News & Comment

Nanoscience is now redefining how light can be controlled and processed on chip.

Optical computing is emerging as a low-power alternative by processing data with light instead of electrons. Advances in metasurfaces, plasmonics, and thin-film lithium niobate enable photonic circuits now being co-integrated with CMOS chips for hybrid, energy-efficient artificial intelligence (AI) computing.

Technological developments in reproductive medicine, driven by the convergence of micro-robotics and nanosensors, along with decision-making aided by artificial intelligence, are enabling precise manipulation, gamete selection, embryo assessment and personalized treatment. These disruptive advances could lead to fully automated in vitro fertilization workflows. However, clinical implementation will need to address various technical, biological and ethical challenges to ensure safer and more effective fertility solutions.

Companies are scaling up advanced recycling technologies that could expand capacity, but experts think policies that level the economic playing field are currently the bottleneck.

The path towards high technology readiness levels in nanotechnology research and development goes through the sustainability route.

Advances in materials science, microelectronics and semiconductor manufacturing are helping these devices to benefit patients.

Metal–organic frameworks are transitioning from laboratory curiosity to industrially viable materials driven by extensive community efforts to enhance their functionality and stability, and by breakthroughs in large-scale manufacturing.

The lively debate on nanotechnology that started 20 years ago spurred a collaborative effort between the private and public sectors that developed as the field was growing, leading to the creation of a regulatory framework that underpins today’s successful implementation of nanotechnology. Emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence should take notice.

We present a Focus issue on biosensing, examining sensing modalities at various length scales and their future roles in diagnostics, showcasing the field’s interdisciplinary nature.

The implementation of clinical needs and feedback throughout the development cycle of wearable health-monitoring technology is key to success. Close collaboration with all stakeholders involved will speed clinical translation to the market.

Since the term nanobiosensor first emerged over three decades ago, the field has witnessed an explosion of groundbreaking research. Thanks to the development of advanced nanomaterials and nanotechnologies, combined with decades of expertise in biosensing, a wide range of innovative and improved nanobiosensors have been reported, but many challenges remain. For this technology to truly meet real-world needs — particularly in global health and related applications — further efforts are needed to improve performance, useability, scalability and cost-effectiveness.

With simple prompts it is possible to generate fake microscopy images of nanomaterials that are virtually indistinguishable from real images. Should we worry?

Generative AI has made it trivial to generate fake microscopy images that are indistinguishable from real images, even for experts. As researchers in nanoscience, it is time for us to face this reality and discuss strategies to conserve the integrity of our discipline.

One hundred years after the publication of the foundational works of quantum mechanics, we are witnessing the dawn of quantum industries.

Banks are starting to exploit the very resource that threatens their future: quantum physics.

Nanoscale control — through solvents, additives, colloidal engineering, or atomic-scale characterization — is pushing perovskite photovoltaics closer to commercialization.

Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) computing and data storage are emerging fields that are unlocking new possibilities in information technology. Here, we discuss technologies and challenges regarding using DNA molecules as computing substrates and data storage media.

Polyethylene glycol (PEG) is a commonly used coating agent in nanomedicine, but there are growing concerns about its immunogenicity. Two Comment articles discuss the issue and possible alternatives to PEG.

Mass vaccination using polyethylene glycol (PEG)-containing nanoparticles during the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in cases of adverse reactions, bringing to the fore the issue of PEG immunogenicity and reinforcing the view that this polymer should be substituted with other stealth-inducing molecules. Before considering alternatives, however, it is crucial to carry out more detailed analyses of the anti-PEG antibodies, to standardize the procedures for their detection and to better contextualize their generation within different nanoformulations, routes of administration, indication, safety and efficacy. The resulting studies could guide both the future use of PEGylated nanomedicines and the synthesis of the next generation of PEG or its alternatives.

Synchrotron techniques can probe battery materials and devices at unprecedented scales of time and space, providing in-depth mechanistic understanding. However, the lack of standardization in synchrotron measurements and analyses can lead to biased interpretations of data and results. Here, we propose possible strategies to address the reliability, representativeness and reproducibility issues of synchrotron characterizations in battery research.