New Atlas

Materials Audio available

New superconductivity record edges closer to room temperature

Michael Irving May 26, 2019

Superconductors can conduct electricity with absolutely no loss, so they could be revolutionary if not for one little problem: they only work if kept extremely cold. But now researchers at Max Planck have reported a new record high temperature for superconductivity, at a toasty -23° C (-9.4° F).

A team used a pressure chamber, which squeezes samples to 1.7 million times atmospheric pressure, to ...

Medical Audio available

Wound dressing uses electricity to bust up antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections

Rich Haridy May 20, 2019

An incredible study has demonstrated the potential of a wound dressing that can fight bacterial infections using a weak electrical field. Offering a novel way to battle antibiotic-resistant infections, the dressing has been approved by the FDA and is currently being tested in human burn patients.

Scientists have developed a wound dressing that can generate a weak electrical field to break down ...

Energy

Snow-powered nanogenerator works where solar panels don't

Michael Irving April 16, 2019

Snowy places aren’t ideal for harvesting solar energy – panels can’t do much if they’re buried under blankets of snow, of course. Now a team from the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) has developed a new device that can produce electricity from snow itself.

A new nanogenerator could harvest energy directly from snow, helping solar panels deal with wintry conditions

Electronics Audio available

Two-dimensional antenna converts Wi-Fi signals into electricity

Michael Irving January 28, 2019

In a new step towards truly wireless charging, engineers have developed an ultra-thin device that captures Wi-Fi signals and converts them into electricity.

Engineers have developed a new two-dimensional device that can convert Wi-Fi signals into electricity

Energy Audio available

Carbon capture system turns CO2 into electricity and hydrogen fuel

Michael Irving January 21, 2019

Inspired by the ocean’s role as a natural carbon sink, researchers at Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST) and Georgia Tech have developed a new system that absorbs CO2 and produces electricity and useable hydrogen fuel.

Scientists have developed a new device that can absorb CO2 and produce electricity and hydrogen fuel

Medical

Motion-powered electric bandage speeds healing by zapping wounds

Ben Coxworth November 30, 2018

For some time now, scientists have known that electrical currents can help heal chronic wounds. And while there are electrotherapy units that are in use, they can be quite bulky and complex. That's why researchers have created an "electric bandage" that's powered by the motion of the body.

Prof. Xudong Wang fits one of the bandages around the wrist of graduate student Yin Long

Energy Audio available

Energy Vault to build grid-level, gravity-fed battery from a tower of concrete blocks

Michael Irving November 8, 2018

With a focus on storing energy from intermittent renewable sources such as wind and solar, Swiss company Energy Vault has just launched an innovative new system that stores potential energy in a huge tower of concrete blocks, which can be “dropped” by a crane to harvest the kinetic energy.

Energy

Hybrid cell turns sunlight and water into hydrogen and electricity

Michael Irving October 29, 2018

Artificial photosynthesis devices can split water into hydrogen and oxygen, but they still suffer from some efficiency issues. Now a new hybrid device may be able to recover some of the energy that would otherwise go to waste, by producing both hydrogen and electricity.

A new hybrid device could use artificial photosynthesis to split water into hydrogen and oxygen, and ...

Biology

Electric bacteria found in the human gut

Michael Irving September 18, 2018

The diverse microbes that live in your gut keep turning up new surprises. Now researchers at UC Berkeley have found that some species of gut-dwelling bacteria can generate electricity.

An artist's rendition of Listeria bacteria, which have been found to produce electricity

Energy

Harvard's new organic flow battery uses a long-lived recipe of Biblical proportions

Michael Irving July 25, 2018

A team of Harvard engineers has been making strides over the past few years with organic flow batteries, and has now tested a new molecule that makes for the longest-lasting, high-performance organic flow battery so far.

Harvard researchers have developed what they call the longest-lasting, high-performance organic flow battery yet developed