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Categories: Engineering: Nanotechnology, Environmental: Wildfires
Published Wildfires also impact aquatic ecosystems



Researchers have shown that the effects of wildfires are not limited to terrestrial ecosystems. Aquatic ecosystems are also undergoing rapid changes. The study found that fire debris transforms lakes and other aquatic ecosystems, with implications for fisheries and water quality.
Published Nanoprobe with a barcode



Protein-splitting enzymes play an important role in many physiological processes. Such proteases are generally present in an inactive state, only becoming activated under certain conditions. Some are linked to diseases like infections or cancer, making it important to have methods that can selectively detect active proteases. Scientists have introduced a new class of protease-activity sensors: gold nanoparticles equipped with peptide DNA.
Published Twenty-year study confirms California forests are healthier when burned -- or thinned



A 20-year experiment in the Sierra Nevada confirms that different forest management techniques -- prescribed burning, restoration thinning or a combination of both -- are effective at reducing the risk of catastrophic wildfire in California. These treatments also improve forest health, making trees more resilient to stressors like drought and bark beetles, and they do not negatively impact plant or wildlife biodiversity within individual tree stands, the research found.
Published Spinning up control: Propeller shape helps direct nanoparticles



Self-propelled nanoparticles could potentially advance drug delivery and lab-on-a-chip systems -- but they are prone to go rogue with random, directionless movements. Now, an international team of researchers has developed an approach to rein in the synthetic particles.
Published In a new light -- new approach overcomes long-standing limitations in optics



When you look up at the sky and see clouds of wondrous shapes, or struggle to peer through dense, hazy fog, you're seeing the results of 'Mie scattering', which is what happens with light interacts with particles of a certain size. There is a growing body of research that aims to manipulate this phenomenon and make possible an array of exciting technologies. Researchers have now developed a new means of manipulating Mie scattering from nanostructures.
Published Chance twists ordered carbon nanotubes into 'tornado films'



Scientists have developed two new methods to create ordered carbon nanotube films with either a left- or right-handed chiral pattern.
Published Climate change will increase wildfire risk and lengthen fire seasons



Wildfires are some of the most destructive natural disasters in the country, threatening lives, destroying homes and infrastructure, and creating air pollution. In order to properly forecast and manage wildfires, managers need to understand wildfire risk and allocate resources accordingly.
Published Polaritons open up a new lane on the semiconductor highway



On the highway of heat transfer, thermal energy is moved by way of quantum particles called phonons. But at the nanoscale of today's most cutting-edge semiconductors, those phonons don't remove enough heat. That's why researchers are focused on opening a new nanoscale lane on the heat transfer highway by using hybrid quasiparticles called 'polaritons.'
Published Bowtie resonators that build themselves bridge the gap between nanoscopic and macroscopic



Two nanotechnology approaches converge by employing a new generation of fabrication technology. It combines the scalability of semiconductor technology with the atomic dimensions enabled by self-assembly.
Published Wildfires have erased two decades' worth of air quality gains in western United States



A new study concludes that wildfires originating in the western United States and Canada have erased air quality gains over the past two decades and caused an increase of premature deaths in fire-prone areas and downwind regions, primarily in the western U.S.
Published New implants linked to less infection and better recovery from orthopedic surgery



Superior knee and hip replacements are a step closer after researchers further test and develop a new orthopedic implant coating which has the strong ability to ward off infection -- as well as stimulate bone growth. The technology consists of novel Silver-Gallium (Ag-Ga) nano-amalgamated particles that can be easily applied to medical device surfaces.
Published Strange burn: New research identifies unique patterns in Utah wildfires



Utah's variable topography produces a tremendous range of wildfire behavior, according to new research.
Published Breakthroughs in nanosized contrast agents and drug carriers through self-folding molecules



Self-folding polymers containing gadolinium forming nanosized complexes could be the key to enhanced magnetic resonance imaging and next-generation drug delivery. Thanks to their small size, low toxicity, and good tumor accumulation and penetration, these complexes represent a leap forward in contrast agents for cancer diagnosis, as well as neutron capture radiotherapy.
Published Quantum physics: Superconducting Nanowires Detect Single Protein Ions



An international research team has achieved a breakthrough in the detection of protein ions: Due to their high energy sensitivity, superconducting nanowire detectors achieve almost 100% quantum efficiency and exceed the detection efficiency of conventional ion detectors at low energies by a factor of up to a 1,000. In contrast to conventional detectors, they can also distinguish macromolecules by their impact energy. This allows for more sensitive detection of proteins and it provides additional information in mass spectrometry.
Published Photonic chip that 'fits together like Lego' opens door to semiconductor industry



A new semiconductor architecture integrates traditional electronics with photonic, or light, components could have application in advanced radar, satellites, wireless networks and 6G telecommunications. And it provides a pathway for a local semiconductor industry.
Published Harvesting more solar energy with supercrystals



Hydrogen is a building block for the energy transition. To obtain it with the help of solar energy, researchers have developed new high-performance nanostructures. The material holds a world record for green hydrogen production with sunlight.
Published Control over friction, from small to large scales



Friction is hard to predict and control, especially since surfaces that come in contact are rarely perfectly flat. New experiments demonstrate that the amount of friction between two silicon surfaces, even at large scales, is determined by the forming and rupturing of microscopic chemical bonds between them. This makes it possible to control the amount of friction using surface chemistry techniques.
Published Ash can fertilize the oceans



Flames roared through Santa Barbara County in late 2017. UC Santa Barbara canceled classes, and the administration recommended donning an N95, long before the COVID pandemic made the mask a household item. Smoke and ash choked the air, but the Thomas Fire's effects weren't restricted to the land and sky. Huge amounts of ash settled into the oceans, leaving researchers to wonder what effect it might have on marine life.
Published Nextgen computing: Hard-to-move quasiparticles glide up pyramid edges



A new kind of 'wire' for moving excitons could help enable a new class of devices, perhaps including room temperature quantum computers.
Published First comprehensive look at effects of 2020-2021 California megafires on terrestrial wildlife habitat



In 2020 and 2021, California experienced fire activity unlike anything recorded in the modern record. When the smoke cleared, the amount of burned forest totaled ten times more than the annual average going back to the late 1800s. We know that wildlife in western forests evolved with changing habitat and disturbances like wildfire. Each species responds differently, some benefiting from openings, others losing critical habitat. What we don't know is how increasing fire severity at large scales is impacting their habitat and survival, because many species are not adapted to these types of 'megafires.'