image: CuZn800@C was constructed via solvothermal method and utilizes the high-temperature volatility of zinc to prepare through calcination at different temperatures, which displays a high methane Faradaic efficiency of 64.5% and a remarkable partial current density of -551.3 mA/cm2 at -1.7 V vs. RHE, along with excellent stability. Zn and Cu form a tandem reaction system. Zn sites promote water splitting to provide protons, while Cu sites reduce the energy barrier for *CO h

A joint team from SNU, KAIST, and KBSI has identified the distinct reaction sites of silver nanocatalysts in solid oxide cells. During electricity generation the catalyst–electrode interface dominates, while during hydrogen production the nanoparticle surface is key. The finding enables new design principles for higher-efficiency green hydrogen and clean power systems. Published in Energy & Environmental Science.

In 2024, researchers in the Laboratory of Nanoscience for Energy Technology (LNET) in EPFL’s School of Engineering reported a platform for studying the hydrovoltaic (HV) effect – a phenomenon that allows electricity to be harvested when fluid is passed over the charged surface of a nanodevice. Their platform consisted of a hexagonal network of silicon nanopillars, the space between which created channels for evaporating fluid samples. Now the LNET team, led by Giulia Tagliab

Hair-width LEDs could replace lasers — and a UCSB doctoral student is helping make it happen

Researchers at the Cavendish Laboratory, University of Cambridge have developed a new method to electrically power insulating nanoparticles, a feat previously thought impossible under normal conditions. By attaching organic molecules that act as tiny antennas, they have created the first-ever light-emitting diodes (LEDs) from these materials. The breakthrough, published in Nature, opens the door to a new generation of devices with applications ranging from deep-tissue biomedi

A European research team involving scientists from DESY and Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH) has developed a novel way for converting mechanical energy into electricity – by using water confined in nanometre-sized pores of silicon as the active working fluid. In a study published in Nano Energy (Elsevier), the scientists demonstrate that the cyclic intrusion and extrusion of water in water-repellentnanoporous silicon monoliths can produce measurable electrical power.

Publishing in Nature Materials, researchers at Kyushu University report that they have succeeded in developing a new SOFC with an efficient operating temperature of 300℃. The team expects that their new findings will lead to the development of low-cost, low-temperature SOFCs and greatly accelerate the practical application of these devices. The heart of an SOFC is the electrolyte, a ceramic layer that carries charged particles between two electrodes. In hydrogen fuel cells, t

The key to this research is the ‘nano-spring coating’ technology that can design elastic structures. The research team implemented a mult...

The research team solved the problem using aluminum. Aluminum is generally known to be easily corroded in alkaline environments, but the...

Hydrogen nano-clusters at low temperatures display ‘superfluidity’—a quantum state of frictionless flow only previously observed in helium.

A new study challenges the six-decade-old Fermi liquid theory of electrical transport in metals. The research uses a technique called shot n

Illustration of a PEDOT film on a graphene sheet that can be used in supercapacitors to store large amounts of energy. @ Maher El-Kady...