A new high-speed technology for discovering advanced materials made from ultra-small particles of matter may bring lightweight armor, synthetic fuels and new high-efficiency solar cells.
In the material world, size matters, especially when preparing materials on the smallest length scale of the nanometer. Nanomaterials are known for having different optical, electrical, and catalytic properties compared to substances that are identical in composition but larger. However, this makes exploring the endless possible combinations of multiple elements of different nanometer sizes difficult to achieve.
Now comes the way. Researchers have invented a high-speed method to produce a "million library" containing up to 5 billion combinations of different nanomaterials. These nanomaterials change in a controlled manner based on the different elemental concentrations contained and the particle sizes obtained thereby.
To make the array, the team used a specialized device containing hundreds of thousands of pyramid-shaped spikes to mark individual polymer wells of various sizes and compositions. Each of these wells contains a different metal salt of interest to researchers. The marked surface is then heated, burning off the polymer and causing the metal to form alloy particles.
Scientists tested one such array and found a new catalyst that could make straw-like carbon nanotubes. It is faster than any catalyst previously discovered. Carbon nanotubes are known for their ultra-high strength and the ability to act as tiny high-speed transistors. The researchers reported the findings in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
The results can't stop here, as researchers plan to test a large number of other nanomaterials in search of new and improved catalysts as well as electronic and optical materials.