(Funded by the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the National Science Foundation)
Researchers from Penn State, Purdue University, Intel Corporation (Santa Clara, CA), The Kurt J. Lesker Company (Jefferson Hills, PA), and National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University in Taiwan have developed a process to produce a “rust-resistant” coating with additional properties ideal for creating faster, more durable electronics. Traditional methods to protect two-dimensional (2D) semiconductor materials from rusting involve oxide-based coatings, but these processes often use water, which can accelerate the oxidation they aim to prevent. The team’s approach was to use amorphous boron nitride as a coating material, which was evenly coated on the 2D materials by using a new two-step atomic layer deposition method.

(Funded by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, the U.S. Department of Defense, and the National Science Foundation)
Researchers at the University of Minnesota and the University of Arizona have provided new insights into how next-generation electronics break down or degrade over time. Using a sophisticated electron microscope, the researchers looked at the nanopillars within magnetic tunnel junctions – the building blocks for the non-volatile memory in smart watches and in-memory computing. The researchers ran a current through the device to see how it operates. As they increased the current, they were able to observe how the device degrades and eventually dies in real time. “What was unusual with this discovery is that we observed this burn out at a much lower temperature than what previous research thought was possible,” said Andre Mkhoyan, one of the scientists involved in this research.

(Funded by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute of Standards and Technology)
Researchers from the University of Maryland and the National Institute of Standards and Technology have engineered a seafood-waste material that removes chemical pesticides and herbicides from produce and extends shelf life. The material, made of a derivative of crab and shrimp shells, is designed to form a thin nanocrystal layer on the treated produce, removing chemical residues. The researchers used a smartphone app to check the chemical residue level. They found that this coating was effective in absorbing the chemical residues, enhanced the fruit’s shelf life, and was easily rinsed off.