Much of modern electronic and computing technology is based on one idea: add chemical impurities, or defects, to semiconductors to change their ability to conduct electricity. These altered materials ...

Scientists across the world are working to make quantum technologies viable at scale—an achievement that requires a reliable way to generate qubits, or quantum bits, which are the fundamental units of ...

Settling a half century of debate, researchers have discovered that tiny linear defects can propagate through a material faster than sound waves do. These linear defects, or dislocations, are what ...

In biology, defects are generally bad. But in materials science, defects can be intentionally tuned to give materials useful new properties. Today, atomic-scale defects are carefully introduced during ...

When we talk about defects, we generally think of flaws or impairments. However, as far as materials science is concerned, defects represent windows of opportunity. A new Collaborative Research Center ...

A material may appear flawless on the surface yet fail to function properly. The cause lies in structural defects hidden ...

Mechanoluminescent materials convert mechanical energy such as stress, strain and vibration directly into light, making them attractive as self-powered sensors that require no batteries or wiring.

Advancements in nanotechnology fabrication and characterization tools have facilitated a number of developments in the creation of new two-dimensional (2D) materials and gaining and understanding of ...

Semiconductors may be small, but the impacts they have are significant. Semiconductors used in life-dependent applications, such as pacemakers, defibrillators, life support systems, automotive safety ...