1.7.2014 Study on Switchable imbibition in nanoporous gold has been published in Nature Communications and featured as Nanotechnology Spotlight by nanowerk (in English and German) and as article "Kapillarwirkung auf Knopfdruck" by Spektrum der Wissenschaft (in German). The press release by Hamburg University of Technology can be found here.
The capillarity-driven uptake of liquids by porous solids can be experienced in daily life, e.g., when a sponge imbibes water. Here, we demonstrate that this process can be switched on and off reversibly when nanoporous gold takes the role of the sponge and an electric potential is used to control the surface tension.
9.9.2014 Towards bio-silicon interfaces: Formation of an ultra-thin self-hydrated artificial membrane composed of dipalmitoyl-phosphatidylcholine (DPPC) and chitosan deposited in high vacuum from the gas-phase (pdf), published in the Journal of Chemical Physics - see also the press release of the American Institute of Physics.
Organic and inorganic materials grouped together to bridge the gap between biology and physics.
Credit: S.E.Gutierrez-Maldonado/FCV