Materials & Coatings

Access our comprehensive library of technical briefs on materials and coatings, from engineering experts at NASA and government, university, and commercial laboratories.

Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping

Wool-Like Material Remembers and Changes Shape

The material could be used in smart textiles, medical devices, and tissue engineering.

Briefs: Materials

Composite Material Increases Electrical Current Capacity of Copper Wires

The material can be scaled for use in ultra-efficient, power-dense, electric vehicle traction motors.

Briefs: Test & Measurement

Detector Senses X-Rays Over a Broad Energy Range

New materials generate precise X-ray images with a lower amount of exposure.

Briefs: Green Design & Manufacturing

Method Turns Fruit Peels into New Batteries

Orange peels are used to extract and reuse metals from lithium-ion batteries to create new batteries.

Briefs: Photonics/Optics

Printable Light Sensors Can See Colors

Printable organic photodiodes can distinguish wavelengths and enable data transmission by light.

Briefs: Materials

Faster-Degrading Plastic for Marine Uses

This material could reduce persistent plastic accumulation in the environment.

Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping

Janus Particles Improve Paints and Coatings

Other applications include cosmetics, 3D printing, and drug formulations.

Briefs: Electronics & Computers

Soft Magnetic Nanocomposite for High-Temperature Applications

The material can be used in power electronics and power converters for solar energy power systems.

Briefs: Mechanical & Fluid Systems

Electricity-Free Radiative Cooling System

The system is effective in urban environments where there are tall buildings on all sides.

Briefs: Aerospace

Aerogel-Reinforced Composites

The flexible composites can be used as thermal insulation for environments of up to 1200 °C.

Briefs: Aerospace

Self-Healing, Recyclable, Shape Memory Polymers

This versatile new material family could build realistic prosthetics and futuristic Army platforms.

Briefs: Green Design & Manufacturing

Sunlight Converts Emissions into Useful Materials

An environmentally friendly method upcycles carbon dioxide emissions into polymers and other materials.

Briefs: Materials

3D-Printed Sweating Robot Muscle

This form of thermal management can help enable untethered, high-powered robots to operate for long periods of time without overheating.

Briefs: Photonics/Optics

Continuous and Stable Lasing Achieved From Low-Cost Perovskites at Room Temperature

With low-cost materials called perovskites, stable, continuous lasing is achieved at room temperature for over an hour.

Briefs: Robotics, Automation & Control

Ambient Light Alters Refraction in 2D Material

See how tantalum disulfide is supporting new kinds of optics, and potentially new kinds of application for VR and self-driving cars.

Briefs: Energy

Using Silicon for Battery Anodes

A nanostructure design lends extraordinary strength to a promising storage ingredient.

Briefs: Sensors/Data Acquisition

Hybrid Material is an Efficient Photodetector

A metal-organic framework does not contain cost-intensive raw materials and can be produced in bulk.

Briefs: Materials

Bending an Organic Semiconductor Boosts Electrical Flow

This method could benefit next-generation electronics.

Briefs: Electronics & Computers

Battery Improvement Enhances Electric Flight and Long-Range Electric Cars

The new battery technology could improve electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft and supercharge safe, long-range electric cars.

Briefs: Electronics & Computers

“One-Way” Electronic Devices

These non-reciprocal devices on a compact chip pave the way for applications from two-way wireless to quantum computing.

Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping

3D-Printed Soft, Rubbery Brain Implants

This technique may enable speedy, on-demand design of softer, safer neural devices.

Briefs: Manufacturing & Prototyping

Method Turns Nearly any Object into a Data Storage Unit

This technology makes it possible to save extensive data in objects such as shirt buttons, water bottles, or the lenses of glasses and then retrieve it years later.