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MIT engineers found a way to dramatically improve the signal emitted by fluorescing nanosenors. The researchers showed they could implant sensors as deep as 5.5 centimeters in tissue and still get a strong signal.
A new material created by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) researchers is being hailed as revolutionary. 2DPA-1 is as light as plastic and two times stronger than steel. Unlike currently available polymers, it can conduct electricity and block gas. The scientists believe 2DPA-1 can help lower our carbon footprint and perhaps even reduce the rampant use of disposable plastics.
“Instead of making a spaghetti-like molecule, we can make a sheet-like molecular plane, where we get molecules to hook themselves together in two dimensions. This mechanism happens spontaneously in solution, and after we synthesise the material, we can easily spin-coat thin films that are extraordinarily strong,” Strano explained.
The polyaramide is easily processable in solution, according to MIT researchers, enabling numerous new applications requiring a high strength-to-weight ratio.
MIT chemical engineers have invented a new type of plastic that is twice as strong as steel and could one day be used as a building material.