University researchers have developed a method and apparatus for fabricating different types of nanoparticles for a variety of applications including optical coatings, electrode coatings, and metal surface coatings. (more...)

Sintering of metallic nanopowders at lower temperatures, times and/or pressures during parts manufacturing. (more...)

Available for licensing are patent rights in a method of marking products and goods with unique identifiers, using safe and consumable polymers. The system of marking can be applied as a coating or intrinsic to single or multiple ingredients that become a final product, allowing for authentication of a good, inventory control, and as a means to combat counterfeit goods. (more...)

   For in vitro measurements of ion channels, the ion channels typically are situated in lipid bilayers which are suspended at the interface between two chambers; ionic currents are measured when a bias voltage is applied between two chambers. In vivo studies of ion channels are typically performed with patch-clamp excision of membranes using micro-pipettes, a laborious, time-consuming process with low yield. In spite of this, these studies have yielded important information between structure and function of ion channels in biology. Although these naturally occurring biological nanopores are relatively weak in their structural durability and have a limited life-time, they are still intriguing candidates for sensing technology due to their sensitivity and specificity.    Researchers at the University of California, Irvine have developed a novel sensor device that allows for the interrogation of a single ion channel nanopore. The device integrates lipid bilayers on semiconducting carbon nanotube networks with ion channel nanopores    This new sensor device measures the current when a ligand binds to the ion channel nanopore. This technology is easier to implement than the patch clamp excision of membranes. In addition, the fabrication of these devices is in principle compatible with printed circuit technology. (more...)

UCI researchers have fabricated a single pore membrane with an undulating pore diameter and tested its ability to differentiate particle shape, size and ductility. This new membrane and technique has demonstrated the ability to count/sort particles at order of magnitude higher concentrations than currently available Coulter counters.. (more...)

Thermoelectric devices are on the whole made from inherently inflexible rigid materials. However, alternative thermoelectric devices which incorporate semiconducting nanowires are able to be rigid and yet be flexible.   Individual nanowires are fairly rigid but can move independently from each other, enabling flexible thermoelectric device designs. The use of rigid or semi-rigid electrodes for flexible thermoelectric devices causes many difficulties including but not limited to stiffening the device, creating stresses in the active material contacts, and fracturing the active material and contacts. Flexible electrodes are requisite but it is advantageous to utilize electrodes which are not only flexible but stretchable or compressible.   This advantage becomes increasingly important as the thickness of the device increases and as the radius of curvature of the intended application decrease.  (more...)

Methods for the preparation of long, dimensionally uniform, metallic nanowires that are removable from the surface on which they are synthesized. The methods include the selective electro-deposition of metal nanowires at step edges present on a stepped surface, such as graphite, from an aqueous solution containing a metal or metal oxide. Where a metal oxide is first deposited, the metal oxide nanowires are reduced via a gas phase reduction at elevated temperatures to metal nanowires. Alternatively, beaded or hybrid nanowires comprising a metal A into which nanoparticles of a metal B have been inserted may be prepared by first electrodepositing nanoparticles of metal B selectively along step edges of a stepped surface, capping these nanoparticles with a molecular layer of an organic ligand, selectively electrodepositing nanowire segments of metal A between nanoparticles of metal B and then heating the surface of the hybrid nanowire under reducing conditions to remove the ligand layer. In all three methods, the nanowires may be removed from the stepped surface by embedding the wires in a polymer film, and then peeling this film containing the embedded wires off of the stepped surface. (more...)

The industry has long sought design of LEDs and lasers that are more reliable and efficient at higher output powers. To this end, nanowires and nanopillars have been found to be promising materials for building such opto-electronic devices. However, the commercial viability of these materials depends heavily on their integration with silicon substrates. Further, catalysts were thought to be required and used to initiate the growth of the nanopillars whereby resulting in metal impurities that negate desired semiconductor properties. Another drawback has been the difficulty in controlling the formation of the nanostructures. (more...)

Concentrated solar power and solar hot water systems convert sunlight to thermal energy (heat) by using solar absorbers. For efficient operation, the solar absorber has to effectively absorb the solar energy without emitting much of its own blackbody radiation. As most materials do not possess such features naturally, a spectrally selective coating (SSC) is usually needed. Ideally SSCs would possess: (a) high absorption (0.95) in the solar spectrum (0.3-1.5 microns); (b) low emissivity in the IR spectrum (1.5-2 microns) corresponding to the blackbody radiation of the surface temperature of the solar receiver; and, (c) excellent durability at elevated temperatures, preferably in air and with humidity. Further, the coating performance should not degrade significantly during the lifetime of a solar thermal system, and the coating and its adhesion to the substrate must have excellent thermal cyclability due to the intermittent nature of solar irradiation. (more...)

Microshell encapsulation processes have been developed for monolithic packaging of MEMS devices using polycrystalline silicon (poly-Si) as a porous encapsulation layer because it can be made permeable to HF when sufficiently thin [1] or electrochemically etched. This reduces release times and penetration of the sealing material. The temperature required to form poly-Si (> 600 oC) is too high for CMOS backend integration, however, precluding the use of this technology in monolithically integrated microsystems. Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley have developed a low-thermal-budget (CMOS-compatible) process for microshell encapsulation of microstructures or nanostructures. Inkjet-printing of nanoparticle ink is used to form a porous microshell through which sacrificial material can be selectively removed to release the microstructures or nanostructures. A second inkjet-printing process using finer nanoparticle ink is used to seal the microshell. The mechanical strength of a printed microshell (which can be >1 micron thick) is sufficient for encapsulating regions greater than 1 mm in length. (more...)

New phenomenon of dynamic enhancement of chemical reactions by nanomaterials under hard x-ray radiation. (more...)

Leveraging from microfabrication techniques originally developed for the microelectronics industry, researchers have been able to create simple designs such as well-defined and repetitive patterns of grooves, ridges, pits, and waves.Techniques such as photolithography, electron-beam lithography, colloidal lithography, electrospinning, and nanoimprinting are popular methods for fabricating micro and nano topographical features.However, the need for large capital investments and engineering expertise has prevented the widespread use of these fabrication methods in common biological laboratories.Researchers at the University of California, Irvine have developed an ultra-rapid, robust, and inexpensive fabrication method to create multiscaled grooves, ranging from micron to nanometer in size, as biomimetic cell culture substrates.This method only takes a few minutes to perform and does not require any metal deposition.In addition, the size of the nanowrinkles is easily tuned for a multitude of biological applications. (more...)

A method for synthesizing iron pyrite (FeS2) semiconductor films on solid substrates to serve as the active layer of a solar energy conversion device (e.g. solar cell). (more...)

Lighting is a major contributor to electricity consumption, accounting for 19 percent of global use and 34 percent in the U.S. The U.S. lighting market is currently dominated by the incandescent light bulb and is only 5percent efficient whereas the fluorescent lamp is 15 to 25 percent efficient. Compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) have a rated lifespan of 6,000 to 15,000 hours whereas incandescent bulbs have a lifespan of only 750 to 1,000 hours. On the other hand, CFLs contain small amounts of mercury, a neurotoxin, which gets released with breakage. Solid-state luminaires, which are typically based on light-emitting diodes (LEDs), have the potential to revolutionize the industry with higher efficiency, lower maintenance, and better quality/safety, possibly leading to a reduction by half of energy consumed by general illumination. (more...)

Use of inorganic microparticles and nanoparticles in biological systems may confer many benefits. One primary example is in the realm of fluorescent labeling as an analytical tool for modern biotechnology and analytical chemistry. Conventional labels that use organic dye molecules carry several limitations. Only a few different colors may be used simultaneously, they require a broad spectrum excitation source, their photostability is not very long, and it is impossible to label a material with a single type of probe for both electron microscopy and for fluorescence. Semiconductor nanocrystals (also known as quantum dots) provide a very real solution to the limitations of organic dye molecules. Varying the size of the nanocrystals allows a tuning of the emission wavelength without changing the absorption characteristics. Further, they emit a strong fluorescent signal that remains stable for a much longer period of time. However, these semiconductor nanocrystals are highly hydrophobic particles. As a result, to have any significant biological application, surface chemistry is necessary to make the particle biocompatible and soluble in aqueous environments. (more...)

Developing spintronic devices has become increasingly popular in recent years. Critical to spintronic applications, magnetism in the material used needs to be of intrinsic nature and not associated with secondary phase structures. Mn doped Ge thin films exhibit promising ferromagnetic properties. However, with conventional growth methods secondary phases of MnXGe1-X clusters have been widely observed, resulting in undesirable metallic properties for spintronic applications. (more...)

Neuropathic pain is a type of chronic pain caused by the dysfunction of one or more nerves. This type of pain represents a challenge in medicine because of its frequency, severity, and limited number of effective treatment options. In the USA and European countries, the prevalence of neuropathic pain is between 1.5 and 7.7% of the population. Most patients respond poorly to standard pain therapies involving pain killers. One treatment that has been used to reduce neuropathic pain is antidepressants. Antidepressants are useful, however the mechanisms are unknown and they have unwanted side effects. Therefore, there is a need to uncover how antidepressants work in neuropathic pain, which would then open up new targets to design better analgesics. (more...)

Researchers at the University of California, Irvine have developed a new controllable method to fabricate functionalized carbon nanowires that can then be covalently bound to antibodies, proteins, mRNA, DNA or other reagents. These antibodies and reagents may then bind with analytes of interest in solution causing a measurable change in the electrical current. Additionally, interdigitated electrode arrays may also be fabricated by using nanowires made from this method. (more...)

Method of coating luminescent phosphors, for lighting and display applications, with nanoscale ZNO films using atomic layer deposition (ALD) - for improved efficacy, thermal stability, and lifetime. (more...)

A significant part of past work on artificial nanomotors involves catalytic nanowire motors that self-propel in the presence of a specific fuel, e.g. hydrogen peroxide. However, many applications of nanomachines require elimination of the fuel requirement. (more...)

As part of the Tacky Dot® donation, the University is offering for commercialization the improved method and apparatus for precise placement of an array of single particles on a surface. (more...)

Nanoparticles capable of reversible changes in morphology in response to specific stimuli are expected to have broad utility in designing targeted drug-delivery, detection strategies, self-healing materials, and templates for hierarchical directed assembly. While there are several elegant examples of stimuli-responsive soft nanoparticles, programmable materials with the requisite shape-change properties remain elusive. (more...)

A new microconnector has been developed that makes rapid assembly of millimeter scale components possible. The microconnector is rapidly manufactured with a hot emboss process using inexpensive polymer films such as polyethylene. This allows the microconnector to be created in parallel with many rapid manufacturing processes, enabling the designer to integrate the microconnector with the other components. Once the components are formed with the integrated microconnectors, adhesives are not necessary to attach those components together. The components can be rapidly assembled with a low engagement force that results in a strong connection. These components can then be disconnected and reconnected in a precise, repeatable manner without impairing the engagement strength.   To be useful for the assembly of millimeter-scaled reconfigurable components, a connector with several properties is desired. The connector must form a strong connection between components through a distinct engage/disengage action. This engage/disengage action must require a minimal force to avoid damaging components, must not damage the connector to allow for repeated use and must be fast to allow for rapid assembly. The connector must also be robust to failure and external damage to allow the connector to be reused if the connection is forcefully broken. As well, the connector must be inexpensive and easy to manufacture so that it can be easily integrated with the rest of the components. Finally, the connector must have a sub-millimeter engaged thickness so that its size does not interfere with the function of the millimeter scaled components.   To address this challenge, investigators at University of California at Berkeley have developed a new microconnector. The microconnector design meets these goals through a unidirectional engage/disengage action that gives an anisotropic connection. The anisotropic connector design allows for a rapid engagement in one direction with a minimal force. This avoids putting large strains on the connector during engagement which allows for repeated use. The connector can then be designed to be much stronger in the opposing directions since disengagement in these directions is not necessary. Normal.dotm 0 0 1 148 848 UC Berkeley 7 1 1041 12.0 0 false 18 pt 18 pt 0 0 false false false /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;} (more...)

Technological advancement demands new types of transducer materials that can efficiently sense and convert force and energy form one type to another for signal processing and modulation, switching and actuation, sensing and energy harvesting. It is also desirable to have transducer materials that mimic cylindrical outer hair cells and retinal cells and able to detect and convert signals instantly and reliably with exceptionally high coupling efficiency at reduced size. Nanocomposite materials could provide the necessary advantages, but are difficulty to be synthesized with controlled morphology and interface characteristics. The rod-coil copolymer systems have attracted widespread interest in both fundamental understanding of the thermodynamics that control nanoscale self-assembly in polymers, as well as technological implication associated with the unique characteristics of the novel designed systems. With inception of the responsive polymer system designed by the inventors, for the first time, there are opportunities to design materials without the compromises typically found in conventional composites. The rationally synthesized nanomaterials can be processed in a thin film format, which provides a platform for technology innovation. (more...)

The fuel cell is an energy conversion device that produces electricity through the electrochemical reaction of a fuel and oxidative gas. Polymer electrolyte fuel cells, e.g., proton-exchange membrane fuel cells using hydrogen gas as fuel and direct methanol fuel cells, are clean energy sources with high power density and high energy conversion efficiency. They can replace fossil fuels and help reduce greenhouse gas emissions and pollution. Moreover, polymer electrolyte fuel cells can operate at ambient temperature and be miniaturized and sealed. As such they provide an attractive power generation option for vehicles, home use and portable applications in telecommunications, military equipment, medical equipment, space technology, and others. Increasing the energy density of polymer electrolyte fuel cells remains an important technological goal and much work continues towards developing improved electrodes, membranes and fuels. In particular, many attempts have been made to increase catalyst activity – which promote fuel cell chemical reactions – in the electrodes. University researchers have developed advanced electrode materials with very large surface area to increase catalyst activity. The inventive approach is premised on the use of nanocomposites fabricated from aligned carbon nanotubes and dispersed nanoparticles of a metallic catalyst. Alignment of the nanotubes ensures their separation from each other at high densities (up to 1012 nanotubes/cm2), thus increasing the nanotube circumferential surface area that is available for adhesion of catalyst nanoparticles. The surface area can be further increased by growing secondary nanotubes at an angle from the primary nanotubes, and tertiary ones from the secondary, to form tree-like nanostructures. In the invented nanocomposite electrodes, nanoparticles of the metallic catalyst, e.g., Pt, Pd and alloys, are uniformly distributed on the external walls of the nanotubes. The invention provides methods of fabricating the ultra-large surface area carbon nanotubes and the high reaction efficiency nanocomposites. It also provides a fuel cell which utilizes the nanocomposites in its electrodes and delivers improved energy conversion performance. This technology has patents pending and is available for licensing. (more...)

Cleantech is an emerging sector of innovation and deals with products and processes that harness renewable energy sources, minimizes pollution and waste, and reduces the depletion of natural resources, including water supply. There are two different technical approaches for self-cleaning coatings: hydrophobic versus hydrophilic. Both types of coatings clean themselves through the action of water. In the case of the hydrophobic surface, rolling droplets take away the dirt and dust. In the case of the hydrophilic surface, sheeting water carries away dirt. For hydrophobic surfaces, an indicator of their effectiveness is the contact angle of the water on the surface, which measures the amount of surface tension induced by the coating on the water. (more...)

Researchers at the University of California, Davis have developed novel core-shell architecture nanoparticles that consist of a gold shell and a phosphor core. These particles are developed using a simple, robust one pot water based technique to coat gold on rare-earth fluoride containing nanometer sized phosphors. The uncoated phosphors are white, while the gold coated phosphors have distinct reddish tints that arise from the surface plasmon resonance of the gold shell. The tunable visible color together with the phosphor emission offers numerous possible applications. (more...)

In current polymer nanocomposite fabrication methods, such as simple physical mixing and particle surface functionalization, a coupling agent/surfactant is required to achieve uniform particle dispersion and provide good bonds between the nanoparticles and the polymer matrix. The chemicals necessary for these functionalization processes can result in high manufacturing costs and complex manufacturing schemes. (more...)

Nanometer-scale crystallites of various metals and non-metals have received a great deal of attention in the past decade. For such crystallites, the electronic, thermodynamic, and chemical properties depend sensitively on size, shape, and surface composition. A major challenge to this field is the complete control over particle size, morphology, and surface composition. The preparation and isolation of truly monodisperse sized crystallites with well-characterized surfaces and of uniform shape is paramount to their success as applied materials. Current methods of preparing catalytically active and non-catalytically active metals do not provide a means of consistently controlling the size, size distribution, and surface composition of these particles. (more...)

UC San Diego researchers have developed a simple, fast, and inexpensive sensor to detect trace amounts of explosives. A silicon polymer has been made into a "nanowire," 2000 times thinner than a human hair, that detects compounds such as picric acid, nitrobenzene (NB), dinitrotoluene (DNT) and trinitrotoluene (TNT) in air or seawater, or on surfaces. The sensor uses a thin film of photoluminescent polysilole that can also be sprayed on solid surfaces such as filter paper. Wherever the polymer comes into contact with molecules of explosive material, the fluorescent signal is quenched. This polysilole is stable in air, water, acids, common organic solvents and seawater-containing bioorganisms. TNT vapor in air is detected to 4 ppb (parts per billion) within 10 minutes; in sea water 50 ppb TNT and 6 ppb Picric Acid can be detected. Picric Acid is a substance commonly used in letter bombs. A hand or object that has been in contact with even tiny amounts of TNT may be readily imaged by pressing it to a piece of paper, spraying the paper with a 0.1 M toluene solution of the polymer, and observing the paper with the naked eye under a black light. (more...)

Emulsions are commonly used in food products, cosmetics, paint, etc. Polymer microspheres have applications in, for example, drug delivery and tissue engineering. A challenge in creating polymer microspheres and emulsions is minimizing the polydispersity of the particles. The particles tend to have inconsistent size, shape and mass distribution. Silk is often used commercially as an emulsion, and has been demonstrated to be an extremely effective polymer for drug delivery. Microfluidic devices that produce microsphere have been demonstrated in the past. However, it has been difficult to produce particles with a consistent size and shape known as monodisperse particles. Researchers at UC Berkeley have developed a microfluidic methodology for producing monodisperse silk microspheres. The unique chemistry and method enables production of exact microsphere diameter and percent of crystallinity. Both the microsphere and crystallinity can be precisely adjusted which can be used in for a variety of applications. It is particularly useful to vary drug release characteristics in a drug delivery system. (more...)

An ultrathin silicon nitride membrane has been fabricated and tested to be useable in temperatures in excess of 1000 °C with mass flux rates several orders of magnitude greater than existing technlogies. Pore shape and size are also tunable. (more...)

Photovoltaics have thus far been largely based on semiconductors, e.g., Si, CdTe, and cadmium indium selenide. Solar cells using these materials have increasingly been available commercially but still need improvement relative to stability, cost, and environmental concerns. A leading alternative solar-cell technology relies on photoelectrochemistry and the absorption and excited-state properties of dye molecules bound to a TiO2 substrate. Research on such dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) has targeted and achieved higher efficiency. The prevailing approach in fabricating DSSCs has been based on mesoporous random networks of TiO2 nanocrystals. This approach however suffers from increases in resistance and recombination losses. (more...)

Amphiphilic vesicles are artificial cells with applications in drug delivery (including biomolecular nanomedicine such as DNA, peptides, proteins), combinatorial chemistry, nanoscale chemical reaction chambers, biomolecular devices (power, optical, electrical), and various biosensors. (more...)

Method for Forming Polymer Brush Patterns on a Substrate Surface (more...)

Polymer precursor of SiCN used to produce ceramic composites which improves creep resistance (more...)

Alumina-Titania Nanocomposites from Plasma Sprayed Aluminum Titanate (more...)

A ceramic composite material with improved thermal, electrical and mechanical properties. (more...)

Preparation of Nanometric Oxides that Exhibit Enhanced Protonic Conductivity at Low Temperatures (more...)