A new study led by FAMU-FSU College of Engineering researchers investigating precision polymer blends revealed critical insights that could accelerate the development of advanced materials for batteries, membranes and energy storage systems.

The research, which focused on blends of a polymer called polyethylene oxide (PEO) and a charged polymer known as p5, found that even small amounts of charge can dramatically alter how these materials mix. This behavior aligns with previously developed theoretical models, offering a new framework for anticipating when polymer blends will remain uniform or separate into distinct phases.

In joint research with the University of Tokyo (UTokyo), the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Tohoku University, and Kyoto Institute of Technology, the National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS) developed and published "elemental reactivity maps" for discovering new phases. The research team proposed maps that use machine learning to identify over 3,000 element combinations that could potentially form new phases from among a total of 85,320 combinations of up to three elements selected from the 80 elements easily handled in the laboratory. This research result was published in Chemistry of Materials on February 21, 2025.

A research team led by Prof. ZHANG Jian and Prof. ZHANG Yexin from the Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, together with Prof. ZHANG Zhaoliang from the University of Jinan, has developed a novel electrified catalysis strategy for DRM, which they termed electrified DRM (e-DRM).

Coordination nanosheets formed by coordination bonds between metal ions and planar organic molecules are widely utilized in diverse electronic and catalytic applications. In a new study, researchers from Tokyo University of Science (TUS), Japan, have developed coordination nanosheets in an ink-like form. By employing a single-phase reaction of nickel, copper, and zinc ions along with benzenehexathiol, they have demonstrated the selective and sequential synthesis of highly conductive coordination nanosheets.

Recent theoretical research suggests that charmed baryon decays may exhibit unexpectedly large CP violation, potentially offering new clues to the matter-antimatter asymmetry in the universe. Based on the final-state re-scattering, the study predicts CP violation to be an order of magnitude larger than previous estimates. These findings highlight promising opportunities for experimental verification at current facilities like BESIII, LHCb, and Belle II, as well as the upcoming Super Tau-Charm Facility (STCF). 

Researchers have designed a new two-dimensional ferroelectric memtransistor to realize the reward-modulated spike-timing dependent plasticity in a single device for implementing the robotic recognition and tracking tasks.