Over the past half-century, scientists have shaved silicon films down to just a wisp of atoms in pursuit of smaller, faster electronics. For the next set of breakthroughs, though, they’ll need novel ways to build even tinier and more powerful devices. A study led by UChicago researchers, published Sept. 20 in Nature, describes an innovative method…
Solar System Could Have Evolved from Poorly Mixed Elemental Soup
Planetary scientists have long believed that Earth formed from planetary objects similar to meteorites. Then, a decade ago, perplexing new measurements challenged that assumption by showing that Earth and its supposed “building blocks” actually contain significantly different isotopic compositions. For the past 10 years, scientists have been trying to understand why. Recent work by the…
Computer Model Explains Sustained Eruptions on Saturn’s Icy Moon
The Cassini spacecraft has observed geysers erupting on Saturn’s moon Enceladus since 2005, but the process that drives and sustains these eruptions has remained a mystery. Now, scientists at the University of Chicago and Princeton University have pinpointed a mechanism by which cyclical tidal stresses exerted by Saturn can drive Enceladus’s long-lived eruptions. “On Earth,…
Bonelike 3D Silicon Synthesized for Potential Use with Medical Devices
Researchers have developed a new approach for better integrating medical devices with biological systems. The researchers, led by Bozhi Tian, assistant professor in chemistry at the University of Chicago, have developed the first skeleton-like silicon spicules ever prepared via chemical processes. “Using bone formation as a guide, the Tian group has developed a synthetic material…
Molecular Engineers Record an Electron’s Quantum Behavior
A team of researchers led by the University of Chicago has developed a technique to record the quantum mechanical behavior of an individual electron contained within a nanoscale defect in diamond. Their technique uses ultrafast pulses of laser light both to control the defect’s entire quantum state and observe how that single electron state changes…
Physicists Use 3D Printing to Test Complex Qualities of Shapes
Prof. Heinrich Jaeger’s research group examines materials and phenomena that appear simple at the surface, but which reveal tremendous complexity upon close examination. One such phenomenon is jamming, in which aggregates of randomly placed particles, including spheres or more complicated shapes, or even molecules, transition from fluid-like to solid-like behavior. Jamming lends itself to soft…