Press Releases

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This picture combines a transmission electron microscope image of a nanodumbbell with a gold domain oriented in direction. The seed and gold domains in the dumbbell in the image on the right are identified by geometric phase analysis. Image credit: Soon Gu Kwon. (Click image to enlarge)
 Atomic 'mismatch' creates nano 'dumbbells'

Thanks to a new study from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory, researchers are closer to understanding the process by which nanoparticles made of more than one material – called heterostructured nanoparticles – form.

 December 4, 2014
The synchrotron X-ray scanning tunneling microscopy concept allowed Argonne National Laboratory and Ohio University researchers to achieve a recording-breaking resolution of a nanoscale material. They combined of a synchrotron X-ray as a probe and a nanofabricated smart tip as a detector to fingerprint individual nickel clusters on a copper surface at a two-nanometer resolution and at the ultimate single-atomic height sensitivity. And by varying the photon energy, researchers successfully measured photoionization cross sections of a single nickel nanocluster – opening the door to new opportunities for chemical imaging of nanoscale materials. (Click image to enlarge)
 Powerful new technique simultaneously determines nanomaterials' chemical makeup, topography

A team of researchers from the U.S. Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory and Ohio University have devised a powerful technique that simultaneously resolves the chemical characterization and topography of nanoscale materials down to the height of a single atom.

 December 2, 2014
This wafer of nanocrystalline diamond provides one example of the technology that AKHAN Semiconductor has licensed from Argonne. Photo courtesy of Ani Sumant. (Click image to enlarge)
 Argonne announces new licensing agreement with AKHAN Semiconductor

Argonne has announced a new intellectual property licensing agreement with AKHAN Semiconductor, continuing a productive public-private partnership that will bring diamond-based semiconductor technologies to market.

 November 19, 2014
The surface acoustic wave (SAW) sensor detects frequency changes in waves that propagate through its crystalline structure. This makes it ideal for detecting the presence of chemicals or biomarkers present in a liquid or gas. For example, it can detect cancer proteins attached to a receptor on the sensor surface. Image credit: Shutterstock. (Click image to enlarge)
 Researchers develop new acoustic sensor for chemical and biological detection

A new microscopic acoustic device that has been dramatically improved by scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory has the potential to form a new test for ovarian cancer or the presence of a particular chemical.

 November 17, 2014
Graphene's hexagonal structure makes it an excellent lubricant. (Click image to enlarge)
 Researchers fight friction and wear with one-atom-thick graphene

Nanoscientist Anirudha Sumant and his colleagues at Argonne’s Center for Nanoscale Materials and Argonne’s Energy Systems division applied a one-atom-thick layer of graphene, a two-dimensional form of carbon, in between a steel ball and a steel disk. They found that just the single layer of graphene lasted for more than 6,500 “wear cycles,” a dramatic improvement over conventional lubricants like graphite or molybdenum disulfide.

 October 13, 2014
A false-color image of a microelectromechanical device. The diamond-based actuator is colored gold. Click to enlarge. Image credit: Ani Sumant.
 Thin diamond films provide new material for micro-machines

Researchers at the Center for Nanoscale Materials at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory and a handful of other institutions around the world have directed their focus to exploring microelectromechanical systems made of a relatively new material known as ultrananocrystalline diamond, which is a smooth and wear-resistant diamond thin film.

 July 31, 2014
University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point chemistry professor Michael Zach (left) and Argonne nanoscientist Ani Sumant pose with their R&D 100 award-winning “NanoFab lab…in a box!” Click to enlarge. Photo credit: Mark Lopez.
 Argonne wins three R&D 100 awards

Argonne wins three 2014 R&D 100 awards.

 July 11, 2014
A new study by Argonne and Northwestern scientists reported that solar panels manufactured in China are likely to use more energy to make and have a larger carbon footprint than those made in Europe. Image by Renee Carlson / Argonne National Laboratory. Click to enlarge.
 Solar panel manufacturing is greener in Europe than China, study says

Solar panels made in China have a higher overall carbon footprint and are likely to use substantially more energy during manufacturing than those made in Europe, said a new study from Northwestern University and Argonne.

 May 29, 2014
Argonne materials scientists Seungbum Hong (left) and Andreas Roelofs adjust an atomic force microscope. Click to enlarge. Photo credit: Wes Agresta/Argonne National Laboratory.
 Microscopy charges ahead

In order to see the true polarization states of ferroelectric materials quickly and efficiently, researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory have developed a new technique called charge gradient microscopy.

 May 28, 2014
Scientists from Argonne created the world’s thinnest flexible, transparent thin-film transistor, which could one day be useful in making a truly flexible display screen for TVs or phones. From left: Andreas Roelofs, Anirudha Sumant, and Richard Gulotty; in foreground, Saptarshi Das. Photo by Mark Lopez/Argonne National Laboratory. Click to enlarge.
 Flexible, transparent thin film transistors raise hopes for flexible screens

The electronics world has been dreaming for half a century of the day you can roll a TV up in a tube. But scientists got one step closer last month when researchers at Argonne reported the creation of the world’s thinnest flexible, see-through 2-D thin film transistors.

 May 23, 2014
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