PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Manufacturing 'made to measure' atomic-scale electrodes

2010-11-30
(Press-News.org) Thanks to collaborative work between scientists in Donostia-San Sebastian and the University of Kiel (Germany) it has been shown that it is possible to determine and control the number of atoms in contact between a molecule and a metal electrode of copper, at the same time as the electric current passing through the union being recorded. These results were published in the Nature Nanotechnology journal.

One of the key problems in nanotechnology is the formation of electrical contacts at an atomic scale. This demands the detailed characterisation of the current flowing through extremely small circuits – so small that their components can be individual atoms or molecules. It is precisely this miniature nature of the system, of typically nanometric dimensions (1 metro = a thousand million nanometers), where the difficulty of this yet unresolved problem arises. In particular, in unions formed by a single molecule, it has been shown that the number of individual atoms making up the contact and their positions are crucial when determining the electric current that is flowing. To date, there has been no experiment where it has been possible to control these parameters with sufficient precision.

In the research published by the Nature Nanotechnology journal, however, these scientists have revealed and explained the changes that the electric current flowing through a molecular union (metal/molecule/metal) undergoes, depending on the area of contact uniting the molecule to the metallic electrodes. Basically, changing the number of atoms in contact with the molecule, one by one, it goes from a low state (bad contact) to another, higher one (good contact) of conduction. With bad contact the current is limited by the area of contact, while with good contact the current is limited by the intrinsic properties of the molecule.

INFORMATION: Taking part in this collaboration project were scientists from the Donostia International Physics Center (DIPC), from the Physics of Materials Centre at the CSIC-University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU) Mixed Centre and from the Department of the Physics of Materials at the Chemistry Faculty of the UPV/EHU.


ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Motorcycle simulator gives new clues to road safety

2010-11-30
New research using a world leading motorcycle simulator to analyse rider behaviour has proved that safer doesn't necessarily mean slower and that formal advanced training for bikers can demonstrate improved safety on our roads. The study was carried out by researchers at The University of Nottingham's Centre for Motorcycle Ergonomics & Rider Human Factors. The preliminary results of the research are published today by the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM) which funded the research. Motorcyclists are badly over-represented in accident statistics. As of June 2010 ...

Perceived bad boys receive less pain medications

2010-11-30
If you should find yourself running from the police, watch your step. If you fall and break an ankle, chances are you'll receive less pain medication when they take you to the ER for treatment. That's one of the findings from a study by Case Western Reserve University sociologist Susan Hinze, and Joshua Tamayo-Sarver, who collected the data and is an emergency department doctor in California. The researchers examined the prescription patterns of 398 randomly selected emergency department doctors from the American College of Emergency Physicians who responded to a ...

Pioneering study reveals UK biodiversity hotspot

2010-11-30
Scientists are calling for radical new approaches to conservation following the first biodiversity audit of its kind. Led by the University of East Anglia (UEA), with partners Natural England, the Forestry Commission, Norfolk and Suffolk Biodiversity Partnerships and County Councils, the Brecks Partnership, and Plantlife, the painstaking study pooled information on every plant and animal species recorded in Breckland – a special landscape of heathland, forest and farmland stretching across the Norfolk and Suffolk border. In an unprecedented effort, the UEA team collated ...

Snakes on a rope: Researchers take a unique look at the climbing abilities of boa constrictors

2010-11-30
In a unique study involving young boa constrictors, University of Cincinnati researchers put snakes to work on varying diameters and flexibility of vertical rope to examine how they might move around on branches and vines to gather food and escape enemies in their natural habitat. The findings by Greg Byrnes, a University of Cincinnati postdoctoral fellow in the department of biological sciences, and Bruce C. Jayne, a UC professor of biology, are published in the December issue of The Journal of Experimental Biology. For many Americans, it was the most dreaded moment ...

Surgeon-physician marriages can place stress on careers, emotional health

2010-11-30
CHICAGO (November 30, 2010) – Surgeons married to physicians face more challenges in balancing their personal and professional lives than do surgeons whose partners work in a non-physician field or stay at home, according to new research findings focused on surgeon marriages published in the November issue of the Journal of the American College of Surgeons. As part of the significant influx of women into the workforce over the last 50 years, more women are now surgeons and physicians than ever before. This trend has produced many more dual- career marriages, including ...

World's fastest camera takes a new look at biosensing

2010-11-30
A European consortium comprising the National Physical Laboratory, ST Microelectronics, the University of Edinburgh, and TU Delft has been involved in the development and application of the Megaframe Imager - an ultrafast camera capable of recording images at the incredible rate of one million frames Since the introduction of solid-state optical sensors, like those found in digital cameras, the main trend has been towards increasing the resolution (i.e. number of pixels) while miniaturising the chip. However, the other factor is the number of frames the chip is capable ...

Society appreciates powerful individuals' effort -- even although they fail

2010-11-30
Society appreciates powerful individuals' efforts, regardless of them having success or failing. Conversely, when someone without such power fails, their failure is attributed to their "unability to carry out their tasks", and their efforts are not appreciated. In other words: individuals' personal power clearly affects how others perceive their success or failures. That is the conclusion drawn from a research conducted by professors Rocío Martínez Gutiérrez, Rosa Rodríguez Bailón and Miguel Moya, of the Department of Social Psychology of the University of Granada, recently ...

Organizing R & D in teams is useful for retaining talent

Organizing R & D in teams is useful for retaining talent
2010-11-30
For companies carrying out R+D activities, having researchers leave for competitor companies poses an important challenge. Even if a company's innovations are patented, their employees leaving can lead to information and knowledge leaks to their rivals. Which researchers in an R+D firm are most likely to leave to work for the competition? This research, carried out by by Neus Palomeras and Eduardo Melero from the UC3M Department of Business Economics, attempts to answer this question. The most noteworthy conclusion of this study, published in the journal, Management ...

Social support is most effective when provided invisibly

2010-11-30
New research by University of Minnesota psychologists shows how social support benefits are maximized when provided "invisibly"—that is without the support recipient being aware that they are receiving it. The study, "Getting in Under the Radar: A Dyadic View of Invisible Support," is published in the December issue of the journal Psychological Science. In the study, graduate student Maryhope Howland and professor Jeffry Simpson suggest there may be something unique about the emotional support behaviors that result in recipients being less aware of receiving support. ...

Diabetes may clamp down on brain cholesterol

2010-11-30
BOSTON – November 30, 2010 – The brain contains more cholesterol than any other organ in the body, has to produce its own cholesterol and won't function normally if it doesn't churn out enough. Defects in cholesterol metabolism have been linked with Alzheimer's disease and other neurodegenerative conditions. Now researchers at Joslin Diabetes Center have discovered that diabetes can affect how much cholesterol the brain can make. Scientists in the laboratory of C. Ronald Kahn, M.D., head of Joslin's Integrative Physiology and Metabolism research section, found that brain ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

A graphene sandwich — deposited or transferred?

New light-powered motor fits inside a strand of hair

Oil rig study reveals vital role of tiny hoverflies

Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia researchers boost widespread use of dental varnish across pediatric network

iRECODE: A new computational method that brings clarity to single-cell analysis

New NUS-MOH study: Singapore’s healthcare sector carbon emissions 18% lower than expected, a milestone in the city-state’s net zero journey

QUT scientists create material to turn waste heat into clean power

Major new report sets out how to tackle the ‘profound and lasting impact’ of COVID-19 on cardiovascular health

Cosmic crime scene: White dwarf found devouring Pluto-like icy world

Major report tackles Covid’s cardiovascular crisis head-on

A third of licensed GPs in England not working in NHS general practice

ChatGPT “thought on the fly” when put through Ancient Greek maths puzzle

Engineers uncover why tiny particles form clusters in turbulent air

GLP-1RA drugs dramatically reduce death and cardiovascular risk in psoriasis patients

Psoriasis linked to increased risk of vision-threatening eye disease, study finds

Reprogramming obesity: New drug from Italian biotech aims to treat the underlying causes of obesity

Type 2 diabetes may accelerate development of multiple chronic diseases, particularly in the early stages, UK Biobank study suggests

Resistance training may improve nerve health, slow aging process, study shows

Common and inexpensive medicine halves the risk of recurrence in patients with colorectal cancer

SwRI-built instruments to monitor, provide advanced warning of space weather events

Breakthrough advances sodium-based battery design

New targeted radiation therapy shows near-complete response in rare sarcoma patients

Does physical frailty contribute to dementia?

Soccer headers and brain health: Study finds changes within folds of the brain

Decoding plants’ language of light

UNC Greensboro study finds ticks carrying Lyme disease moving into western NC

New implant restores blood pressure balance after spinal cord injury

New York City's medical specialist advantage may be an illusion, new NYU Tandon research shows

Could a local anesthetic that doesn’t impair motor function be within reach?

1 in 8 Italian cetacean strandings show evidence of fishery interactions, with bottlenose and striped dolphins most commonly affected, according to analysis across four decades of data and more than 5

[Press-News.org] Manufacturing 'made to measure' atomic-scale electrodes