass must connect to sluggish signal switches, routers, and buffers in order to transmit data. Hoping to do away with these information speed bumps, researchers have developed a new, dual-core optical fiber that...

SALT LAKE CITY, Dec. 19, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Amedica Corporation, a spinal and reconstructive medical device manufacturer, today unveiled its new website, providing the community with a comprehensive resource on Silicon Nitride (Si(3)N(4)) for spine interbody fusion procedures and other orthopedic applications. Site enhancements and upgraded navigation capabilities now enable visitors to quickly find information on the company's proprietary FDA-cleared Silicon Nitride technology...

Rice University theory predicts formation of conductive sub-nano ‘wires’ in two-dimensional materials A new material structure predicted at Rice University offers the tantalizing possibility of a signal path smaller than the nanowires for advanced electronics now under development at Rice and elsewhere. Theoretical physicist Boris Yakobson and postdoctoral fellow Xiaolong Zou were investigating the atomic-scale properties of two-dimensional materials when they found to their...

DALLAS, December 17, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- RnRMarketResearch.com adds "Research on Global and China Wafer Foundry Industry, 2012" and "Research on China's Thermoplastic Elastomer (TPE) Industry, 2012-2017" reports to its store. Since 2011, the world's major wafer foundries are accelerating the expansion of advanced process capacity scale. With the flourish of smart phone and tablet PC market, the demand for advance process which owns low cost and high efficiency...

When materials are stressed, they eventually change shape. Initially these changes are elastic, and reverse when the stress is relieved. When the material's strength is exceeded, the changes become permanent. This could result in the material breaking or shattering, but it could also re-shape the material, such as a hammer denting a piece of metal. Understanding this last group of changes is the focus of research from a team including Carnegie's Ho-kwang "Dave" Mao. Their breakthrough...

Tsukuba, Japan, Dec 12, 2012 - (ACN Newswire) - In their recently published review article in the Science and Technology of Advanced Materials, Yasuhiko Iwasaki at Kansai University and Kazuhiko Ishihara at the University of Tokyo describe how developments in synthesis techniques have liberated the polymer MPC's potential for a huge range of medical and biological applications.A polymer inspired by the lipids in cell membranes is proving an invaluable biomaterial. Like the cell membrane, the...

FARMINGTON, Conn., Dec. 11, 2012 /PRNewswire-iReach/ -- A shortage of sapphire material between 2010 and 2011 created a window of opportunity for new entrants. In just the last two years, more than 80 companies announced their intention to enter the industry. This trend coupled with slow demand from LED makers in 2012, has manifested a challenging environment with cores and wafers often selling at prices at or below manufacturing cost. These difficult market conditions will trigger an...

Northwestern’s McCormick School of Engineering Researchers combine computational and experimental methods to understand the arrangement of atoms in solids Understanding the arrangement of atoms in a solid — one of solids’ fundamental properties — is vital to advanced materials research. For decades, two camps of researchers have been working to develop methods to understand these so-called crystal structures. “Solution” methods, championed by experimental researchers, draw...

TAMPERE, Finland, Dec. 11, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Primoceler Inc. (http://www.primoceler.com), a microfabrication company specializing in glass welding and laser scribing, has announced its development of a new laser-based welding machine for microelectromechanical systems. Primoceler's new machine produces an extremely small heat-affected zone during the hermetic sealing of sensitive components, improving manufacturing processes and expanding the potential for packaging sensitive...

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory Advanced ceramic composites can withstand the ultrahigh operational temperatures projected for hypersonic jet and next generation gas turbine engines, but real-time analysis of the mechanical properties of these space-age materials at ultrahigh temperatures has been a challenge – until now. Researchers with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have developed the first testing facility that...