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An article in Nature Materials shows that a ‘quantum dot molecule’ — two fused and electronically coupled quantum dots — can easily switch between two distinct emission colours when induced by an electric field.
An article in the Journal of the American Chemical Society decorates type-I CdS-ZnS core–shell quantum dots with metallic domains to activate them as hydrogen evolution photocatalysts.
An article in Science uses photogenerated nitrene radicals to non-specifically bond together colloidal inorganic nanocrystals as they are 3D printed into robust functional structures.
An article in Nature Communications uses an artificial-intelligence-guided robot to accelerate the discovery and fabrication of chiroptically active films.
This Comment discusses metal–organic frameworks and their progress towards translation in a health-care setting. We explore their prospects in clinical applications, why translation seems slow, and what opportunities and obstacles await as they move towards the clinic.
An article in Advanced Materials reports the synthesis of high-quality single-crystalline 2D tellurium flakes and their use in high-performance field-effect transistors.
An article in Nature Electronics reports the integration of a ferroelectric gate with a transition metal dichalcogenide heterostructure in a device that can work both as a reconfigurable logic switch and as a neuromorphic device.
A paper in Nature Nanotechnology reports a residue-free method to transfer wafer-scale flakes of transition metal dichalcogenides and its use to fabricate high-performance field-effect transistors.
Sorption working pairs, which can convert low-grade heat into cold energy or seasonally store thermal energy, are potential future carbon-neutral materials for thermal management. This Comment highlights the superiorities of metal–organic framework (MOF)–ammonia working pairs for adaptable thermal management under extreme climates and discusses strategies to design MOFs with high stability and ammonia sorption capacity.
Nature provides an endless source of inspiration for advanced materials, fuelled by evolutionary innovations over many millions of years. Capitalizing on this wealth of biological solutions requires an approach to materials innovation that is informed by a holistic understanding of multi-functional biological systems and leverages the defining feature of the natural world — diversity.
Active learning and automation will not easily liberate humans from laboratory workflows. Before they can really impact materials research, artificial intelligence systems will need to be carefully set up to ensure their robust operation and their ability to deal with both epistemic and stochastic errors. As autonomous experiments become more widely available, it is essential to think about how to embed reproducibility, reconfigurability and interoperability in the design of autonomous labs.
An article in Nature Nanotechnology reports a nanopore-based single-molecule sensing method that allows control over the translocation speed of the measured molecule.
An article in Advanced Materials reports an entropy tuning strategy to design sodium-ion battery electrolytes that adapt to low temperatures, enabling rechargeable batteries that work in the extreme cold.
