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Novel technique to synthesize nanocrystals that harvest solar energy

One reason that solar energy has not been widely adopted is because light absorbing materials are not durable. Materials that harvest solar radiation for energy often overheat or degrade over time; this reduces their viability to compete with other renewable energy sources like wind or hydroelectric generators.

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This is a schematic of the photocatalytic nanocrystal.

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NASA Mars Rover Begins Driving at Bradbury Landing

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Zapping Rocks Exposed by the Sky Crane's Thrusters
This photo mosaic shows the scour mark, dubbed Goulburn, left by the thrusters on the sky crane that helped lower NASA's Curiosity rover to the Red Planet. It is located 16 to 20 feet (5 to 6 meters) to the left of the rover's landing position. The sky crane appears to have uncovered an outcrop of loosely consolidated rocks during the rover's landing.

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Super-Strong, High-Tech Material Found to be Toxic to Aquatic Animals by Researchers at MU and USGS: Carbon nanotubes hold promise for industry but need monitoring, say researchers

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are some of the strongest materials on Earth and are used to strengthen composite materials, such as those used in high-performance tennis rackets. CNTs have potential uses in everything from medicine to electronics to construction. However, CNTs are not without risks. A joint study by the University of Missouri and United States Geological Survey found that they can be toxic to aquatic animals. The researchers urge that care be taken to prevent the release of CNTs into the environment as the materials enter mass production.

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Multi-walled carbon nanotubes. 3-15 walls, mean inner diameter 4nm, mean outer diameter 13-16 nm, length 1-10+ micrometers. Black clumpy powder, grains shown, partially smeared on paper. Scale in centimeters.

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Silver Nanoparticles Utilized to Modify Performance of Hydrogen Peroxide Sensor

Iranian researchers at Masjed Soleiman and Gorgan Branches of Islamic Azad University in cooperation with their colleagues from the University of Malaya succeeded in increasing the sensitivity of hydrogen peroxide nanosensor by placing silver nanoparticles on the electro-active nanolayers.

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The use of such nanolayers resulted in a three-time increase in the performance of the nanosensor. Hydrogen peroxide has many applications in enzyme reactions, biological reactions, clinical controls, and so forth.

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New NASA Mission to Take First Look Deep Inside Mars

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Artist rendition of the proposed InSight (Interior exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport) Lander.

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In settlement papers filed in federal district court, three companies have agreed to pay about $29.8 million in cleanup costs for a Superfund site in Fairmont, Marion County, W. Va., the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced today.

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This artist's rendition illustrates the formation of rocky bodies in the solar system - how they form and differentiate and evolve into terrestrial planets.

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Fantastic Phobos

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Phobos in 3D

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Rover's Laser Instrument Zaps First Martian Rock

Mars Science Laboratory/Curiosity Mission Status Report

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This composite image, with magnified insets, depicts the first laser test by the Chemistry and Camera, or ChemCam, instrument aboard NASA's Curiosity Mars rover.

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Rover's Laser Instrument Zaps First Martian Rock

Mars Science Laboratory/Curiosity Mission Status Report

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This composite image, with magnified insets, depicts the first laser test by the Chemistry and Camera, or ChemCam, instrument aboard NASA's Curiosity Mars rover.

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UCSB Researchers Demonstrate That 15=3x5 About Half of the Time

Computing prime factors may sound like an elementary math problem, but try it with a large number, say one that contains more than 600 digits, and the task becomes enormously challenging and impossibly time-consuming. Now, a group of researchers at UC Santa Barbara has designed and fabricated a quantum processor capable of factoring a composite number -- in this case the number 15 -- into its constituent prime factors, 3 and 5.

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The device used to run the first solid state demonstration of Shor's algorithm. It is made up of four phase qubits and five superconducting resonators, for a total of nine engineered quantum elements. The quantum processor measures one-quarter inch square.

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