Dark matter is a mysterious substance believed to hold galaxies together. Scientists have not yet proven that it exists. But a discovery led by Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) could help with finding dark matter. Dark matter is likely made up of particles and one possible particle is the hypothetical axion. One way to find axions is to show that light particles can move like them. If this behaviour could be observed, the likelihood that axions are real increases. Experiments by NTU Singapore-led scientists confirmed that light particles can behave like theoretical axions inside special crystal structures that they designed. These findings give researchers confidence that, one day, the crystals could be adapted to detect axions and, hopefully, unravel some of the universe’s greatest mysteries.

The intensive development of new technologies, especially in the field related to the construction of new portable devices used as sensors for the detection of many chemical compounds has brought many surprising solutions. One of them is an electronic tongue that can answer various questions about unknown samples: presence and amount of some specific compound, contamination, spoilage, or providing seemingly unmeasurable information such as taste. Such devices, however, would not have succeeded without the development of efficient, fast and inexpensive sensors, such as electrochemical sensors. Recent paper published by the researchers from the Institute of Physical Chemistry, Polish Academy of Sciences led by dr. Emilia Witkowska Nery demonstrates the low-cost, ion-selective syringe electrodes to be used to quantify potassium level in a wide range of food products, and pharmaceutical supplements. Let’s take a look closer on this research.