An international team of scientists has created the highest static pressure ever achieved in a lab: Using a special high pressure device, the researchers investigated the behavior of the metal osmium at pressures of up to 770 Gigapascals — more than twice the pressure in the inner core of the Earth. Surprisingly, osmium does not change its crystal structure, but the core electrons of the atoms come so close to each other that they can interact.

Scientists have discovered, for the first time, a new nanocomposite formed by the self-assembly of copper and a biological component that occurs under physiological conditions, which are similar those found in the human body and could be used in targeted drug delivery for fighting diseases such as cancer.

Scientists have developed a technique that could lead to therapies for pain relief in people with intractable pain, potentially including cancer-related pain. The team coated gold nanorods with a special type of protein that transports fat within the body known as a lipoprotein. This allowed the nanorods to bind efficiently to nerve cell membranes bearing a pain receptor. Gold nanorods are tiny rods that are 1-100 nanometers wide and long. In comparison, a human hair is 100,000 nanometers wide.

Chemists embed metallic nanoparticles into laser-induced graphene, turning it into a useful catalyst for fuel cell and other applications.

By dispersing nanoparticles with an electrospray, scientists have found a more efficient and safer way to use water-soluble solvents to create monolayer nanoparticle films.

Researchers have developed tiny nanocrystals that could be used in the next generation of medical imaging technologies to light up cancer cells.

Newly developed 2-D crystals are capable of delivering designer materials with revolutionary new properties. By protecting the new reactive crystals with more stable 2D materials, such as graphene, via computer control in a specially designed inert gas chamber environments, these materials can be successfully isolated to a single atomic layer for the first time.

Advances in manufacturing technology for ‘quantum dots’ may soon lead to a new generation of LED lighting that produces a more user-friendly white light, while using less toxic materials and low-cost manufacturing processes that take advantage of simple microwave heating. It could help the nation cut its lighting bill in half.

Finding a technology to shift carbon dioxide, the most abundant anthropogenic greenhouse gas, from a climate change problem to a valuable commodity has long been a dream. Now, a team of chemists says they have developed a technology to economically convert atmospheric CO2 directly into highly valued carbon nanofibers for industrial and consumer products.

New research could one day help build computers from DNA. Scientists have found a way to ‘switch’ the structure of DNA using copper salts and EDTA (Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid) — an agent commonly found in shampoo and other household products. The applications for this discovery include nanotechnology — where DNA is used to make tiny machines, and in DNA-based computing — where computers are built from DNA rather than silicon.