New Material Paves the Way to On-Chip Energy Harvesting

09-Jul-2024 - Researchers from Germany, Italy, and the UK have achieved a major advance in the development of materials suitable for on-chip energy harvesting. By composing an alloy made of silicon, germanium and tin, they were able to create a thermoelectric material, promising to transform the waste heat of ...

'Tickling' an atom to investigate the behavior of materials

09-Mar-2020 - Scientists and engineers working at the frontier of nanotechnology face huge challenges. When the position of a single atom in a material may change the fundamental properties of that material, scientists need something in their toolbox to measure how that atom will behave. A research team led by ...

Scientists create the world's thinnest gold

08-Aug-2019 - Scientists at the University of Leeds have created a new form of gold which is just two atoms thick - the thinnest unsupported gold ever created. The researchers measured the thickness of the gold to be 0.47 nanometres - that is one million times thinner than a human finger nail. The material is ...

Shaking off fluorochemicals from outdoor and protective clothing

Most treated clothing over-engineered for consumer purposes

31-Jan-2019 - Rain-repelling fluorochemicals used in waterproof clothing can and should be phased out as unnecessary and environmentally harmful, textile researchers argue. And yet they remain the only effective option for medics and emergency service personnel. New research demonstrates how waterproofs using ...

Libraries for Proteins

Dynamic combinatorial libraries generated from hydrazone-functionalized surface mimetics

29-May-2018 - Combinatorial libraries are a key component of the chemist's toolkit for ligand screening. Dynamic combinatorial libraries add a new dimension by interlinking synthesis and screening. Now, British scientists have developed a dynamic combinatorial library for the screening of supramolecular ligand ...

Liquid crystals for new optical applications

Merck collaborates with the University of Leeds

19-May-2017 - Merck, a leading science and technology company, announced today that it has signed a five-year research collaboration agreement with the University of Leeds. The aim is to develop new digital optical applications with liquid crystals under the umbrella of the “Emerging Innovation – LC 2021” ...

Scientists getting warmer on mimicking anti-freeze in nature

23-May-2016 - Researchers from the University of Leeds have taken an important step forward in mimicking nature's prowess at protecting cells from deep-freeze conditions. The new research reveals how glycerol prevents ice crystals from forming in water as the solution is cooled to -35°C, with important ...

The end is in sight for reading glasses

20-Oct-2015 - A University of Leeds researcher is developing a new eye lens, made from the same material found in smartphone and TV screens, which could restore long-sightedness in older people. As people age, their lenses lose flexibility and elasticity. This leads to a condition known as presbyopia, common ...

Molecular trick alters rules of attraction for non-magnetic metals

07-Aug-2015 - Scientists have demonstrated for the first time how to generate magnetism in metals that aren't naturally magnetic, which could end our reliance on some rare and toxic elements currently used. In a study led by the University of Leeds and published today in the journal Nature, researchers detail ...

The quantum secret to alcohol reactions in space

02-Jul-2013 - Chemists have discovered that an 'impossible' reaction at cold temperatures actually occurs with vigour, which could change our understanding of how alcohols are formed and destroyed in space. To explain the impossible, the researchers propose that a quantum mechanical phenomenon, known as ...