Press

The International Union for Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) has defined new recommendations for the nomenclature of boranes and other related species, a field in constant change, in order to include the great diversity of new specialized composites that have appeared since the last time a standard was instituted.

The CSIC Annual Report 2019 showcases the current state of the 120 research centers that are part of the council. The 2019 edition of this publication shares some of the top research done through the year, including some of the work being done at ICMAB.

A recent publication in Nature Nanotechnology in which Massimiliano Stengel, ICREA scientist, and Konstantin Shapovalov, postdoctoral researcher at ICMAB, participated, show how Piezoresponse Force Microscopy (PFM) is an effective tool to visualize and characterize moiré patterns in a wide range of twisted bilayer systems including twisted bilayer graphene. The publication is a collaboration between researchers from Columbia University in USA, the National Institute for Materials Science in Japan, Nanjing University in China, Stony Brook University in USA, the Flatiron Institute in USA and the Institute of Materials Science of Barcelona.

A new publication in Scientific Reports by researchers of the Superconducting Materials and Large Scale Nanostructures (SUMAN) group at the ICMAB, the ALBA Synchrotron, the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC) and CERN, has studied the surface resistance and vortex properties of seven superconducting coated conductors at microwave frequencies, high magnetic fields and low temperatures (mimicking the expected conditions of the Future Circular Collider at CERN) to study how they respond.

Low-gradient magnetic separation (LGMS) is a complex phenomena with a behaviour so contradictory with classic magnetophoresis models that it was considered to be almost paradoxical. An Editor’s Choice feature article at the Langmuir journal, co-authored by ICMAB Researcher Jordi Faraudo, proposes a unified theoretical framework to understand and control this helpful separation technique.

Scientists have managed to draw at high resolution and speed, local patterns in organic semiconductor films used in optoelectronic and photonic applications. The new method enables the patterning of material characteristics and concomitant final properties, including molecular conformation, orientation, crystallinity and composition. The technique, published with open access in Nature Communications, has also been patented and industrial partners are sought for further co-development.

Metamaterials have revolutionized the field of photonics because of their exotic optical properties absent in natural materials. Made from the arrangement of subwavelength units, the properties of metamaterials do not derive from their chemical composition but rather from their physical structure. Therefore, properly designing the geometry, size and media involved in a metamaterial, it is possible to engineer the overall electromagnetic response beyond the conventional behaviors. 

The way the different countries in the world reacted to the emerging crisis that a global pandemic brings and the results they achieved can illuminate the path for a new way to structure scientific innovation. ESADE Professor Xavier Ferràs helps us understand what was the scientific paradigm when COVID-19 hit and how can we expect it to shift.

The SIESTA methodology and program, first described in 2002, is a simulation paradigm that has allowed for extensive and precise theoretical research in the properties of materials based on first principle electronic-structure methods. Almost two decades later, a new publication details the improvements made to the paradigm and how this new tools can be applied.

ICMAB Researcher Riccardo Rurali, from the Materials Simulation and Theory (MST) group, has found two of his theoretical predictions to be confirmed through experimental approaches, regarding the use of hexagonal SiGe alloys for optoelectronic applications and the use of domain walls as switches for phononic devices.

The 15th edition of the Webometrics Ranking of World Universities has been published, ranking researchers in Spain as well as Spaniards doing research abroad, and the list features more than a hundred ICMAB researchers. This initiative developed by CSIC intends to boost online publication of research.

Researchers from the Nanomol group at the Institute of Materials Science of Barcelona (ICMAB-CSIC), the CIBER-BBN network and the ICTS Nanbiosis U6, and members of the TECNIO technology transfer network ACCIÓ-Generalitat de Catalunya, together with the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT, USA) and the University of Parma (UNIPR, Italy) have developed a new nanomaterial for bioimaging. The results of the study are the result of the TECNIOspring PLUS project co-financed by ACCIÓ and the European Commission.

As scientific developments get more and more complex, the challenge of communicating any innovation increases. Despite the increasing amount of applications of new materials in day to day life, explaining how they work is not an easy task, especially with younger people, who might not see any of the more advanced concepts in their science classes. Anna May Masnou, Head of the Communication Department at the ICMAB, has written an article at the SOCIEMAT magazine Material-ES about the MATHEROES initiative, which personalizes material properties into superheroes.

Researchers at the ICMAB, UAB and the ALBA Synchrotron, in collaboration with the UB and ICN2, have developed a new technique to locally modify the properties of a metamagnetic material. The method consists in applying local pressure to the surface of the material using nanometric needles and allows a much more easy and local modification than current methods. The research opens the door to a more accurate and precise control of magnetic materials and allows to improve the architecture and capacity of magnetic digital memories.

The Journal of the American Chemical Society (JACS) features in its FRONT COVER the recently published article "Too Persistent to Give Up: Aromaticity in Boron Clusters Survives Radical Structural Changes" by Francesc Teixidor et al. Do you think the balls look like Christmas balls or like billiard balls?

A research recently published on Nature Materials, carried out jointly by the Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICN2), the Institute of Materials Science of Barcelona (ICMAB), Nanchang University (China) and Chongqing University (China), has demonstrated that light can increase by orders of magnitude the electricity produced by bending (flexoelectricity) in semiconductors. This phenomenon, called photoflexoelectricity, allows a single device to harvest energy from multiple environmental sources.

Teresa Puig appears on the 34th volume of Superconductor Week, a monthly newsletter dedicated to bringing news and analysis about superconductivity to all related parties, from scientists to investors in the industry. Their latest issue covers the breakthrough achieved by the Superconducting Materials Research Group (SUMAN) in the field of growth of YBCO epitaxial films, which was already covered in Nature Communications 11, 334 (2020).

New technologies are frequently supported on innovative functional materials that allow for improvements in performance in order to leave behind the physical limitations of current materials. The economic supplement of La Razón Innovadores talked with 6 expert researchers on the field of materials, amongst which was ICMAB's Director Xavier Obradors, to find more about the future of hardware in advanced technologies. 

The relationship between environmental factors and SARS-CoV-2 will shape the ways in which we respond to the virus as the weather changes. It is still soon to have a definitive idea of how it is affected by variables like temperature, humidity, or ultraviolet radiation, but José Vidal-Gancedo has been compiling what we know and developing a comprehensive article on the topic. His findings have been echoing on the media: he first published the article on La Vanguardia, which was followed by an interview on Aquí Cuní on SER Catalunya.

Although the concept of aromaticity in chemistry is something that chemists have in their minds very clearly, they find it very difficult to define. Moreover, among chemists, there are two currents with two distinct points of view: the experimental chemists and the theoretical chemists. What happens when we look at the aromaticity of 3D boron clusters?

The article published in JACS by Pepe Giner et al. in which the international team reports a MOF (metal-organic framework) that can separate biobutanol from the biomass fermentation products has received much attention in the American media, since there is a high demand for gasoline, and one of the research collaborators was from Oregon State University.

With cancer as the second leading cause of death worldwide, investigation on its treatment stays relevant. New mononuclear ruthenium–carboranyl complexes bearing bipyridyl derivatives are being developed for bimodal therapy applications, unifying BNCT (boron neutron capture therapy) and chemotherapy on a single smaller dose and giving a more effective response thanks to a synergistic effect. These complexes are being characterized and tested against melanoma and glioblastoma, and showing successful results so far.

Organic electronic devices with an X-ray sensitivity competitive with the inorganic devices in the market are developed at the Nanomol group at the ICMAB, by Marta Mas-Torrent et al. and published today, May 1, 2020, in Nature Communications.

The article "Efficient blue light emitting materials based on m-carborane-anthracene dyads. Structure, photophysics and bioimaging studies" published in 2019 in Biomaterials Science, by Núñez et al. has been featured recently in UAB Divulga. You can find the text in English, Catalan and Spanish. 

An article published in the Journal of Medicinal Chemistry , and with the participation of Elies Molins, shows a new family of molecules with high affinity to join imidazoline receptors, which are altered in the brain of those patients with neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and Huntington’s. According to the preclinical study, the merge of these specific ligands to I₂ receptors improves cognitive skills and some biomarkers which are indicators of brain neurodegenerative processes in murine models.

Researchers from the Institute of Materials Science of Barcelona (ICMAB-CSIC) have discovered a water stable metal-organic framework (MOF) that allows for the separation of butanol from acetone-butanol-ethanol (ABE) mixtures that are extracted from the fermentation process of biomass feedstock, as part of the standard industrial process to produce biofuels. This new compound, mCB-MOF-1, shows promising results compared to other methodologies or other MOF materials. The study is published in JACS on 27 April 2020. 

On 1 April 2020, the ICMAB researcher Ignasi Fina, from the Laboratory of Multifunctional Thin Films And Complex Structures (MULFOX) group, was interviewed in the radio show “La Buena Tarde”, broadcasted in Radio Asturias  to talk about the flexible antiferromagnetic tapes. “La Buena Tarde” is a light variety show that discusses culture and science, with a few different collaborators on every episode.

First results of bacterial nanocellulose ocular bandages for innovative ophthalmic treatment have been published at Biomaterials Science. The bacterial nanocellulose, which is more affordable and easier to maintain than current treatments for corneal repair, will be impregnated with growth factors to accelerate corneal regeneration. The research is developed by the Nanoparticles and Nanocomposites Groups (NN) in close collaboration with the Barraquer Ophthalmology Centre in Barcelona, which supports this project from a clinical perspective.

On 26 March 2020, ICMAB researcher Nora Ventosa, from the Molecular Nanoscience and Organic Materials (NANOMOL) group, was interviewed in the radio show “La Nit dels Ignorants 3.0”, broadcasted in Catalunya Ràdio. “La Nit dels Ignorants 3.0” is a night time show that focuses on knowledge and company, both asking and answering public interest questions.

On 2 April 2020, ICMAB researcher Judit Morlà, from the Molecular Nanoscience and Organic Materials (NANOMOL) group, had her first appearance in “Som-hi”. Her section aired on tac12, a TV channel that can be tuned in from any point in the Tarragonès and is also available online. “Som-hi” is a television magazine that offers local news and information as well as some light educative sections.

For the first time researchers have observed directly sound-driven spin waves (magnetoacoustic waves) and have revealed its nature. Results show that these magnetization waves can go up to longer distances (up to centimeters) and have larger amplitudes than the commonly known spin waves.

The journal Chemistry. A European Journal features in its COVER the recently published article "An enantiopure propeller‐like trityl‐brominated radical: Bringing together a high racemization barrier and an efficient circularly polarized luminescent magnetic emitter" from Jaume Veciana et al. We love the cover. Do you?

Nine ICMAB researchers appear on the Webcindario h-index ranking. A database which contains information of the researchers working in Spain in different areas, which have a high h-index (higher than a certain threshold). Our researchers appear in 7 different research areas, being Multidisciplinary Chemistry, Inorganic & Nuclear Chemistry and Applied Physics the most common ones.