Nanotechnology

​The strength of spinach isn't only in its nutrients, but also in its ability to be hacked to function as a sensor able to detect things like explosives, according to researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

​​As any good metallurgist will tell you, you can't just take any two types of metal and weld them together. You may instead be able to just join them together with glue, however, thanks to an electro-chemical etching process being developed at Germany's Kiel University.

Researchers at the University of Texas at Austin have come up with a new, flexible, smart-window material that uses a low-temperature polymer film to selectively keep out light or heat.

​Is that a real Rolex, or a fake? Thanks to research currently being carried out at Switzerland's Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) research institute, an ultraviolet lamp may soon be all that you need to tell the difference between luxury watches and knock-offs.

​A microscopic coating lets shampoo, soap, and other heavy liquids slide right out of the bottle – so you're no longer left battling to get the dregs out at the end. The coating has been successfully applied to both polypropylene and polycarbonate plastics.

A new material combines high transparency with high electrical conductivity for the first time, holding promise for more efficient solar panels, self-heating smart windows, high-performance cooling surfaces, and even flexible displays.

Chemists at the University of California at San Diego (UCSD) have just engineered a substance that thickens when stretched. It could lead to better bullet-proof materials or improved running shoes.

​Sometimes, if you want something made right, you've just got to make it yourself. It was with this in mind that scientists from ETH Zurich and IBM recently developed a process for building custom molecules from mix-n-match components.​

A flexible, paper-like ceramic material has been created that promises to provide an inexpensive, fireproof, non-conductive base for a whole range of new and innovative electronic devices.

If researchers at RMIT have their way, the amount of time we spend measuring capfuls of liquid, scraping out the lint filter and refolding our duds may soon be slashed thanks to a new coating that cleans fabrics whenever they're exposed to light.

Scientists have found that the charged particles in graphene behave like a relativistic fluid, meaning graphene-based chips could now be used to model black holes and supernovas or build highly efficient devices that turn heat into electricity.

A revolutionary new type of smart window could cut window-cleaning costs in tall buildings while reducing heating bills and boosting worker productivity. Partially inspired by the reflective properties of moth eyes, this smart window is said to be self-cleaning, energy-saving, and anti-glare.