Aktualitäten 2019

By Christoph Pelzl Newly discovered properties of magnetically doped topological insulators could significantly accelerate the development of quantum computers. The transmission electron microscope ASTEM, located at Graz University of Technology, played a major role in the success of these discoveries.

By Birgit Baustädter 3D printing is the manufacturing technique of the future. And these are not just empty words: the approach's significance is reflected in numerous examples from a wide variety of disciplines. This article has just been published in our research magazine TU Graz research. You can read or download the latest issue directly as an e-paper.

A new type of material generates electrical current very efficiently from temperature differences. This allows sensors and small processors to supply themselves with energy wirelessly. Thermoelectric materials can convert heat into electrical energy. This is due to the so-called Seebeck effect: If there is a temperature difference between the two ends of such a material, electrical voltage can be generated and current can start to flow.

A team from Graz University of Technology succeeded in using the FEBID method to produce complex 3D-printed nano-components for the first time without additional support structures. Additional pictures for download at the end of the text In the nanometer range, complex, free-standing 3D architectures are very difficult to produce in a single step due to the required precision.

By Birgit Baustädter Materials researcher Florian Lackner "wraps" highly reactive alkali metal atoms in gold and examines them in his laser laboratory. A job he dreamed of when he was a child. "What I'm doing now is exactly what I've always wanted to do." Florian Lackner has achieved what many wish for.

With a new process developed at TU Wien (Vienna), living cells can be integrated into fine structures created in a 3D printer - extremely fast and with very high resolution. Tissue growth and the behavior of cells can be controlled and investigated particularly well by embedding the cells in a delicate 3D framework.

A very special kind of light is emitted by tungsten diselenide layers. The reason for this has been unclear. Now an explanation has been found at TU Wien (Vienna). It is an exotic phenomenon that nobody was able to explain for years: when energy is supplied to a thin layer of the material tungsten diselenide, it begins to glow in a highly unusual fashion.

By Birgit Baustädter In chemical analysis, when electron microscopes reach their limits, the field emission microprobe steps in. With this equipment, taking analysis down to the next level of magnitude is no problem. The wafer-thin black flake shines like a flattened precious stone. The flake is locked in a silver sample container sitting on a clean tray waiting to be pushed into a large machine on the opposite side of the lab.

Innovative new electron spectroscopy technique pushes the limits of Nanospectroscopy for materials design In order to understand advanced materials like graphene nanostructures and optimize them for devices in nano-, optoand quantum-technology it is crucial to understand how phonons - the vibration of atoms in solids - influence the materials' properties.

Ultradense arrays of magnetic quanta in high-temperature superconductors The properties of high-temperature superconductors can be tailored by the introduction of artificial defects. An international research team around physicist Wolfgang Lang at the University of Vienna has succeeded in producing the world's densest complex nano arrays for anchoring flux quanta, the fluxons.

By Susanne Eigner An international team involving researchers from TU Graz has published research into a new solid-state electrolyte for batteries. The material exhibits one of the fastest lithium mobility processes ever measured in a lithium-ion conductor. Solid-state batteries are currently the most promising technology helping to pave the way for the breakthrough of electric mobility.

Effective atomic interactions in complex materials picked up by on-the-fly machine-learning At the atomic scale materials can show a rich palette of dynamic behaviour, which directly affects the physical properties of these materials. For many years, it has been a dream to describe these dynamics in complex materials at various temperatures using computer simulations.

By Christoph Pelzl Researchers at TU Graz have discovered a means of suppressing singlet oxygen formation in lithium-oxygen batteries in order to extend their useful lives. Additional at the end of the text. Since 2012, Stefan Freunberger of the Institute for Chemistry and Technology of Materials at TU Graz has been working on development of a new generation of batteries with enhanced performance and longer useful lives, and which are also cheaper to produce than current models.

By Werner Schandor What does industry-scale cement bag filling have in common with a pit stop in Formula 1? Filling a 25kg paper bag with cement in the factory takes about three seconds, about as long as a pit stop. But packaging and paper manufacturer Mondi reckons this is too long. They asked TU Graz to study the material flow that is at work in this process.