Topic description and stories

The demand continues for materials that are stronger, cheaper, lighter, more conductive – simply better.

Polymer Opals

Flexible opals

30 May 2013

A synthetic material which mimics the brightest and most vivid colours in nature, and changes colour when twisted or stretched, has been developed by...

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Low-cost LEDs for saving energy and improving health

28 Mar 2013

Gallium nitride has been described as “the most important semiconductor since silicon” and is used in energy-saving LED lighting. A new £1million...

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Scanning Electron Microscope image of micro-structures of cathodes made of carbon nanotubes and sulphur

Building a better battery

07 Mar 2013

A new battery technology provides double the energy storage at lower cost than the batteries that are used in handheld electronics, electric vehicles...

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Graphene is a one-atom thick layer of carbon atoms. Producing high-quality single layers in a manner compatible with industrial processes is just one of the challenges that researchers will be trying to surmount. The image shows a printed graphene device.

Graphene: Taking the wonder-stuff from dream to reality

24 Jan 2013

A centre for research on graphene, a material which has the potential to revolutionise numerous industries, ranging from healthcare to electronics...

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Detail from a hybrid three-dimensional heterostructure consisting of graphene, boron nitride and molybdenum disulphide in two dimensional layers.

Changing our material future, layer by layer

20 Dec 2012

Researchers are aiming to develop a new class of materials with remarkable properties using one atom-thick substances such as graphene and other two...

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Nano-sized balls of gold

Quantum kisses change the colour of nothing

07 Nov 2012

New insights from research suggest ways to measure the world at the scale of single atoms and molecules.

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Oil rig

Major investment will lead to new materials for the energy industry

07 Aug 2012

As energy companies begin to exploit resources located deeper in the sea bed, scientists at Cambridge University are taking part in a major...

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Edge of silicon ingot

Solar-grade silicon at low cost

18 Apr 2012

A new process developed by scientists at the University of Cambridge has the potential to drive down the cost of manufacturing solar-grade silicon...

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An LED emitting light on a 6-inch silicon wafer.

All set and ready to glow

03 Feb 2012

A breakthrough technique for manufacturing LEDs on silicon is to be exploited in the UK, putting mass-produced, energy-efficient lighting within...

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A section of an Ashby chart

It’s a material world

15 Sep 2011

A spin-out from Cambridge's Engineering Department and a leading supplier of materials information technology software to industry, Granta Design has...

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butterfly-bank-fraud

How butterflies’ wings could cut bank fraud

28 May 2010

Cambridge scientists have discovered a way of mimicking the stunningly bright and beautiful colours found on the wings of tropical butterflies. The...

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3V-lithium

Scientists home in on lithium battery safety flaws

14 May 2010

Scientists at Cambridge have developed a simple, accurate way of "seeing" chemistry in action inside a lithium-ion battery.

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