Materials Chemistry

Can synthetic polymers replace the body’s natural proteins?

March 20, 2023

Illustration of biological fluids are made up of hundreds or thousands of different proteins

Biological fluids are made up of hundreds or thousands of different proteins (represented by space filling models above) that evolved to work together efficiently but flexibly. UC Berkeley polymer scientists are trying to...

Professor Ting Xu honored at Falling Walls Science Summit

November 14, 2022

Ting Xu lectures at 2022 Falling Walls event in Berlin, Germany

Professor Ting Xu was honored at the Falling Walls Science Summit on November 9th. Prof. Xu discussed her reearch in a talk entitled: 'Breaking the Wall to Programmable Plastic Degradation through Enzymes'. She outlined the crisis of plastic pollution and what she and her research...

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

September 1, 2022

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...

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

September 1, 2022

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...

Using magical electrons for electrochemistry

March 15, 2022

Cover Nature ChemistryThe cover of 'Nature Chemistry' depicts an artistic representation of electron transfer from twisted bilayer graphene to Ru(NH3)6 3+ — the redox-active molecule used in these studies. Image credit: Ella Marushenko and Kate Zvorykina (Ella Maru Studio) Cover design: Tulsi Voralia

The transformation of energy from one...

An electronic crystal turned flat

February 18, 2022

Artist rendering of a layered charge-density-wave material

Artist rendering of a layered charge-density-wave material. Blue spheres represent lattice ions while sinusoidal curves represent waves of electron density. In this case, the charge density wave possesses long-range order both within a layer and between layers. (Illustration by Alfred Zong)...

With a little help, new optical material assembles itself

February 4, 2022

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...

Tiny liquid robots never run out of energy as long as they have food

January 3, 2022

Liquid robots

Artist’s rendering of autonomous, continuous “liquid robots” in an animated GIF. (Credit: Jenny Nuss/Berkeley Lab)

When you think of a robot, images of R2-D2 or C-3PO might come to mind. But robots can serve up more than just entertainment on the big screen. In a lab, for example, robotic systems can improve safety and efficiency by performing repetitive tasks...

PMP 先鋒材料科技集團與柏克萊加州大學化學院建立合作關系

April 5, 2021

Heathcock Hall front entrance illustration

Conceptual rendering of the ground floor entrance of Heathcock Hall looking East. (Courtesy HOK Architects)

PMP 先鋒材料科技集團(PMP Tech)承諾的1000萬美元,不僅可以為未來柏克萊加州大學化學、化學工程及化學生物學專業學生提供更多的學習機會,還將用於建造一幢具備開創性的教學樓,為化學科學家和工程師們提供一流的科研工作環境。

PMP Tech以制造用於消費電子產品的創新高科技彈性體和其它環保橡膠產品享譽全球。2020年,...

PMP Tech Forms a Bond with the College of Chemistry

April 5, 2021

Heathcock Hall front entrance illustration

Conceptual rendering of the ground floor entrance of Heathcock Hall looking East. (Courtesy HOK)

A $10 million commitment from Taiwan-based company Pioneer Material Precision Tech (PMP Tech) will catalyze educational opportunities for future generations of Berkeley chemistry, chemical...