As the summer approaches and more families hit the road, many will take for granted the stability of the bridges that get them where they’re going.  Keeping the 600,000 bridges in the U.S. safe is no small challenge.  That’s why engineers are beginning to fit some of the most-traversed structures with sensors that can alert [...]

Physical forces generated by cells drive morphologic changes during development and can feedback to regulate cellular phenotypes.  Because these phenomena typically occur within a 3-dimensional (3D) matrix in vivo, we used microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) technology to generate arrays of microtissues consisting of cells encapsulated within 3D micropatterned matrices.  Microcantilevers were used to simultaneously constrain the [...]

We induced sublimation of suspended few-layer graphene by in situ Joule-heating inside a transmission electron microscope.  The graphene sublimation fronts consisted of mostly {1100} zigzag edges.  Under appropriate conditions, a fractal-like “coastline” morphology was observed.  Extensive multiple-layer reconstructions at the graphene edges led to the formation of unique carbon nanostructures, such as sp2-bonded bilayer edges [...]

Size-dependent plastic flow behavior is manifested in nanoindentation, microbending, and pillar-compression experiments and plays a key role in the contact mechanics and friction of rough surfaces.  Recent experiments using a hard flat plate to compress single-crystal Au nano-pyramids and others using a Berkovich indenter to indent flat thin films show size scaling into the 100-nm [...]

Half a century since the first working laser kick-started a technological revolution in the field of optics, a new device promises to do the same for acoustics.  UK and Ukrainian physicists have built the first “saser”, or sound laser, able to generate terahertz-frequency sounds.  A laser produces photons that travel in a tight beam instead [...]

Traffic Congestions and accidents are major concerns in today’s transportation systems.  This thesis investigates how to optimize traffic flow on highways, in particular for merging situations such as intersections where a ramp leads onto the highway.  In our work, cars are equipped with sensors that can detect distance to neighboring cars, and communicate their velocity [...]

Scientists in the United States are developing a “synthetic tree” capable of collecting carbon around 1,000 times faster than the real thing.  As the wind blows though plastic “leaves,” the carbon is trapped in a chamber, compressed and stored as liquid carbon dioxide.  The technology is similar to that used to capture carbon from flue [...]

The UAB School of Engineering has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the National Institute of Technology Calicut (NITC) in Calicut, India.  A signing ceremony, held in the UAB administrative offices on June 12, included UAB President Dr. Carol Garrison and NITC Director Dr. Ginjala R. C. Reddy.  The agreement between UAB and NITC creates [...]

We demonstrate a highly reproducible control of local electron transport through a ferroelectric oxide via its spontaneous polarization. Electrons are injected from the tip of an atomic force microscope into a thin film of lead-zirconate titanate, Pb(Zr0.2Ti0.8)O3, in the regime of electron tunneling assisted by a high electric field (Fowler-Nordheim tunneling). The tunneling current exhibits [...]

We are surrounded in everyday life by yield stress fluids: materials that behave as solids under small stresses but flow like liquids beyond a critical stress.  For example, paint must flow under the brush, but remain fixed in a vertical film despite the force of gravity.  Food products (such as mayonnaise), other consumer products (such [...]