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Two-dimensional materials such as graphene are not only ultrathin, but also extremely sensitive. Researchers have therefore been trying for years to develop highly sensitive biosensors that utilise this property. Graphene-based field-effect transistors, for example, could register the tiniest changes in the electronic properties caused by the molecules when they interact with this atomically thin layer.

Heidelberg researchers successfully develop a new generation of biocompatible materials for additive manufacturing Microalgae such as the diatom Odontella aurita and the green alga Tetraselmis striata are especially suitable as "biofactories" for the production of sustainable materials for 3D laser printing due to their high content in lipids and photoactive pigments.

Innovative research approach enables the development of new materials and applications in technology and medicine. Researchers at Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, led Nicola Pinna, have made a groundbreaking advancement in nanotechnology, successfully extending the well-known Stöber method to synthesize amorphous metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) and coordination polymers (CPs).

Investigations with participation by Heidelberg scientists show that later emerging small bodies brought water to the Earth Age data for certain classes of meteorite have made it possible to gain new findings on the origin of small water-rich astronomical bodies in the early solar system. These so-called planetesimals continually supplied building materials for planets - also for the Earth, whose original material contained little water.

Eleven mines and 57 recycling plants fewer: economic and ecological potential for savings on material consumption for electromobility in Europe The demand for electric vehicles which run on batteries is increasing worldwide. At the same time, resources of primary battery materials - i.e. those obtained from mining activities - are limited.

Researchers discover an iron-containing material in the outer enamel of rodent teeth that could also make human teeth more resistant   Rodents such as beavers, nutrias (coypu) , squirrels and rats have particularly strong, elongated front teeth that grow continuously over the course of their lives. Using state-of-the-art imaging techniques, researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research in Stuttgart have now elucidated the tooth structure of various rodent species at the nanometre scale.

News from Some materials are transparent to light of a certain frequency. When such light is shone on them, electrical currents can still be generated, contrary to previous assumptions. Scientists from Leipzig University and Nanyang Technological University in Singapore have managed to prove this. "This opens new paradigms for constructing opto-electronic and photovoltaic devices, such as light amplifiers, sensors and solar cells," says Inti Sodemann Villadiego, Professor at the Institute of Theoretical Physics at Leipzig University.

Electromobility and portable electronic devices such as laptops and cell phones are unthinkable without the use of lithium-ion batteries. The problem: highly toxic materials such as cobalt are often used for the cathodes of these batteries, which endanger the environment and the health of people in the countries where they are mined.

International research team show potential for nanoscale transistors in all-carbon film An international research team led by the University of Göttingen has demonstrated experimentally that electrons in naturally occurring double-layer graphene move like particles without any mass, in the same way that light travels.

Researchers at Leipzig University and Ulm University have developed a new method to isolate HIV from samples more easily, potentially making it easier to detect infection with the virus. They focus on peptide nanofibrils (PNFs) on magnetic microparticles, a promising tool and hybrid material for targeted binding and separation of viral particles.

Experimental and theoretical physicists at the Würzburg Institute for Topological Insulators have identified an unusual quantum Hall effect in a mercury telluride device as the signature of the parity anomaly . Topological insulators are materials that can conduct electricity, but only on their surface or edges.

Research team discovers universal mechanism that leads to adhesion hysteresis in soft materials Adhesive tape or sticky notes are easy to attach to a surface, but are difficult to remove. This phenomenon, known as adhesion hysteresis, can be fundamentally observed in soft, elastic materials: Adhesive contact is formed more easily than it is broken.

Breakthrough in materials research: A team from the Würzburg-Dresden Cluster of Excellence ct.qmat has developed an innovative protective film for 2D quantum materials that could play a key role in shaping the future of electronics. As silicon-based computer chips approach their physical limitations in the quest for faster and smaller designs, the search for alternative materials that remain functional at atomic scales is one of science's biggest challenges.

Early hunter-gatherers from the Middle Stone Age in southern Africa were selecting the most suitable material available for stone tools and spearheads more than 60,000 years ago, according to a study by Dr. Patrick Schmidt from the University of Tübingen's Early Prehistory and Quaternary Ecology section.

Joint project -AReLiS-3- commences at MEET Battery Research Center A research team at the MEET Battery Research Center at the University of Münster has kicked off the international joint project "AReLiS-3" to pursue research on lithium-sulfur batteries. Its aim is to develop, investigate and optimize novel cell designs, materials, electrode coatings and electrolytes for sulfur-based battery systems.

China covers its demand for lithium, cobalt and nickel for batteries by recycling, ahead of Europe and the USA. With the increasing production of batteries for electric vehicles, the demand for the necessary raw materials is also rising. In view of the supply risks, environmental problems and precarious working conditions associated with the extraction and transportation of these raw materials, the recycling of battery materials has become an important topic in science, politics and industry.

Research on the electrification of agricultural machinery The special requirements placed on trucks and agricultural machinery often make it difficult for engineers to bring them into the electric age. At the Agritechnica agricultural machinery fair researchers from the Technical University of Munich (TUM) are now showing what a modular development kit for electric tractors can look like.

Researchers from the Universities of Freiburg and Ulm have developed a monolithically integrated photo battery using organic materials. Networked intelligent devices and sensors can improve the energy efficiency of consumer products and buildings by monitoring their consumption in real time. Miniature devices like these being developed under the concept of the Internet of Things require energy sources that are as compact as possible in order to function autonomously.

A new algorithm mines material libraries up to four times faster than before. It is based on machine learning . Researchers are working flat out to find new materials for future technologies on which the energy transition depends, for example as electrocatalysts. Due to their versatile properties, materials consisting of five or more elements are of particular interest.

Quantum sensors make microscale NMR spectroscopy possible A miniature magnetic resonance Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) is an important imaging method in research which can be used to visualize tissue and structures without damaging them. The technique is better known from the medical field as Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), where the patient is moved into a bore of a large magnet on a table.