Search Our Scientific Publications & Authors

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb 19. Epub 2019 Feb 19.

Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.

In the Supplementary Information file originally published with this Article, the Supplementary references 48-62 were missing; the amended file has now been uploaded. Read More

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb 18. Epub 2019 Feb 18.

Photonic Materials and Fiber Devices Laboratory, Institute of Materials, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland.

In the version of this Article originally published, the volume, article number and year of ref. 32 were incorrect; they should have read 31, 1802348 (2019). This has now been corrected. Read More

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb 18. Epub 2019 Feb 18.

University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany.

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb 18. Epub 2019 Feb 18.

Center for Nanostructured Graphene, Technical University of Denmark, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark.

Two-dimensional materials such as graphene allow direct access to the entirety of atoms constituting the crystal. While this makes shaping by lithography particularly attractive as a tool for band structure engineering through quantum confinement effects, edge disorder and contamination have so far limited progress towards experimental realization. Here, we define a superlattice in graphene encapsulated in hexagonal boron nitride, by etching an array of holes through the heterostructure with minimum feature sizes of 12-15 nm. Read More

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb 18. Epub 2019 Feb 18.

Chemical Sciences and Engineering Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Lemont, IL, USA.

Batteries have shaped much of our modern world. This success is the result of intense collaboration between academia and industry over the past several decades, culminating with the advent of and improvements in rechargeable lithium-ion batteries. As applications become more demanding, there is the risk that stunted growth in the performance of commercial batteries will slow the adoption of important technologies such as electric vehicles. Read More

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb 18. Epub 2019 Feb 18.

Kavli Nanoscience Institute and Thomas J. Watson, Sr., Laboratory of Applied Physics, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA.

Recent technical developments in the fields of quantum electromechanics and optomechanics have spawned nanoscale mechanical transducers with the sensitivity to measure mechanical displacements at the femtometre scale and the ability to convert electromagnetic signals at the single photon level. A key challenge in this field is obtaining strong coupling between motion and electromagnetic fields without adding additional decoherence. Here we present an electromechanical transducer that integrates a high-frequency (0. Read More

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb 18. Epub 2019 Feb 18.

Department of Materials Science and Engineering, KAIST, Daejeon, Republic of Korea.

Highly active metal nanoparticles are desired to serve in high-temperature electrocatalysis, for example, in solid oxide electrochemical cells. Unfortunately, the low thermal stability of nanosized particles and the sophisticated interface requirement for electrode structures to support concurrent ionic and electronic transport make it hard to identify the exact catalytic role of nanoparticles embedded within complex electrode architectures. Here we present an accurate analysis of the reactivity of oxide electrodes boosted by metal nanoparticles, where all particles participate in the reaction. Read More

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb 18. Epub 2019 Feb 18.

Université de Strasbourg, CNRS, ISIS, Strasbourg, France.

Organic light-emitting transistors are pivotal components for emerging opto- and nanoelectronics applications, such as logic circuitries and smart displays. Within this technology sector, the integration of multiple functionalities in a single electronic device remains the key challenge. Here we show optically switchable organic light-emitting transistors fabricated through a judicious combination of light-emitting semiconductors and photochromic molecules. Read More

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb 18. Epub 2019 Feb 18.

Laboratory of Controllable Nanopharmaceuticals, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) Center for Excellence in Nanoscience and CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology, Beijing, China.

Mitochondrial redox homeostasis, the balance between reactive oxygen species and antioxidants such as glutathione, plays critical roles in many biological processes, including biosynthesis and apoptosis, and thus is a potential target for cancer treatment. Here, we report a mitochondrial oxidative stress amplifier, MitoCAT-g, which consists of carbon-dot-supported atomically dispersed gold (CAT-g) with further surface modifications of triphenylphosphine and cinnamaldehyde. We find that the MitoCAT-g particles specifically target mitochondria and deplete mitochondrial glutathione with atomic economy, thus amplifying the reactive oxygen species damage caused by cinnamaldehyde and finally leading to apoptosis in cancer cells. Read More

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb 11. Epub 2019 Feb 11.

CIC nanoGUNE, Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain.

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb 11. Epub 2019 Feb 11.

Department of Chemistry, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA.

Cellular reporters of enzyme activity are based on either fluorescent proteins or small molecules. Such reporters provide information corresponding to wherever inside cells the enzyme is maximally active and preclude minor populations present in subcellular compartments. Here we describe a chemical imaging strategy to selectively interrogate minor, subcellular pools of enzymatic activity. Read More

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb 11. Epub 2019 Feb 11.

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA.

One of the fundamental hurdles in plasmonics is the trade-off between electromagnetic field confinement and the coupling efficiency with free-space light, a consequence of the large momentum mismatch between the excitation source and plasmonic modes. Acoustic plasmons in graphene, in particular, have an extreme level of field confinement, as well as an extreme momentum mismatch. Here, we show that this fundamental compromise can be overcome and demonstrate a graphene acoustic plasmon resonator with nearly perfect absorption (94%) of incident mid-infrared light. Read More

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb 11. Epub 2019 Feb 11.

Photonic Materials and Fiber Devices Laboratory, Institute of Materials, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland.

Modern devices require the tuning of the size, shape and spatial arrangement of nano-objects and their assemblies with nanometre-scale precision, over large-area and sometimes soft substrates. Such stringent requirements are beyond the reach of conventional lithographic techniques or self-assembly approaches. Here, we show nanoscale control over the fluid instabilities of optical thin glass films for the fabrication of self-assembled all-dielectric optical metasurfaces. Read More

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb 11. Epub 2019 Feb 11.

Materials Research Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA.

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb;14(2):99

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb;14(2):100

Nature Nanotechnology, .

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb;14(2):99

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb;14(2):100

Nature Nanotechnology, .

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb;14(2):100

Nature Nanotechnology, .

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb;14(2):100

Nature Nanotechnology, .

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb;14(2):102-103

Laboratory for Physical Sciences, College Park, MD, USA.

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb;14(2):105-106

Center for Nanochemistry, Beijing Science and Engineering Centre for Nanocarbons, Beijing National Laboratory for Molecular Sciences, College of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, Peking University, Beijing, China.

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb 4. Epub 2019 Feb 4.

Department of Physics, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore.

Two-dimensional transition metal dichalcogenide (TMD) materials, albeit promising candidates for applications in electronics and optoelectronics, are still limited by their low electrical mobility under ambient conditions. Efforts to improve device performance through a variety of routes, such as modification of contact metals and gate dielectrics or encapsulation in hexagonal boron nitride, have yielded limited success at room temperature. Here, we report a large increase in the performance of TMD field-effect transistors operating under ambient conditions, achieved by engineering the substrate's surface morphology. Read More

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb 4. Epub 2019 Feb 4.

Process Engineering, Eawag - Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Process Engineering, Dubendorf, Switzerland.

Research on the distribution and effects of particulate plastic has intensified in recent years and yet, due to analytical challenges, our understanding of nanoplastic occurrence and behaviour has remained comparatively elusive. However, process studies could greatly aid in defining key parameters for nanoplastic interactions within and transfers between technical and environmental compartments. Here we provide a method to synthesize nanoplastic particles doped with a chemically entrapped metal used as a tracer, which provides a robust way to detect nanoplastics more easily, accurately and quantitatively in complex media. Read More

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Jan 28. Epub 2019 Jan 28.

Institute for Molecular Engineering, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA.

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Jan 28. Epub 2019 Jan 28.

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore.

While most cancer nanomedicine is designed to eliminate cancer, the nanomaterial per se can lead to the formation of micrometre-sized gaps in the blood vessel endothelial walls. Nanomaterials-induced endothelial leakiness (NanoEL) might favour intravasation of surviving cancer cells into the surrounding vasculature and subsequently extravasation, accelerating metastasis. Here, we show that nanoparticles induce endothelial leakiness through disruption of the VE-cadherin-VE-cadherin homophilic interactions at the adherens junction. Read More

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Jan 28. Epub 2019 Jan 28.

Amsterdam UMC, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Jan 28. Epub 2019 Jan 28.

Department of Pediatrics, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Munich, Germany.

Developing safe and efficient non-viral delivery systems remains a major challenge for in vivo applications of gene therapy, especially in cystic fibrosis. Unlike conventional cationic polymers or lipids, the emerging poloxamine-based copolymers display promising in vivo gene delivery capabilities. However, poloxamines are invalid for in vitro applications and their in vivo transfection efficiency is still low compared with viral vectors. Read More

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb;14(2):191

Department of Environmental Engineering, Peking University, Beijing, China.

In the version of the Supplementary Information file originally published with this Article, the images used for Supplementary Fig. 4 were incorrect and have now been replaced. This does not affect the results of the Article. Read More

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Jan 22. Epub 2019 Jan 22.

Translational Bio-Nanosciences Laboratory, The Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, USA.

In the version of this Article originally published, a technical error led to Fig. 1a containing '!!!!!!!!' above the scale bar. This has now been corrected in all versions of the Article. Read More

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Jan 21. Epub 2019 Jan 21.

Institute for Chemical Research, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.

In the presence of a magnetic field, the flow of charged particles in a conductor is deflected from the direction of the applied force, which gives rise to the ordinary Hall effect. Analogously, moving skyrmions with non-zero topological charges and finite fictitious magnetic fields exhibit the skyrmion Hall effect, which is detrimental for applications such as skyrmion racetrack memory. It was predicted that the skyrmion Hall effect vanishes for antiferromagnetic skyrmions because their fictitious magnetic field, proportional to net spin density, is zero. Read More

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Jan 21. Epub 2019 Jan 21.

LAAS, Université de Toulouse, CNRS, INP, Toulouse, France.

Diffraction drastically limits the bit density in optical data storage. To increase the storage density, alternative strategies involving supplementary recording dimensions and robust readout schemes must be explored. Here, we propose to encode multiple bits of information in the geometry of subwavelength dielectric nanostructures. Read More

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Jan 21. Epub 2019 Jan 21.

School of Engineering and Information Technology, University of New South Wales, Canberra, Australia.

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Jan 21. Epub 2019 Jan 21.

Department of Physics, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan.

A light-field camera captures both the intensity and the direction of incoming light. This enables a user to refocus pictures and afterwards reconstruct information on the depth of field. Research on light-field imaging can be divided into two components: acquisition and rendering. Read More

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Jan 21. Epub 2019 Jan 21.

National Laboratory of Solid State Microstructures, School of Physics, School of Electronic Science and Engineering, Collaborative Innovation Centre of Advanced Microstructures, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China.

Impact ionization, which supports carrier multiplication, is promising for applications in single photon detection and sharp threshold swing field effect devices. However, initiating the impact ionization of avalanche breakdown requires a high applied electric field in a long active region, which hampers carrier multiplication with a high gain, low bias and superior noise performance. Here we report the observation of ballistic avalanche phenomena in sub-mean free path (MFP) scaled vertical InSe/black phosphorus (BP) heterostructures. Read More

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Jan 21. Epub 2019 Jan 21.

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA.

Cyclic dinucleotide (CDN) agonists of stimulator of interferon genes (STING) are a promising class of immunotherapeutics that activate innate immunity to increase tumour immunogenicity. However, the efficacy of CDNs is limited by drug delivery barriers, including poor cellular targeting, rapid clearance and inefficient transport to the cytosol where STING is localized. Here, we describe STING-activating nanoparticles (STING-NPs)-rationally designed polymersomes for enhanced cytosolic delivery of the endogenous CDN ligand for STING, 2'3' cyclic guanosine monophosphate-adenosine monophosphate (cGAMP). Read More

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb 14;14(2):184-190. Epub 2019 Jan 14.

Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.

Although repetitive patterns of antigens are crucial for certain immune responses, an understanding of how antibodies bind and dynamically interact with various spatial arrangements of molecules is lacking. Hence, we introduced a new method in which molecularly precise nanoscale patterns of antigens are displayed using DNA origami and immobilized in a surface plasmon resonance set-up. Using antibodies with identical antigen-binding domains, we found that all the subclasses and isotypes studied bind bivalently to two antigens separated at distances that range from 3 to 17 nm. Read More

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb;14(2):101-102

Immune Receptor Activation Laboratory, The Francis Crick Institute, London, UK.

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Jan 14. Epub 2019 Jan 14.

Translational Bio-Nanosciences Laboratory, The Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, USA.

Deposition of complement factors (opsonization) on nanoparticles may promote clearance from the blood by macrophages and trigger proinflammatory responses, but the mechanisms regulating the efficiency of complement activation are poorly understood. We previously demonstrated that opsonization of superparamagnetic iron oxide (SPIO) nanoworms with the third complement protein (C3) was dependent on the biomolecule corona of the nanoparticles. Here we show that natural antibodies play a critical role in C3 opsonization of SPIO nanoworms and a range of clinically approved nanopharmaceuticals. Read More

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb 14;14(2):161-167. Epub 2019 Jan 14.

Department of Condensed Matter Physics, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel.

Transport measurements have been an indispensable tool in studying conducting states of matter. However, there exists a large set of interesting states that are insulating, often due to electronic interactions or topology, and are difficult to probe via transport. Here, through an experiment on carbon nanotubes, we present a new approach capable of measuring insulating electronic states through their back action on nanomechanical motion. Read More

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb 14;14(2):168-175. Epub 2019 Jan 14.

Department of Mechanical, Aerospace and Nuclear Engineering, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY, USA.

Macroscopic graphene structures such as graphene papers and fibres can be manufactured from individual two-dimensional graphene oxide sheets by a fluidics-enabled assembling process. However, achieving high thermal-mechanical and electrical properties is still challenging due to non-optimized microstructures and morphology. Here, we report graphene structures with tunable graphene sheet alignment and orientation, obtained via microfluidic design, enabling strong size and geometry confinements and control over flow patterns. Read More

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb;14(2):104-105

Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Jan 9. Epub 2019 Jan 9.

Institute of Experimental and Applied Physics, University of Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany.

In the version of this Comment originally published, equation (4) was incorrect; see the correction notice for details. This has now been corrected in the online versions of the Comment. Read More

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb 7;14(2):107-119. Epub 2019 Jan 7.

Department of Chemical Engineering, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada.

Three-dimensional macrostructures (3DMs) of graphene and graphene oxide are being developed for fast and efficient removal of contaminants from water and air. The large specific surface area, versatile surface chemistry and exceptional mechanical properties of graphene-based nanosheets enable the formation of robust and high-performance 3DMs such as sponges, membranes, beads and fibres. However, little is known about the relationship between the materials properties of graphene-based 3DMs and their environmental performance. Read More

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb 7;14(2):137-140. Epub 2019 Jan 7.

Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Quantum Computation and Communications Technology, School of Physics, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

The realization of the surface code for topological error correction is an essential step towards a universal quantum computer. For single-atom qubits in silicon, the need to control and read out qubits synchronously and in parallel requires the formation of a two-dimensional array of qubits with control electrodes patterned above and below this qubit layer. This vertical three-dimensional device architecture requires the ability to pattern dopants in multiple, vertically separated planes of the silicon crystal with nanometre precision interlayer alignment. Read More

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Feb 7;14(2):131-136. Epub 2019 Jan 7.

School of Materials Science and Engineering, Beihang University, Beijing, China.

Spintronic devices based on antiferromagnetic (AFM) materials hold the promise of fast switching speeds and robustness against magnetic fields. Different device concepts have been predicted and experimentally demonstrated, such as low-temperature AFM tunnel junctions that operate as spin-valves, or room-temperature AFM memory, for which either thermal heating in combination with magnetic fields or Néel spin-orbit torque is used for the information writing process. On the other hand, piezoelectric materials were employed to control magnetism by electric fields in multiferroic heterostructures, which suppresses Joule heating caused by switching currents and may enable low-energy-consuming electronic devices. Read More

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Jan;14(1)

Nature Nanotechnology, .

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Jan;14(1)

Nature Nanotechnology, .

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Jan;14(1)

Nature Nanotechnology, .

Nat Nanotechnol 2019 Jan;14(1)

Nature Nanotechnology, .