(Funded by the U.S. Department of Energy)
Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory have unveiled a novel approach to understanding stochasticity in tiny magnetic structures. Their work explores the intricate decision-making processes of nanomagnetic Galton boards, a modern take on a classical concept in statistics and computing. Their insights have the potential to transform computing architectures, leading to more sophisticated neural networks and enhancing encryption technologies to secure data against cyber threats. A Galton board uses a triangular array of pegs. As balls fall through the grid, they randomly bounce left or right, eventually landing somewhere along the bottom. In a nanomagnetic version of the Galton board instead of pegs, the boards use tiny magnetic structures made from a nickel-iron alloy. Instead of balls, they use domain walls, which are boundaries that separate regions with different magnetic orientations within a material. Nanostructures in this work were fabricated at the Center for Nanoscale Materials, a DOE Office of Science user facility at Argonne.

(Funded by the National Institutes of Health)
A child diagnosed with a rare genetic disorder has been successfully treated with a customized CRISPR gene editing therapy by a team of researchers at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and Penn Medicine. The researchers targeted the infant’s specific variant of a gene that codes for an enzyme in the liver that converts ammonia to urea (which is later excreted in urine). The researchers designed and manufactured a gene-editing therapy delivered via lipid nanoparticles to the liver in order to correct the infant’s faulty enzyme. As of April, the infant had received three doses of the therapy with no serious side effects.

(Funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation)
Imagine a T-shirt that could monitor your heart rate or blood pressure. Or a pair of socks that could provide feedback on your running stride. This futuristic idea is getting closer to reality, thanks to new research from Washington State University. Scientists there have developed a more durable and comfortable way to print electronic materials onto fabrics, creating “smart” textiles. Unlike earlier attempts that relied on stiff or rigid components sewn or glued onto fabrics, this new method uses a direct ink 3D printing technique. Researchers printed a solution containing carbon nanotubes and a biodegradable polyester onto two types of fabric. This solution bonded well with the fibers, making the printed materials wash-friendly and able to hold up through abrasion.

(Funded by the National Institutes of Health)
Northwestern Medicine investigators have developed first-of-its-kind eyedrops that use synthetic nanoparticles to help the eye regenerate cells that have been damaged by exposure to mustard gas, which has been historically used during wartime. These nanoparticles were designed to mimic some properties of high-density lipoproteins, which are naturally found in the bloodstream and can help the body regulate inflammation. The investigators tested the eyedrops on mice and discovered that the eyedrops not only reduced inflammation in the eyes of the mice but also restored cells that are responsible for maintaining and regenerating the cornea’s epithelium.

(Funded by the U.S. Department of Energy)
Researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory have developed a new method to deposit quantum-dot films on corrugated surfaces. The researchers used electrophoretic deposition, which drives the quantum dots through a solution with an electric field toward an electrode with the opposite charge. When they reach that electrode, the quantum dots assemble into a film. Traditionally, quantum dots are made with long organic ligands – molecules that bind to the dots and stabilize them in solution. But after the quantum dots are deposited as a film, those long ligands act as insulators and limit device performance, so they are removed with post-processing. In this study, the researchers made quantum dot films using short ligands, which are more conductive and negate the need for post-processing.