The crystal structure of gadolinium ruthenium silicide, which can host a square lattice of swirling magnetic skyrmions (orange = gadolinium; green = ruthenium; blue = silicon). Credit: Y. Yasui et al.

RIKEN physicists have discovered how interactions between electrons can stabilize a repeating arrangement of swirling magnetic patterns known as skyrmions, which could help to further exploit these structures.

The spin of an electron causes it to behave like a miniature magnet. In a skyrmion, many of these spins are arranged in a swirling pattern that resembles a tiny tornado. Skyrmions are highly promising as a means of carrying information in a new generation of high-density, low-energy data-storage devices.

Skyrmions behave as if they are distinct particles, and multiple skyrmions can arrange themselves into a regular grid within certain types of material. But researchers are still debating how these stable skyrmion lattices form.

Those words are:

“Wait: What?”

Image of a heterotube diode:

Sushi-Like Rolled 2D Heterostructures May Lead To New Miniaturized Electronics
Jamie Oberdick, Pennsylvania State University | Phys.org | 3/10/21

This device contains a MoS2 semiconductor shell (blue), over the insulator hBN shell (purple), over the carbon nanotube core (green) of the heteronanotube covered with gold electrodes (yellow). Credit: Elizabeth Flores-Gomez Murray/ Penn State.

Next step: getting it to stop making that “Pew! Pew! Pew!” sound.

Tumors Illuminated Brightly and Precisely With New Biodegradable Nanoprobe

Caroline Brogan, Imperial College London | Phys.org | 3/11/21

To highlight tumors in the body for cancer diagnosis, doctors can use tiny optical probes (nanoprobes) that light up when they attach to tumors. These nanoprobes allow doctors to detect the location, shape and size of cancers in the body.

Most nanoprobes are fluorescent; they absorb light of a specific color, like blue, and then emit back light of a different color, like green.

However, as tissues of the human body can emit light as well, distinguishing the nanoprobe light from the background light can be tough and could lead to the wrong interpretation.

Now, researchers at Imperial College London have developed new nanoprobes, named bioharmonophores and patented at Imperial, which emit light with a new type of glowing technology known as second harmonic generation (SHG).

The findings are published in ACS Nano.

Bioharmonophores are both biocompatible and biodegradable as they are made of peptides—the same ingredients of proteins found in the body. They are metabolized naturally in the body within 48 hours and are therefore unlikely to pose long-term health risks.

Take that, cancer!

I pause in my celebration to notice that no reference was made in the article to the skin color or diversity of the researchers.