Science and Technology

Onri Benally, glasses, dark hair and dark blue shirt, stands in front of trees.

Feature

Hardwired for science

A young student and researcher finds his calling in spintronics.

Feature

Explaining teamwork in male lions

In India’s Gir Forest, males seeking mates band together in surprising ways.

Simon Ozbek in front of spacesuits at NASA

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Be the voice of the user

When Simon Ozbek started his academic career he never imagined it would take him all the way to NASA. Read his interview.

Using advanced analytical scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) at a magnification of 10 million times, University of Minnesota researchers were able to isolate and image the structure and composition of the metallic line defect in a perovskite crystal BaSnO3. This image shows the atomic arrangement of both the BaSnO3 crystal (on the left) and the metallic line defect.

Research Brief

Conductive nature in crystal structures revealed at magnification of 10 million times

The U of M study opens up possibilities for new transparent materials that conduct electricity.

Research Brief

Excess x-rays from neutron stars could lead to discovery of new particle

After observing an excess of x-rays from neutron stars, a team of researchers found that the anomaly may have been caused by axions, hypothetical particles that could help scientists solve several mysteries of the universe.

While studying a thin-film material called strontium stannate (SrSnO3), University of Minnesota researchers noticed the surprising formation of checker-board patterns at the nano scale similar to structures fabricated in costly, multistep processes. Their results show the realistic possibility of designing similar self-assembled structures with wide applications in materials for electronics and optical devices. Credit: Jalan Group, University of Minnesota

Research Brief

Researchers develop new one-step process for creating self-assembled metamaterials

The discovery is big step forward in creating new materials used in a variety of applications including optical devices and sensors.

Research Brief

Do predators shape ecosystems? Trophic cascades curtailed by prey use of dangerous places during safe times

By simulating wolf activity in the grasslands of central Minnesota, University of Minnesota researchers demonstrated that deer altered their behavior in response to the fear of predation in specific ways that halt the cascade of predator effects on plant and soil communities.