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

Karlsruhe Institute of Technology: Self-assembling electronic nano-components

The July issue of Nature Materials describes the function of an innovative tiny component developed by researchers of KIT's Institute of Nanotechnology together with a team of European scientists

Karlsruhe Institute of Technology: Self-assembling electronic nano-components
2011-06-21
(Press-News.org) Magnetic storage media such as hard drives have revolutionized the handling of information: We are used to dealing with huge quantities of magnetically stored data while relying on highly sensitive electronic components. And hope to further increase data capacities through ever smaller components. Together with experts from Grenoble and Strasbourg, researchers of KIT's Institute of Nanotechnology (INT) have developed a nano-component based on a mechanism observed in nature.

What if the very tininess of a component prevented one from designing the necessary tools for its manufacture? One possibility could be to "teach" the individual parts to self-assemble into the desired product. For fabrication of an electronic nano-device, a team of INT researchers headed by Mario Ruben adopted a trick from nature: Synthetic adhesives were applied to magnetic molecules in such a way that the latter docked on to the proper positions on a nanotube without any intervention. In nature, green leaves grow through a similar self-organizing process without any impetus from subordinate mechanisms. The adoption of such principles to the manufacture of electronic components is a paradigm shift, a novelty.

The nano-switch was developed by a European team of scientists from Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) in Grenoble, Institut de Physique et Chimie des Matériaux at the University of Strasbourg, and KIT's INT. It is one of the invention's particular features that, unlike the conventional electronic components, the new component does not consist of materials such as metals, alloys or oxides but entirely of soft materials such as carbon nanotubes and molecules.

Terbium, the only magnetic metal atom that is used in the device, is embedded in organic material. Terbium reacts highly sensitively to external magnetic fields. Information as to how this atom aligns along such magnetic fields is efficiently passed on to the current flowing through the nanotube. The Grenoble CNRS research group headed by Dr. Wolfgang Wernsdorfer succeeded in electrically reading out the magnetism in the environment of the nano-component. The demonstrated possibility of addressing electrically single magnetic molecules opens a completely new world to spintronics, where memory, logic and possibly quantum logic may be integrated.

The function of the spintronic nano-device is described in the July issue of Nature Materials (DOI number: 10.1038/Nmat3050)for low temperatures of approximately one degree Kelvin, which is -272 degrees Celsius. Efforts are taken by the team of researchers to further increase the component's working temperature in the near future.



INFORMATION:

Link Nature Article: http://www.nature.com/nmat/journal/vaop/ncurrent/pdf/nmat3050.pdf

Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) is a public corporation according to the legislation of the state of Baden-Württemberg. It fulfills the mission of a university and the mission of a national research center of the Helmholtz Association. KIT focuses on a knowledge triangle that links the tasks of research, teaching, and innovation.

[Attachments] See images for this press release:
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology: Self-assembling electronic nano-components

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Did climate change cause Greenland's ancient Viking community to collapse?

2011-06-21
Our changing climate usually appears to be a very modern problem, yet new research from Greenland published in Boreas, suggests that the AD 1350 collapse of a centuries old colony established by Viking settlers may have been caused by declining temperatures and a rise in sea-ice. The authors suggest the collapse of the Greenland Norse presents a historical example of a society which failed to adapt to climate change. The research, led by Dr Sofia Ribeiro from the University of Copenhagen, currently at the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland, focused on Disko Bay ...

Los Angeles Cosmetic Dentist, Dr. Kevin Sands, Now Uses Porcelain Veneers for Smile Improvements

Los Angeles Cosmetic Dentist, Dr. Kevin Sands, Now Uses Porcelain Veneers for Smile Improvements
2011-06-21
Dr. Kevin Sands, DDS, a Los Angeles dentist, knows exactly how patients can struggle with the appearance of their smile. The evolving world of cosmetic dentistry is giving patients with discolored, damaged and structurally imperfect teeth a new lease on their smile. Dr. Sands is now improving patient smiles by porcelain veneers to correct years of staining and abuse and to provide an attractive and confident smile. Every person is born with white teeth, but that is where the similarities cease. Elements such a heredity, infrequent dental care and oral hygiene can quickly ...

Buzz kills

2011-06-21
In the United States, the blood-alcohol limit may be 0.08 percent, but no amount of alcohol seems to be safe for driving, according to a University of California, San Diego sociologist. A study led by David Phillips and published in the journal Addiction finds that blood-alcohol levels well below the U.S. legal limit are associated with incapacitating injury and death. Phillips, with coauthor Kimberly M. Brewer, also of UC San Diego, examined official data from the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS). This dataset includes information on all persons in the U.S. ...

In search of a safer, more profitable and more efficient railway system

In search of a safer, more profitable and more efficient railway system
2011-06-21
This release is available in Spanish. In spite of the fact that the railway industry has two centuries of experience behind it, in order to continue improving the research being done on the safety, profitability and efficiency of railroads, it will be necessary to develop and strengthen the relationship between universities and companies in the sector. This is one of the main conclusions that have come out of an international forum on the subject that was recently held at Carlos III University of Madrid. The forum, the First European Forum on Railway Running Gears, ...

New compact microspectrometer design achieves high resolution and wide bandwidth

New compact microspectrometer design achieves high resolution and wide bandwidth
2011-06-21
A new microspectrometer architecture that uses compact disc-shaped resonators could address the challenges of integrated lab-on-chip sensing systems that now require a large off-chip spectrometer to achieve high resolution. Spectrometers have conventionally been expensive and bulky bench-top instruments used to detect and identify the molecules inside a sample by shining light on it and measuring different wavelengths of the emitted or absorbed light. Previous efforts toward miniaturizing spectrometers have reduced their size and cost, but these reductions have typically ...

Orlando Advertising Agency Technetium Launches Website Redesign

Orlando Advertising Agency Technetium Launches Website Redesign
2011-06-21
Technetium, an Orlando-based advertising and branding agency, today announces the launch of its redesigned website, www.technetium.com. The new design allows for easier navigation, provides enhanced functionality, and encourages site visitors to explore the services offered by the firm through informative content, client work samples, news feeds and more. "Today, a large part of the agency search process is conducted online prior to or even in lieu of an official request for proposal," said Joe Forget, president and CEO. He continued, "Technetium's Internet ...

UC research uncovers ancient Mycenaean fortress

UC research uncovers ancient Mycenaean fortress
2011-06-21
A recent find by a University of Cincinnati archeologist suggests an ancient Mycenaean city was well protected from outside threats. That research, by UC's Gisela Walberg, professor of classics, will be presented at the annual workshop of the Cyprus American Archaeological Research Center in Nicosia, Cyprus, on June 25, 2011. Since 2001, Walberg has worked in modern Cyprus to uncover the ancient city of Bamboula, a Bronze Age city that was an important trading center for the Middle East, Egypt and Greece. Bamboula, a harbor town that flourished between the 13th through ...

Poorly coordinated care doubled risk of drug and medical errors in 7 countries

2011-06-21
Patients who received poorly co-ordinated care or were unable to afford basic medical costs were much more likely to report medication, treatment or care errors, according to an international study published in the July issue of IJCP, the International Journal of Clinical Practice. Researchers from the USA and Australia used data from the Commonwealth Fund International Health Policy Survey to identify the key risk factors behind the errors reported by patients from Canada, USA, the Netherlands, UK, Germany, Australia and New Zealand. Eleven per cent of the 11,910 people ...

GPs missing early dementia -- new study

2011-06-21
New research from the University of Leicester demonstrates that general practitioners (GPs) are struggling to correctly identify people in the early stages of dementia resulting in both missed cases (false negatives) and misidentifications (false positives). Researchers from the University of Leicester in the UK and National Collaborating Centre for Mental Health, London, UK and the Department of General Practice, Dusseldorf, Germany examined 30 previous studies involving 15,277 people seen in primary care for cognitive disorders, including 7109 assessed for dementia. ...

Researchers find CDT biomarker ineffective for identifying unhealthy alcohol use

2011-06-21
(Boston) – Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) have found that among HIV-infected adults with alcohol problems, measuring their carbohydrate-deficient transferrin (CDT) biomarker was a poor and inaccurate method for detecting unhealthy drinking. These findings currently appear on-line in AIDS Care. Unhealthy alcohol use is common in HIV-infected persons. It can interfere with HIV medication adherence, may lower CD4 cell count and can cause hepatic injury. Furthermore, HIV co-infection with viral hepatitis is common and both HIV and viral hepatitis ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Thirty-year mystery of dissonance in the “ringing” of black holes explained

Less intensive works best for agricultural soil

Arctic rivers project receives “national champion” designation from frontiers foundation

Computational biology paves the way for new ALS tests

Study offers new hope for babies born with opioid withdrawal syndrome

UT, Volkswagen Group of America celebrate research partnership

New Medicare program could dramatically improve affordability for cancer drugs – if patients enroll

Are ‘zombie’ skin cells harmful or helpful? The answer may be in their shapes

University of Cincinnati Cancer Center presents research at AACR 2025

Head and neck, breast, lung and survivorship studies headline Dana-Farber research at AACR Annual Meeting 2025

AACR: Researchers share promising results from MD Anderson clinical trials

New research explains why our waistlines expand in middle age

Advancements in muon detection: Taishan Antineutrino Observatory's innovative top veto tracker

Chips off the old block

Microvascular decompression combined with nerve combing for atypical trigeminal neuralgia

Cutting the complexity from digital carpentry

Lung immune cell type “quietly” controls inflammation in COVID-19

Fiscal impact of expanded Medicare coverage for GLP-1 receptor agonists to treat obesity

State and sociodemographic trends in US cigarette smoking with future projections

Young adults drive historic decline in smoking

NFCR congratulates Dr. Robert C. Bast, Jr. on receiving the AACR-Daniel D. Von Hoff Award for Outstanding Contributions to Education and Training in Cancer Research

Chimpanzee stem cells offer new insights into early embryonic development

This injected protein-like polymer helps tissues heal after a heart attack

FlexTech inaugural issue launches, pioneering interdisciplinary innovation in flexible technology

In Down syndrome mice, 40Hz light and sound improve cognition, neurogenesis, connectivity

Methyl eugenol: potential to inhibit oxidative stress, address related diseases, and its toxicological effects

A vascularized multilayer chip reveals shear stress-induced angiogenesis in diverse fluid conditions

AI helps unravel a cause of Alzheimer's disease and identify a therapeutic candidate

Coalition of Autism Scientists critiques US Department of Health and Human Services Autism Research Initiative

Structure dictates effectiveness, safety in nanomedicine

[Press-News.org] Karlsruhe Institute of Technology: Self-assembling electronic nano-components
The July issue of Nature Materials describes the function of an innovative tiny component developed by researchers of KIT's Institute of Nanotechnology together with a team of European scientists