Nanomaterials

News and Updates

Bioinspired Materials Can Take a Punch

June 24, 2025

Scientists develop new impact-resistant material based on the exoskeleton of the mantis shrimp.

NIST Team Uses Neutron Beams to Authenticate Historic Coins and Spot Fakes

April 29, 2025

Imaging antique coins with beams of low-energy neutrons, researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and their colleagues have

NIST Scientists Use DNA Origami on a Chip to Detect Biomolecules

October 17, 2024

Using strands of DNA to create miniature hinges that pop open or shut when binding to specific molecules, researchers at the National Institute of Standards and

Projects and Programs

Ab initio theoretical modeling for predicting structure and properties in advanced materials

Ongoing

Project activities include: Electronic structure of semiconductor-oxide interfaces. Thermodynamics of flexible microporous materials for gas storage Gas adsorption in microporous materials Analysis of topological materials, including magnetic topological insulators High-throughput screening of

Advanced electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy for structural characterization of bionanomaterials for bioscience and biotechnology

Ongoing

EPR spectroscopic methods to measure distances in the nanometer range, collectively referred to as pulsed dipolar spectroscopies, have been applied to biomacromolecular systems containing a pair of spin labels (nitroxide spin labels) to determine tertiary/quaternary structures and to follow

$Four examples of Transmission electron diffraction patterns obtained in a scanning electron microscope.$

Analytical Scanning Transmission Electron Microscopy in a Scanning Electron Microscope (STEM-in-SEM)

Ongoing

Conventional transmission electron imaging does not necessarily show both strong contrast and high spatial resolution for nanomaterials or soft matter. This is particularly the case for isolated nanostructures or low- Z materials like polymers or biomaterials. For example, consider structures in the

Atom Manipulation with the Scanning Tunneling Microscope

Ongoing

Manipulation of single atoms with the scanning tunneling microscope is made possible through the controlled and tunable interaction between the atoms at the end of the STM probe tip and the single atom (adatom) on a surface that is being manipulated. In the STM tunneling junction used for atom

Publications

Single-wall Carbon Nanotube Separations via Aqueous Two-phase Extraction: New Prospects Enabled by High-throughput Methods

December 30, 2024

Author(s)

Christopher Sims, Ming Zheng, Jeffrey Fagan

Aqueous two-phase extraction (ATPE) is an effective and scalable liquid-phase processing method for purifying single species of single-wall carbon nanotubes

Parallel 3D Temperature Image Reconstruction Using Multi-Color Magnetic Particle Imaging (MPI)

October 18, 2024

Author(s)

Klaus Natorf Quelhas, Mark-Alexander Henn, Ricardo Cordeiro de Farias, Weston L. Tew, Solomon I. Woods

Magnetic Particle Imaging (MPI) is a novel technique developed for remotely detecting magnetic nanoparticle (MNP) tracers, with great potential for biomedical

Synthesis and Size Dependence of Strongly Interacting Ferrite Nano-Objects: Implications for Magnetic Particle Imaging and Spatially Resolved Thermometry

September 25, 2024

Author(s)

Frank Abel, Eduardo De Lima Correa, Thinh Bui, Adam Biacchi, Michael J. Donahue, Mia Merritt, Jonathan Seppala, Solomon I. Woods, Angela Hight Walker, Cindi Dennis

High crystal quality nano-ferrites with short surface ligands (oleic acid) were recently shown to exhibit enhanced spatial resolution in magnetic particle

Material Characterization Study of Magnetite Nanocrystals for RF Sensing

September 24, 2024

Author(s)

Michael Sherburne, Timothy Dreier, Benjamin Klitsner, Dale Huber, Sergei Ivanov, Chris Parks, Matthew Simons, Edl Schamiloglu

Software

Fluxon in Niobium at 4.5 K. The black contours represent the magnetic lines of force in this superconductor. Total phase shift corresponds to h/2e.

HolograFREE

An electron hologram is a fringe modulated image containing the amplitude and phase information of an electron transparent object. The HolograFREE routines

Tools and Instruments

NIST PTIR Instrumentation and Capabilities

Photothermal induced resonance (PTIR) combines the spatial resolution of atomic force microscopy (AFM) with the specificity of absorption spectroscopy

Local Electrode Atom Probe Tomography (LEAP)

Field evaporates (with a voltage and laser pulse) a sharp tip-shaped specimen. Collects the ionization products in a position-sensitive, time-of-flight mass

Dual Beam Focused Ion Beam / Scanning Electron Microscope (FIB/SEM)

Dual beam focused ion beam/scanning electron microscope (FESEM). Focused ion beam using Ga atoms allows the patterning of objects at ~10 nm level (milling and

Aberration-Corrected Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM)

Probe corrected 200kV analytic electron microscope Resolves single atoms Chemical analytic capability (EELS, EDS) Highest resolution in electron optics (<0.1 nm

Awards

Vincent Hackley Honored by ASTM

In recognition of consistent dedication and outstanding service to ASTM Committee E56 on Nanotechnology since the committee’s inception in

Elijah Petersen Honored with PECASE

For pioneering measurement methods of nanomaterials toxicity that now underpin industry and public sector assessments of the environmental