Nano News: 06/22/15

A simple reversible process that changes friction in the nanoworld

It is possible to vary (even dramatically) the sliding properties of atoms on a surface by changing the size and "compression" of their aggregates: an experimental and theoretical study conducted with the collaboration of SISSA, the Istituto Officina dei Materiali of the CNR (Iom-Cnr-Democritos), ICTP in Trieste, the University of Padua, the University...

Plasmonics: revolutionizing light-based technologies via electron oscillations in metals

For centuries, artists mixed silver and gold powder with glass to fabricate colorful windows to decorate buildings. The results were impressive, but they didn’t have a scientific reason for how these ingredients together made stained glass. In the early 20th century, the physicist Gustav Mie figured out that the color of a metal nanoparticle is related...

Soft core, hard shell - the latest in nanotechnology

Medical science is placing high hopes on nanoparticles as in future they could be used, for example, as a vehicle for targeted drug delivery. In collaboration with an international team of researchers, scientists at the Helmholtz Zentrum München and the University of Marburg have for the first time...