#Keysight Technologies Introduces 9500 AFM With Integrated Software and Hardware for Ultrafast Scan Rates Keysight Technologies, Inc. NYSE:
KEYS) today announced the availability of the ultrafast-scanning 9500 atomic force microscope. The Keysight 9500 AFM system seamlessly integrates new software, a new high-bandwidth digital controller,
and a state-of-the-art mechanical design to provide unrivaled scan rates of up to 2 sec/frame (256x256 pixels).
Engineered with scientific and industrial R&d users in mind, the 9500 is the ideal system for an expansive range of advanced AFM applications associated with materials science, life science, polymer science and electrical characterization.
The ultrafast scan rates of the 9500 atomic force microscope are made possible by Keysight's new Quick Scan technology.
Available as a system option, Quick Scan is controlled through Nanonavigator, a powerful new imaging and analysis software package from Keysight.
In addition to supporting Quick Scan functionality, Nanonavigator software lets researchers save time by using a new Auto Drive feature that automatically and optimally sets all parameters for the 9500.
AFM novices and experts alike can appreciate Nanonavigator's efficient workflow-based GUI as it guides users step-by-step through system setup and operation via intuitive, eye-catching visuals.
For ultimate convenience, the Nanonavigator mobile app for smart phones and tablets allows remote monitoring of AFM experiments
while they are being performed by the 9500. The Keysight 9500 system offers a large (90 m) closed-loop AFM scanner with atomic resolution, industry-leading environmental control, ultra-high-precision temperature control,
and much more. The 9500 delivers superior imaging in fluids, gases, and ambient conditions. Researchers also can use the 9500 to perform single-pass nanoscale electrical characterization.
A new high-bandwidth, FPGA-based digital controller ensures high-speed operating precision and eliminates the requirement for additional external control boxes.
The compact mechanical design of the 9500 affords researchers quick and convenient access to their samples.
More than a half dozen of the most commonly used AFM imaging modes (including Keysight's patented MAC Mode) are supported by the system's standard nose cone,
which can easily be interchanged with specialized nose cones as needed, extending the 9500's capabilities effortlessly. Keysight also offers an STM scanner for studies of conducting materials and an ILM system for simultaneous AFM/optical imaging.
About Keysight AFM Instrumentation Keysight Technologies offers high-precision, modular AFM solutions for research, industry, and education.
Exceptional worldwide support is provided by experienced application scientists and technical service personnel. Keysight's leading-edge R&d laboratories are dedicated to the timely introduction and optimization of innovative and easy-to-use AFM technologies.
Information about Keysight's AFM instrumentation is available at www. keysight. com/find/afm. About Keysight Technologies Keysight Technologies (NYSE:
and market leader helping to transform its customers'measurement experience through innovations in wireless, modular,
and software solutions. Keysight's electronic measurement instruments, systems software and services are used in the design, development, manufacture, installation, deployment and operation of electronic equipment.
The business had revenues of $2. 9 billion in fiscal year 2014. Information about Keysight is available at www. keysight. com o
#Bruker Releases Inspire IR Nanocharacterization System Featuring 10nm Spatial Resolution Infrared Chemical Mapping Bruker today announced the release of its second-generation Inspire#infrared (IR) nanocharacterization system,
which features 10-nanometer spatial resolution infrared chemical mapping in an easy-to-use, laser-safe package.
With IR Easyalign#,Inspire simplifies scattering scanning near-field optical microscopy (ssnom), a powerful technique for identifying chemical composition at the nanoscale.
For the first time, the highest resolution nanoscale chemical mapping now becomes widely accessible. The system expands upon Bruker exclusive Peakforce Tapping technology to provide new information for graphene research
polymers, complex materials and thin films, instantly correlating chemical maps with sample properties, such as modulus, conductivity, and workfunction.
Professor of Chemistry at the University of Toronto. am pleased to partner with Bruker to expand the great potential of ssnom as a versatile tool for broader scientific discovery. nspire is a nanoscale characterization system that extends atomic force microscopy into the chemical
regime by providing 10-nanometer correlated infrared, mechanical and topographical information, added Steve Minne, Ph d.,General manager of Bruker's AFM business. his capability finally lets any researcher answer the fundamental question of here is it?
at the nanoscale. a
#Researchers Use Colloidal Mix to Understand Fluid Behavior in Micron-Sized Channels The study, which has been led by Dr Rodrigo Ledesma-Aguilar;
a senior lecturer in the Department of physics and Electrical engineering in Northumbria University, is a collaborative effort between Oxford university, the University of Barcelona and UT Malaysia.
to tailor the formation of drops, jets and streams of a few nanometres in size. Prof Ignacio Pagonabarraga, from the University of Barcelona, said:
he ability to control drops can also be used to guide the assembly of micro robots,
or to act as microscopic beakers for chemical reactions for the development of smart materials such as clever sensors.
it is an underpinning principle of how physics works to make sense of the world around us,
of life-a cellular recycling unit with a role in many diseases. The proteasome complex is present in all multicellular organisms,
and plays a critical role in cancer by allowing cancer cells to divide rapidly. Researchers used a technique called electron cryo-microscopy,
or'CRYO EM'-imaging samples frozen to-180oc-to show the proteasome complex in such extraordinary detail that they could view a prototype drug bound to its active sites.
The results could help improve scientists'ability to build molecules that interlock very specifically with target sites on proteins-a fundamental part of designing new anticancer drugs.
Scientists from The Institute of Cancer Research, London, and the Medical Research Council (MRC) Laboratory of Molecular biology in Cambridge were able to visualise the proteasome complex down to a resolution of around 3. 5 Angstroms,
and was funded by Cancer Research UK and the MRC. The research could help other scientists to use CRYO EM in structure-based drug design studies-in which researchers build the best possible drugs starting from a molecule which already binds to the active site of a target protein.
Until recently such studies were generally only possible using X-ray crystallography but researchers have been unable to crystallise many protein complexes
in order to study them using that technique. The proteasome plays a key role in the smooth running of a healthy cell,
and recycled for use in building new proteins. It plays an important role in cell division,
Blocking the proteasome prevents this regulated recycling of amino acids and triggers controlled cell death, particularly in fast-dividing cells typical of cancer.
An inhibitor molecule used by the researchers was shown to be visibly bound at each of its three target sites on the proteasome.
Electron cryo-microscopy is emerging as a complementary approach in cancer drug design to X-ray crystallography
-which involves generating highly ordered crystals of proteins and hitting them with X-ray radiation. CRYO EM offers the opportunity to study protein complexes in conditions closer to those in the human body.
In this experiment researchers rapidly froze samples of the proteasome bound to the inhibitor to allow them to be examined in the electron microscope at-180oc.
They bombarded their samples with electrons and generated images using complex image-processing software. Senior study author Dr Edward Morris, Team Leader in Structural Electron microscopy at The Institute of Cancer Research, London, said:"
"Our study zooms in to display the proteasome complex-a recycling unit which plays a critical role in our cells-in far greater detail than we have seen ever before in the electron microscope.
By imaging the protein at ultra-low temperatures, we were able to clearly show the target site for potential cancer drugs
-and could even show an inhibitor bound in place, and blocking the proteasome's action.""By imaging how proteins interlock in ultra-fine detail, down to the tens of billionths of a metre,
our study should make it much easier to design new, more potent cancer drugs. Previously such studies could only be achieved by X-ray crystallography,
but using the electron microscope will allow us to tackle protein complexes which no one has been able to crystallise,
and to do this under conditions which are much closer to those in the human body.""Dr Emma Smith, senior science communications officer at Cancer Research UK, said:"
"Revealing the molecule's detailed shape could be the first step towards designing more precise drugs to block it.
This molecule plays an important role in some cancers and drugs that block it are already available to patients
#OSU Scientists Use Microreactor to Create Silver nanoparticles at Room temperature for Printed Electronics There may be broad applications in microelectronics, sensors, energy devices, low emissivity coatings and even transparent displays.
The findings were reported in Journal of Materials Chemistry C. Silver has long been considered for the advantages it offers in electronic devices.
such as plastics that might melt or papers that might burn. This advance may open the door to much wider use of silver and other conductors in electronics applications,
researchers said. here a great deal of interest in printed electronics, because theye fast, cheap, can be done in small volumes
and changed easily, said Chih-hung Chang, a professor in the OSU College of Engineering. ut the heat needed for most applications of silver nanoparticles has limited their use.
SU scientists have solved that problem by using a microreactor to create silver nanoparticles at room temperatures without any protective coating
and then immediately printing them onto almost any substrate with a continuous flow process. ecause we could now use different substrates such as plastics, glass or even paper,
these electronics could be flexible, very inexpensive and stable, Chang said. his could be quite important
and allow us to use silver in many more types of electronic applications. mong those, he said,
could be solar cells, printed circuit boards, low-emissivity coatings, or transparent electronics. A microchannel applicator used in the system will allow the creation of smaller, more complex electronics features.
This research has been supported by the National Science Foundation and Oregon Built environment and Sustainable Technologies Center
or Oregon BEST. Source: http://oregonstate. edu p
#New Technique Uses Ultrasound Waves for Bulk Synthesis of Graphene A team of researchers from the University of Tabriz have developed a method to manufacture graphene, a crystalline allotrope of carbon, in a simple and economical manner.
The project manager for the research, Dr. Hamed Asgharzadeh stated that they have discovered solutions to existing issues related to the synthesis of graphene.
He explained that the anticipated solution will not only minimize time and production costs but also enable graphene to be produced in large quantities.
a single layer of carbon atoms is arranged in the form of a honeycomb structure. Its highly versatile nature makes it applicable for use in numerous electronics gadgets such as wearables, flexible displays and other sophisticated electronic devices."
"Using papermaking techniques on oxidized graphite and regeneration are the two basic methods for producing graphene,
and the biggest hindrance of such methods is the difficulty of washing the graphene oxide due to its high hydrophilic property.
"Dr. Hamed Asgharzadeh, University of Tabriz In addition, he explained that through their research, they had devised a simple method wherein ultrasound waves were applied at definite intervals during oxidation,
to ensure that the graphite is oxidized completely.""Also, the graphene oxide will regenerate before the washing process and in the presence of oxidizers
"Dr. Hamed Asgharzadeh, University of Tabriz This project was carried out in collaboration with South korea University of Science and Technology y
#Vibrations of Water-Carrying Nanotubes for Improved Water filtration Systems Together, unsafe drinking water and the inadequate supply of water for hygiene purposes contribute to almost 90%of all deaths from diarrheal diseases
--and effective water sanitation interventions are still challenging scientists and engineers. A new study published in Nature Nanotechnology proposes a novel nanotechnology-based strategy to improve water filtration.
The research project involves the minute vibrations of carbon nanotubes called"phonons, "which greatly enhance the diffusion of water through sanitation filters.
The project was the joint effort of a Tsinghua University-Tel aviv University research team and was led by Prof.
Quanshui Zheng of the Tsinghua Center for Nano and Micro Mechanics and Prof. Michael Urbakh of the TAU School of Chemistry, both of the TAU-Tsinghua XIN Center, in collaboration with Prof.
Francois Grey of the University of Geneva. Shake, rattle, and roll"We've discovered that very small vibrations help materials,
"Through phonon oscillations--vibrations of water-carrying nanotubes--water transport can be enhanced, and sanitation and desalination improved.
Water filtration systems require a lot of energy due to friction at the nano-level. With these oscillations, however, we witnessed three times the efficiency of water transport,
and, of course, a great deal of energy saved.""The research team managed to demonstrate how, under the right conditions,
such vibrations produce a 300%improvement in the rate of water diffusion by using computers to simulate the flow of water molecules flowing through nanotubes.
The results have important implications for desalination processes and energy conservation, e g. improving the energy efficiency for desalination using reverse osmosis membranes with pores at the nanoscale level,
or energy conservation, e g. membranes with boron nitride nanotubes. Crowdsourcing the solutionthe project, initiated by IBM's World Community Grid,
was an experiment in crowdsourced computing--carried out by over 150, 000 volunteers who contributed their own computing power to the research."
"Our project won the privilege of using IBM's world community grid, an open platform of users from all around the world,
to run our program and obtain precise results, "said Prof. Urbakh.""This was the first project of this kind in Israel,
and we could never have managed with just four students in the lab. We would have required the equivalent of nearly 40,000 years of processing power on a single computer.
Instead we had the benefit of some 150,000 computing volunteers from all around the world,
who downloaded and ran the project on their laptops and desktop computers.""Crowdsourced computing is playing an increasingly major role in scientific breakthroughs,"Prof.
Urbakh continued.""As our research shows, the range of questions that can benefit from public participation is growing all the time."
"The computer simulations were designed by Ming Ma, who graduated from Tsinghua University and is doing his postdoctoral research in Prof.
Urbakh's group at TAU. Ming catalyzed the international collaboration.""The students from Tsinghua are remarkable.
The project represents the very positive cooperation between the two universities, which is taking place at XIN
and because of XIN,"said Prof. Urbakh. Other partners in this international project include researchers at the London Centre for Nanotechnology of University college London;
the University of Geneva; the University of Sydney and Monash University in Australia; and the Xi'an Jiaotong University in China.
The researchers are currently in discussions with companies interested in harnessing the oscillation knowhow for various commercial projects.
Source: http://www. aftau. or r
#Researchers Advance Ability to Control and Harness Power of Light on the Nanoscale When a duck paddles across a pond or a supersonic plane flies through the sky, it leaves a wake in its path.
Wakes occur whenever something is traveling through a medium faster than the waves it creates--in the duck's case water waves, in the plane's case shock waves,
otherwise known as sonic booms. Wakes can exist wherever there are waves, even if those waves are light. While nothing travels faster than the speed of light in a vacuum, light isn't always in a vacuum.
It is possible for something to move faster than the phase velocity of light in a medium
or material and generate a wake. The most famous example of this is Cherenkov radiation, wakes produced as electrical charges travel through liquids faster than the phase velocity of light, emitting a glowing blue wake.
For the first time, Harvard researchers have created similar wakes of light-like waves moving on a metallic surface, called surface plasmons,
The discovery, published today in the journal Nature Nanotechnology, was made in the lab of Federico Capasso, the Robert L. Wallace Professor of Applied Physics and Vinton Hayes Senior Research Fellow in Electrical engineering at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of engineering and Applied science (SEAS)."
"The ability to control light is a powerful one, "said Capasso.""Our understanding of optics on the macroscale has led to holograms, Google glass and LEDS,
just to name a few technologies. Nano-optics is a major part of the future of nanotechnology and this research furthers our ability to control
and harness the power of light on the nanoscale.""The creation and control of surface plasmon wakes could lead to new types of plasmonic couplers
and lenses that could create two-dimensional holograms or focus light at the nanoscale. Surface plasmons are confined to the surface of a metal.
In order to create wakes through them, Capasso's team designed a faster-than-light running wave of charge along a one-dimensional metamaterial--like a powerboat speeding across a lake.
The metamaterial, a nanostructure of rotated slits etched into a gold film, changes the phase of the surface plasmons generated at each slit relative to each other
increasing the velocity of the running wave. The nanostructure also acts like the boat's rudder, allowing the wakes to be steered by controlling the speed of the running wave.
The team discovered that the angle of incidence of the light shining onto the metamaterial provides an additional measure of control
and using polarized light can even reverse the direction of the wake relative to the running wavelike a wake traveling in the opposite direction of a boat."
"Being able to control and manipulate light at scales much smaller than the wavelength of the light is said very difficult
Daniel Wintz, a lead author of the paper and graduate student in the Capasso lab."It's important that we
not only observed these wakes but found multiple ways to control and steer them.""The observation itself was challenging,
as"surface plasmons are not visible to the eye or cameras,"said co-lead author Antonio Ambrosio of SEAS and the Italian Research Council (CNR)."
we used an experimental technique that forces plasmons from the surface, collects them via fiber optics and records the image."
"This work could represent a new testbed for wake physics across a variety of disciplines."
#Smart Sensor Chip with Nanocavities for Early Prostate Cancer Diagnosis Researchers at the University of Birmingham believe that the novel technology will help improve the process of early stage diagnosis. Glycoprotein molecules,
Because of their essential role in our immune response, they are useful clinical biomarkers for detecting prostate cancer and other diseases.
The team of chemical engineers and chemists, created a sensor chip with synthetic receptors along a 2d surface to identify specific
In doing so, they developed a more accurate and efficient way of diagnosing prostate cancer than the current tests
which rely heavily on antibodies. These antibodies are expensive to produce, subject to degeneration when exposed to environmental changes (such as high temperatures
or UV LIGHT) and more importantly, have a high rate of false-positive readings. Professor Paula Mendes said,
"There are two key benefits here. Crucially for the patient, it gives a much more accurate reading
and reduces the number of false positive results. Furthermore our technology is simple to produce and store,
so could feasibly be kept on the shelf of a doctors'surgery anywhere in the world.
Problematically for diagnosis, the protein part of glycoproteins does not always change if the body is diseased.
The findings, published in the journal Chemical science, show how the rate of false readings that come with antibody based diagnosis can be reduced by the smart technology that focuses on the carbohydrate part of the molecule.
the team wanted to identify the presence of disease by detecting a particular glycoprotein which has specific sugars in a specific location in the molecule.
Professor Mendes added""Biomarkers such as glycoproteins are essential in diagnostics as they do not rely on symptoms perceived by the patient,
which can be ambiguous or may not appear immediately. However, the changes in the biomarkers can be incredibly small and specific
and so we need technology that can discriminate between these subtle differences-where antibodies are not able to."
"To engineering the sensor chip, the team developed a smart surface with nanocavities that fit the particular target glycoprotein.
To create the nanocavities, the sugar part of the prostate cancer glycoprotein is reacted with a custom-designed molecule that contains a boron group at one end (the boron linkage forms a reversible bond to the sugar).
The other end of this custom molecule is made to react with molecules that have been tethered to a gold surface.
When the glycoprotein is removed (by breaking the reversible boron bonds) it leaves behind a perfect cast.
Professor Mendes said, "It is essentially a lock, and the only key that will fit is the specific prostate cancer glycoprotein that we're looking for.
Other glycoproteins might be the right size but they won't be able to bind to the very specific arrangement of boron groups."
"Dr John Fossey added,"It's estimated that one in eight men will suffer from prostate cancer at some point in their life,
so there's a clear need for more accurate diagnosis. By focussing on the sugar, we appear to have hit the'sweet spot'for doing just that.
"The team also hope that further investment, and collaboration with commercial partners, will open the door to adapting the current technology for other diseases.
Dr Fossey continued,"We believe that this could be applicable to other diagnostic challenges. Lots of diseases produce specific glycoproteins, so there are a number of possible avenues to improve the accuracy of our diagnoses."
"Source: http://www. birmingham. ac. uk k
#Gold nanoparticle Coating on Cotton Fibers Can Help Kill Bacteria Juan Hinestroza and his students live in a cotton-soft nano world,
where they create clothing that kills bacteria, conducts electricity, wards off malaria, captures harmful gas and weaves transistors into shirts and dresses. otton is one of the most fascinating and misunderstood materials,
said Hinestroza, associate professor of fiber science, who directs the Textiles Nanotechnology Laboratory at Cornell. n a nanoscale world
and that is our world we can control cellulose-based materials one atom at a time. The Hinestroza group has turned cotton fibers into electronic components such as transistors and thermistors
so instead of adding electronics to fabrics, he converts the fabric into an electronic component. reating transistors
and other components using cotton fibers brings a new perspective to the seamless integration of electronics
and textiles, enabling the creation of unique wearable electronic devices, Hinestroza said. Taking advantage of cotton irregular topography, Hinestroza and his students added conformal coatings of gold nanoparticles,
as well as semiconductive and conductive polymers to tailor the behavior of natural cotton fibers. he layers were so thin that the flexibility of the cotton fibers is preserved always,
Hinestroza said, ibers are everywhere from your underwear, pajamas, toothbrushes, tires, shoes, car seats, air filtration systems and even your clothes.
Abbey Liebman 0 created a dress using conductive cotton threads capable of charging an iphone.
With ultrathin solar panels for trim and a USB charger tucked into the waist, the Southwest-inspired garment captured enough sunshine to charge cell phones
and other handheld devices allowing the wearer to stay plugged in. The technology may be embedded into shirts to measure heart rate
or analyze sweat, sewn into pillows to monitor brain signals or applied to interactive textiles with heating and cooling capabilities. revious technologies have achieved similar functionalities,
but those fibers became rigid or heavy, unlike our yarns, which are friendly to further processing, such as weaving, sewing and knitting,
Hinestroza said. Synthesizing nanoparticles and attaching them to cotton not only creates color on fiber surfaces without the use of dyes,
but the new surfaces can efficiently kill 99.9 percent of bacteria, which could help in warding colds, flu and other diseases.
Two of Hinestroza students created a hooded bodysuit embedded with insecticides using metal organic framework molecules,
or MOFS to fend off malarial mosquitoes. Malaria kills more than 600,000 people annually in Africa. While insecticide-treated nets are common in African homes
the antimalarial garment can be worn during the day to provide extra protection and does not dissipate like skin-based repellants.
Other students have used MOFS to create a mask and hood capable of trapping toxic gases in a selective manner.
MOFS, which are clustered crystalline compounds, can be manipulated at the nano level to build nanoscale cages that are the exact same size as the gas they are trying to capture. e wanted to harness the power of these molecules to absorb gases
and incorporate these MOFS into fibers, which allows us to make very efficient filtration systems,
he explains. Hinestroza always looks for new ways to employ cotton as a canvas for creating infinite modern uses. e want to transform traditional natural fibers into true engineering materials that are multifunctional
and that can be customized to any demand, he said. e are chemists, we are material scientists,
we want to create materials that will perform many functions, but have it remain flexible and as comfortable as a t-shirt or an old pair of jeans. c
#Applied Nanotech Tests Ballistic, Blast-Resistant Armor Panels with Printed Electronic Antennas Applied Nanotech, Inc. ANI), a PEN Inc. company (PEN), announces successful completion
and test of fiberglass ballistic and blast-resistant armor panels that incorporate printed electronic antennas capable of sending
and receiving radio communications and jamming enemy communication signals. The armor provides multi-channel communications and advanced active protection for vehicles, ships and buildings.
The multi-function armor eliminates the need for multiple high-profile communications antenna structures on military vehicles
and ships, making them less visible and identifiable in hostile situations. The armor-incased antennas also have jamming capability to block radio signals
such as those used to remotely trigger explosives, including improvised explosive devices (IEDS). Two wideband low-profile antennas have been developed,
each capable of carrying signals at multiple frequencies. Together they provide electronic warfare, jamming and communication capabilities.
ANI partners in the program are Armortex, maker of bullet-,blast-and forced entry-resistant products, The University of Tennessee at Knoxville and Villanova University.
The research, supported by a federal Small Business Technology Transfers program (STTR) sponsored by the Office of Naval Research (ONR),
combines the knowledge and experience of printed electronics of ANI with the antenna design and modeling capabilities of UT Knoxville and Villanova,
and bullet-resistant fiberglass panel products manufactured by Armortex.""Applied Nanotech and the university partners have made impressive technology strides to create new applications for our existing product line,
"says Rick Snelling, Vice president/General manager of Armortex.""The applications of printed electronics are vast; ANI offers the knowledge
and experience to help realize the potential, "says Dr. Richard Fink, President, Applied Nanotech.""This success demonstrates our comprehensive capabilities as the PEN design center.""
""This has been a challenging yet exciting program to take a passive composite material and create a complex antenna structure that not only provides ballistic protection
but also may help defeat improvised explosive devices and other threats,"says Dr. Aly Fathy, Professor, Department of Electrical and Computer engineering at UT Knoxville."
"This program is a synergistic combination of functional requirements, materials, novel design, modeling and testing,"says Dr. Ahmad Hoorfar, Professor and Director of Antenna Research Laboratory, Department of Electrical and Computer engineering, Villanova University y
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