News
What's New in Nano
On our News page you will find the latest stories about nano research at Penn State. In addition, we will provide links to earlier articles and press releases. Come back often to find out what's new in nano at Penn State.
Nano @ Penn State Brochure
To promote this website, and to enhance the visibility of Penn State's expertise in nanoscale science and engineering, we have created a 12-page full-color brochure (5MB PDF). To obtain a printed copy of this brochure, please contact us.
Tiny Wire Assembly Technique May Help Detect Cancer and Other Diseases
University Park, Pa. - Bottom-up manufacturing may hold the key to production of tiny medical devices capable of testing for multiple molecules like viruses or cancer markers, according to an interdisciplinary team of Penn State researchers.
New Book by MRI Researchers Fuels Solar Hydrogen Development
A new book by MRI researchers surveys recent advances in the generation of hydrogen by water photoelectrolysis, the splitting of the water molecule by sunlight. In Light, Water, Hydrogen: The Solar Generation of Hydrogen by Water Photoelectrolysis, Craig Grimes, professor of electrical engineering at Penn State, and co-authors Oomman Varghese and Sudhir Rajan, discuss the issues and challenges of converting solar energy into a clean, portable fuel, and provide strategies for future development.
Read the full story, at http://www.mri.psu.edu/articles/08w/SolarH/index.asp
Tony Huang Is Making Motors Out Of Molecules
MRI Researchers Win R&D 100 Award
A new device to make laser-to-fiber and fiber-to-fiber connections within optical fiber packages has been named one of the 100 most technologically significant products introduced into the market in 2006 by R & D Magazine.
Read the full story, at http://www.mri.psu.edu/articles/07s/RDaward/index.asp
Revolution in Solar Hydrogen on the Horizon
The prospect for the wide spread use of hydrogen as a portable energy carrier is dependent on finding a clean, renewable method of production. At Penn State University, a research group headed by professor of electrical engineering Craig Grimes in the Materials Research Institute is "only a couple of problems away" from developing an inexpensive and easily scalable technique for water photoelectrolysis - the splitting of water into hydrogen and oxygen using light energy - that could help power the proposed hydrogen economy.
Read the full story, at http://www.mri.psu.edu/articles/07s/Revolution/index.asp
Penn State Nanotechnology Ranks among the Best in “Small Times” Survey
In its annual survey of universities’ nanotechnology programs, Small Times Magazine, a leading provider of news and analysis on nanotechnology, MEMS and Microsystems, ranked respondents based on 26 questions related to funding, facilities, patenting, company formation, research, publishing, and micro- and nano-specific courses and degree programs.
In the category of Research, Penn State ranked #1 among those universities responding to the survey.
Read the full story on Penn State Live, at http://live.psu.edu/story/24709
Where are the Emerging Hotspots for Nanotechnology?
The field of nanotechnology is progressing in terms of size and maturity. The federal investment, alone, as proposed by the Administration in the 2008 Budget under the National Nanotechnology Initiative, was $1.45 billion. As public and private sector investments are pumped into this field, distinct concentrations of nanotech activity are being created in regions across the country.
One might think these emerging hotspots are located in close proximity to the leading nanotechnology research institutions. The May/June 2007 edition of Small Times magazine lists the top universities in the micro and nano fields, in categories such as research, education, facilities, and commercialization leadership.
Nanoscale Engineering of Lignocellulosic Materials for Graduate Students