Materials Chemistry

An electronic crystal turned flat

February 18, 2022
UC Berkeley, College of Chemistry Press Release
In an exciting new study in Nature Communications, a global team co-led by UC Berkeley professor Michael Zuerch, Shanghai Jiao Tong University professors Dao Xiang and Jie Zhang, and UC Los Angeles professor Anshul Kogar, have discovered unexpected phenomenon in an electronic analogue of ice crystals.

Berkeley’s ecosystem of innovation, entrepreneurship combats climate change

May 16, 2024
Ivan Natividad, Elizabeth Costello | Berkeley News
UC Berkeley faculty are fast-tracking the development of new and creative climate solutions.

Kwabena Bediako honored at third annual Philomathia Day

February 11, 2025
By Veronica Bartell | College of Chemistry
The third annual Philomathia Day took place on Jan. 31, and honored 2024 Philomathia Prize recipient Professor Kwabena Bediako.

Scientists grow lead-free solar material with a built-in switch

September 1, 2022
Theresa Duque | Berkeley Lab

Light microscopy illustration shows nanowires, 100 to 1,000 nanometers in diameter

Light microscopy image of nanowires, 100 to 1,000 nanometers in diameter, grown from cesium germanium tribromide (CGB) on a mica substrate. The CGB nanowires are samples of a new lead-free halide perovskite solar material that is also ferroelectric. (Credit: Peidong Yang and Ye Zhang/Berkeley Lab)

Solar panels, also...

Unlocking the potential of quantum dots

October 29, 2024
By Veronica Bartell | College of Chemistry
A groundbreaking technique opens a new world of materials for researchers growing nanocrystals.

First natural enzyme creates azides from scratch

September 30, 2024
By Veronica Bartell | College of Chemistry
A team of researchers reported the discovery of the first natural enzyme capable of creating complex molecules, azides, from simpler molecules, which could lead to safer drug development and biological research.

New process vaporizes plastic bags and bottles, yielding gases to make new, recycled plastics

August 29, 2024
Bob Sanders | UC Berkeley Media Relations
The catalytic process, discovered by researchers at UC Berkeley, efficiently reduces polymers to chemical precursors, bringing a circular economy for plastics one step closer to reality.

With a little help, new optical material assembles itself

February 4, 2022
Theresa Duque |Lawrence Berkeley Lab

Nanocircles

Using 3D STEM (scanning transmission electron microscope) tomography at Berkeley Lab’s Molecular Foundry, Ting Xu and her team mapped out the precise placement of nanoparticles in a self-assembling material. (Courtesy of ACS Nano)

A research team led by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) has demonstrated tiny concentric nanocircles that self-assemble into an...

Print, recycle, repeat: Scientists demonstrate a biodegradable printed circuit

September 1, 2022
Theresa Duque | Berkeley Lab

A Berkeley Lab-led research team has developed a fully recyclable and biodegradable printed circuit. The research could divert wearable devices and other flexible electronics from landfill, and mitigate the health and environmental hazards posed by heavy metal waste. (Credit: Marilyn Sargent/Berkeley Lab)

According to the United Nations, less than a quarter of all U.S. electronic waste gets recycled. In 2021 alone, global e-waste surged at 57.4 million tons, and only 17.4% of that was...

Omar Yaghi wins Solvay Prize for climate, materials breakthroughs

January 19, 2024
Press Release
Omar Yaghi has been awarded the renowned Science for the Future Ernest Solvay Prize by Syensqo. The award honors chemistry leaders whose discoveries are shaping the future of the field and humanity.