Ceramics

Origami-Inspired…Ceramics?!?

In a breakthrough that blends ancient design with modern materials science, researchers at the University of Houston have developed a new class of ceramic structures that can bend under pressure — without breaking.

Products of Tomorrow

See the products of tomorrow, including a nanorobotic hand made of DNA that can grab viruses for detection or inhibition developed at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign; a new and improved wearable ultrasound patch for continuous and noninvasive blood pressure monitoring developed at the University of California San Diego; and soft and intelligent sensor materials based on ceramic particles developed at Empa’s Laboratory for High-Performance Ceramics.

In-Space Manufacturing of Self-Replicating Machines

How do we get to a future of self-replicating, Von Neumann space probes? What are some of the steps required to convert the Asteroid Belt into a partial Dyson Sphere? The answer lies in ISAM or in-space servicing assembly and manufacturing, 3D printing on-orbit, and fully automated, ‘lights-out’ production on-Earth.

How Much Do You Know About Materials?

Materials science has led to breakthroughs in medicine, renewable energy, and nanotechnology, with the potential for other revolutionary applications. How much do you know about materials science? Find out with this quiz.

Optimizing a Chemical Vapor Deposition Process for a High-Performance Tungsten Material

To make fusion power not only physically possible but also economically possible, we need to develop high-performance fusion reactors. However, these reactors call for high-performance materials.

3D-Printed Ceramics Can Increase Gas Turbine Efficiency

Professor Stephen Lynch, of Penn State’s College of Engineering, along with colleagues at Michigan State University and the University of Wyoming, have developed a process for 3D printing a high-temperature ceramic gas turbine part.

Making High-Performance Parts Inexpensive and Durable

Idaho National Laboratory has developed world-class capabilities to help industry design efficient SPS manufacturing processes. The lab’s newest addition makes it possible to manufacture new materials at industrially relevant scales.

Engineers Develop New Shape-Memory Material

The discovery of a new category of shape-memory materials could open a new range of applications, especially for high-temperature settings.

Heat-Proof Carbides May Revolutionize Aerospace Technology

The new materials are hard enough to stir molten steel and can withstand temperatures above 7,000 degrees Fahrenheit — about the same temperatures found just a few hundred miles above the surface of the sun.

Facility Focus: North Carolina State University

Learn about the technologies being developed at NC State, including vehicle armor, a monitoring patch for plants, and origami-inspired materials.

Products of Tomorrow

Breath-regulating garments, humidity sensors, thin-film antennas, and more.

Inside Story, November 2021: Momentive Materials in Space, Defense, and Aviation

Thanos Yiagopoulos, Chief Technology Officer of Momentive Performance Materials, discusses how engineers can determine the best product for their application.

New Products

Infrared lens testers, fiber optic transceivers, spectral radiometers, and more.

Silicon Carbide Optics for High-Energy Applications

Silicon Carbide (SiC) optics are becoming more and more prevalent in high-energy laser (HEL) designs, and manufacturers must be aware of the potential risks

2021 Create the Future Design Contest: Aerospace & Defense Category Winner — How to Keep Drones Flying When a Motor Fails, without GPS

A vision-based control algorithm saves a quadrotor after the complete loss of a single motor.

Metallic Glass Gears Up for Cobots, Coatings, and More

A bulk metallic glass could slash prices of collaborative robots and lead to advanced 3D-printed metals.

New Materials Move Li-Ion Batteries Toward the Solid-State Endgame

A new generation of lithium-ion batteries is poised to improve electric vehicle range and affordability.

New Spraying Method for Producing Ceramic Coatings

High-quality coated components can be integrated into complex systems in a sustainable way.

Heat-Resilient Silver Circuits for Extreme Electronics

The tough circuits could withstand the grueling demands of energy production, space exploration, and more.

Ultrahigh-Energy-Density Capacitor

By introducing defects to a common material, a highly efficient capacitor offers dramatically increased energy density.

System for In-Situ Defect Detection in Composites During Cure

This system enhances processing via real-time, non-destructive defect tracking.

High-Capacity Optical Data Storage Disk

Using gold nanomaterials, this disk can hold data securely for more than 600 years.

Low-Cost, Fast Production of Solid-State Batteries

A disruptive manufacturing technology now offers reduced manufacturing costs and improved volumetric energy density in all-solid cells.

New on the Market: March 2021

Vision software, thermal sensors, ceramic pastes, and more.

New on the Market: September 2020

Foam gasket tapes, data analytics software, ceramic tape, and more.

T-Ray Camera Speed Boosted a Hundred Times Over

Real-time terahertz imaging with a single-pixel detector.