Modeling how thin films break up
Recent PhD recipient Rachel Zucker models phenomena collectively known as "dewetting" in microscale to nanoscale thin films.
De-stressing lithium batteries
Modeling mechanical stress in solid-state lithium batteries yields insights into battery microstructure for MIT postdoc Giovanna Bucci.
Surfaces get smooth or bumpy on demand
MIT research produces soft material with controllable surface textures that can be varied by squeezing.
Vanishing friction
In tuning friction to the point where it disappears, technique could boost development of nanomachines.
A new tool measures the distance between phonon collisions
Tabletop setup provides more nuanced picture of heat production in microelectronics.
How to make continuous rolls of graphene
New manufacturing process could take exotic material out of the lab and into commercial products.
Translating thought to print
Researchers explore mechanics of silk to design materials with high strength and low density.
Boiling down viscous flow
A new simplified model predicts patterns that form from honey-like fluids.
Tunneling across a tiny gap
“Phonon tunneling” explains heat flow across nanometer-wide gaps, study finds.
New kind of “tandem” solar cell developed
Researchers combine two types of photovoltaic material to make a cell that harnesses more sunlight.
The secret of wrinkling, folding, and creasing
New research provides a general formula for understanding how layered materials form different surface patterns.
Materials Processing Center marks 35 years
Service to faculty, collaboration with industry are hallmarks of campus-based Materials Processing Center at MIT.
Squitching behavior
MIT graduate student Farnaz Niroui demonstrates squeezable nano electromechanical switches with quantum tunneling function.
Cheap, flexible solar
Tuning energy levels through surface chemistry shows promise for higher efficiency quantum dot solar cells, MIT graduate student Patrick R. Brown's work shows.