Nanotechnology

World-wide science

November 16, 2017

Omar Yaghi with postdocsBased at UC Berkeley, BGSI is dedicated to developing fundamental science research in foreign countries aided by funds provided by local governments, industries, and institutions.

Three-layered nanocomposite tackles carbon capture’s biggest challenges

December 17, 2025
Researchers have designed a three-layered nanocomposite that manages to maintain a high capture capacity even when exposed to humidity, acids, and other harsh conditions.

Early Berkeley Lab research demonstrated novel approach to next-generation transistor design

September 22, 2025
Bottom-up nanowire innovation from early 2000s showed alternative path to energy-efficient chips powering today’s smartphones, laptops, and AI.

CBE student Zirun Liang among recipients of 'Future Leaders in Chemical Engineering' award

October 21, 2025
Zirun was honored for his research with Professor Markita Landry, entitled 'Single-Molecule Modification of Carbon Nanotubes Through Stochastic Deposition of ssDNA'.

Is the ‘love hormone,’ oxytocin, also the ‘friendship hormone’?

August 12, 2025
A UC Berkeley study found that social prairie voles lacking the receptor for oxytocin are slow to form friendships and less aggressive toward unfamiliar peers. This suggests a role for oxytocin in both the “approach” and “avoid” sides of maintaining friendships.

Introducing a kinder, gentler way to blow holes in cells

March 29, 2019

NanoEP experiment

A new technique developed by University of California, Berkeley, nanomaterials scientists has overcome the overcome the obstacles to delivering macromolecules using inexpensive lab equipment to efficiently infuse large macromolecules into cells. Called nanopore-electroporation, or nanoEP, the technique gently creates fewer than a dozen tiny holes in each cell that are sufficient to let molecules into the cell without traumatizing it. The pores heal rapidly afterward. In tests, more than 95 percent of the cells survived the procedure. .

This crystal impurity is sheer perfection

June 29, 2021

STEM tomography image of a 3D-grown 100-200-nanometer crystalline disc

Scientists at Berkeley Lab, UC Berkeley design 3D-grown material that could speed up production of new technologies for smart buildings and robotics. STEM tomography image of a 3D-grown 100-200-nanometer crystalline disc. (Credit: Berkeley Lab)

Crystallization is one of the most fundamental processes found in nature – and it’s what...

With nanotubes, genetic engineering in plants is easy-peasy

February 25, 2019

genetic engineering in plants just got easier and safer New research reported from the lab of Markita Landry announces scientists could make genetically engineering any type of plant—in particular, gene editing with CRISPR-Cas9—simple and quick. To deliver a gene, the researchers grafted it onto a carbon nanotube, which is tiny enough to slip easily through a plant’s tough cell wall. To date, most genetic engineering of plants is done by firing genes into the tissue—a process known as biolistics—or delivering genes via bacteria. Both are successful only a small percentage of the time, which is a major limitation for scientists seeking to create disease - or drought-resistant crops or to engineer plants so they’re more easily converted to biofuels.

Peidong Yang awarded 2020 Global Energy Prize

September 10, 2020

Peidong Yang for pioneering semiconductor bio-hybrid systems for artificial photosynthesis

Peidong Yang, S.K. and Angela Chan Distinguished Professor of Energy and Professor of Chemistry, has been recognized as one of three laureates of the 2020 Global Energy Prize for...

Meet scientist Markita Landry

February 13, 2019

Markita LandryIn this engaging article, meet Markita Landry, Assistant Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, who runs the Landry Lab at UC Berkeley. Her lab works on developing nanomaterials to assist in the delivery of CRISPR-Cas9 systems in plants.