Nanotechnology

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Inspired by an artist’s stencils, researchers have developed atomic-level precision patterning on nanoparticle surfaces, allowing them to “paint” gold nanoparticles with polymers, or long chains of small molecules, to give them an array of new shapes and functions. The “patchy nanoparticles” developed by a multi-institutional team that includes researchers at Penn State can be made in large batches, used for a variety of electronic, optical or biomedical applications, or used as building blocks for new complex materials and metamaterials.   

Microrobots modeled in simulations communicate via sound to form ‘acoustic swarms’ and move collectively

By Adrienne Berard

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – As the managing director for Penn State's Center for Nanotechnology Education and Utilization (CNEU), Zachary Gray spends a lot of his summer in the classroom. He works to teach veterans and students how to work at microscopic scales as part of a 12-week course — the same one that shifted his career path almost two decades ago. 

A simple biomaterial-based strategy that can influence the behavior of cells could pave the way for more effective medical treatments such as wound healing, cancer therapy and even organ regeneration, according to a research team at Penn State.

Polarized light waves spin clockwise or counterclockwise as they travel, with one direction behaving differently than the other as it interacts with molecules. This directionality, called chirality or handedness, could provide a way to identify and sort specific molecules for use in biomedicine applications, but researchers have had limited control over the direction of the waves — until now.

Sulfur-based compounds produced in our bodies help fight inflammation and create new blood vessels, among other responsibilities, but the compounds are delicate and break down easily, making them difficult to study. A team led by Penn State scientists have developed a new method to generate the compounds — called polysulfides — inside of cells, and the work could potentially lead to advances in wound treatment and tissue repair.

Penn State astronomers awarded two grants to develop, fabricate and test improved diffraction optics that could allow next-generation space telescopes to explore objects that are fainter and farther away in the universe

By Katie Yan

By Matthew Carroll

Borrowing from cell membranes, the protective barriers around cells in all living organisms, Penn State scientists have developed a new, cost-effective method for creating bio-inspired solar devices that could improve the performance of next-generation solar technology.

By Sam Sholtis

Mauricio Terrones, Evan Pugh University Professor and Verne M. Willaman Professor of Physics, and professor of chemistry and of material science and engineering, has been named the new George A. and Margaret M. Downsbrough Head of the Department of Physics at Penn State, effective July 1. Terrones succeeds Nitin Samarth, who has served as head of the department since 2011.