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  Mildred Dresselhaus: The Queen of Carbon Science   There's an old proverb in science that says," We make progress by standing on the shoulders of the giants". Sometimes a researcher will spend their entire life doing important foundational work which paves the path for others to make discoveries later. One such giant was Mildred Dresselhaus. Mildred Dresselhaus (November 11, 1930 – February 20, 2017), known as the "Queen of Carbon Science", was an American physicist, materials scientist, and nanotechnologist. Born in Brooklyn, New York, she attended Hunter College where she was mentored by Rosalyn Yalow who went on to become a future Nobel laureate. Dresselhaus further went on to study at Cambridge University and the University of Chicago under the renowned physicist Enrico Fermi. After completing her PhD on semiconductors, she started her pioneering work on carbon at MIT and married her fellow physicist, Gene Dresselhaus. She stayed there for almost 60 years ...

  Free Flow of Electrons!   Electrons are the building blocks of electronic devices and the movement of these electrons plays a crucial role in the functionality of electronic devices. Basically, any electronic conduction requires the movement of electrons and thus it is a very fundamental and important aspect. In traditional metals, electrons are expected to move diffusively, meaning that they behave like individual particles. However, a recent study has discovered a novel behaviour of electrons in a metal called ditetrelide (NbGe2), where electrons behave like a fluid, flowing in a way similar to water in a pipe. This fluid-like behaviour is due to the interaction between electrons and quasiparticles called phonons, which arise from vibrations in the crystal structure of the metal.     This discovery has important implications for the development of new electronic devices as it completely revolutionaries electrical conduction. Let's first look at the tr...

  FLICK, PULSE AND SUPERCONDUCT   WHAT IS SUPERCONDUCTIVITY?   By definition, superconductivity is a state of matter that has no electrical resistance and does not allow magnetic fields to penetrate. For regular conductors, as we know, resistance decreases linearly with temperature and becomes 0 at absolute temperature (0 Kelvin). However, in the case of superconductors, they have a critical temperature — based on their physical properties — below which their resistance drops to 0 ohms. Now, superconductors are of great influence due to their properties and hence find multitudes of applications. However, this also makes them expensive and difficult to obtain.   Graphene, an allotrope of carbon (which is more accessible than currently available superconductors) also acts as a superconductor. However, there is a twist Source: www.maxpixel.net   Graphene is a one-atom-thick layer of carbon atoms arranged in a hexagonal lattice. When multiple gra...

Shrilk: When Shrimps and Silk Make Plastic   Did you know that shrimp exoskeletons are stronger than steel? Shrimp shells can also be used to make strong, biodegradable plastic – which is exactly what scientists at the University of Central Florida have been doing for the past few years. The team has found a way to turn these small crustacean shells into a useful material, one that can be used to create various products. Because this new type of plastic is made from natural materials, it’s not only sustainable but also eco-friendly. Keep reading to learn more about this interesting research! Why Shrimp Shells? First, let’s find out why shrimp shells are such an attractive material for plastic making. Shrimp are abundant and renewable: We can harvest shrimp and then recycle their shells as many times as we want. Shrimp shells are naturally porous: This makes them an excellent material for biodegradable plastic, which needs to be able to break down in the environment. Shrimp shel...

  INTRODUCTION   Have you ever marveled over how far we have come from using flintstones? The human race's achievements in all technological fields over the last century are far beyond expectations. The majority of this success is owed to semiconductors. Semiconductors, used in ICs, microprocessors, in every electronic device have led to feats in communications, computing, healthcare, military systems, automobiles, space missions, artificial intelligence, and every other essential industry.     Are these materials easy to obtain? How are they actually produced? Let’s have a look.   THE PROCESS Making semiconductor devices involve several complicated steps.   1.       MINING The raw material for most silicon, the most commonly used semiconductor, production is the mineral quartzite. Raw quartzite is mostly silicon dioxide (SiO2), and the refining process begins with a reduction reaction to getting rid of the o...