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Urea is considered a possible key molecule in the origin of life. researchers have discovered a previously unknown way in which this building block can form spontaneously on aqueous surfaces without the need for any additional energy. 26.06.2025 by Doris Lujanovic, Corporate Communications Urea is one of the most important industrial chemicals produced worldwide.

Scientists at The University of Manchester have designed a molecule that can remember magnetic information at the highest temperature ever recorded for this kind of material. In a boon for the future of data storage technologies, the researchers have made a new single-molecule magnet that retains its magnetic memory up to 100 Kelvin (-173 °C) - around the temperature of the Moon at night.

Caltech professor of chemistry Sandeep Sharma and colleagues from IBM and the RIKEN Center for Computational Science in Japan are giving us a glimpse of the future of computing. The team has used quantum computing in combination with classical distributed computing to attack a notably challenging problem in quantum chemistry-determining the electronic energy levels of a relatively complex molecule.

For the past five years, researchers at Leipzig University have been working on fundamentally new methods for selectively assembling gaseous, charged molecular fragments into new, complex molecules. The synthesised substances are deposited onto surfaces. This innovative process opens up new perspectives for applications in modern nanoelectronics and sensor technology.

For the past five years, researchers at Leipzig University have been working on fundamentally new methods to specifically assemble gaseous, charged molecular fragments into new, complex molecules. The newly synthesized substances are deposited on surfaces. This innovative process opens up new perspectives for applications in modern nanoelectronics and sensor technology.

Gas in planet-forming discs, which provides fuel for giant planets to form, disperses in just a few million years, according to new research by an international team including UCL astronomers. The researchers looked at 30 discs of gas and dust around Sun-like stars to measure gas disc masses at different ages.

Taking better photos with less light: That is the promise of perovskite-based image sensors. The innovative semiconductor material enables better color reproduction and fewer image artefacts. Moreover, perovskite sensors are particularly suitable for machine vision. Researchers at Empa and ETH Zurich have developed the technology from scratch.

A new method combines helium droplets with ultrashort laser pulses to initiate chemical processes in a controlled manner. This provides insights into the transfer of energy and charge during the formation of chemical bonds. For the first time, a research team led by Markus Koch from the Institute of Experimental Physics at Graz University of Technology (TU Graz) has tracked in real time how individual atoms combine to form a cluster and which processes are involved.

A new method combines helium droplets with ultrashort laser pulses to initiate chemical processes in a controlled manner. This provides insights into the transfer of energy and charge during the formation of chemical bonds. For the first time, a research team led by Markus Koch from the Institute of Experimental Physics at Graz University of Technology (TU Graz) has tracked in real time how individual atoms combine to form a cluster and which processes are involved.

Scientists from the National Graphene Institute at The University of Manchester and the University of Technology Sydney have developed a new way to improve the lifespan of zinc-ion batteries, offering a safer and more sustainable option for energy storage. The team designed a two-dimensional (2D) manganese-oxide/graphene superlattice that triggers a unique lattice-wide strain mechanism.

Scientists at EPFL have unraveled the details of the first crucial step in the oxygen evolution reaction, a bottleneck for clean hydrogen production, using advanced simulations and machine learning techniques. In our search for cleaner energy sources, hydrogen stands out, as it can store and deliver energy without producing carbon emissions because burning hydrogen only creates water.

University of Münster is involved in the new "Center for Molecular Water Science Water is not only essential for life, it is also a fascinating and complex molecule that forms the basis of all life on earth. In the new "Centre for Molecular Water Science", a European research network, scientists are investigating the molecular properties of water and its compounds.

Quantum effects are often used today for extremely precise measurements. But where is the absolute limit of accuracy? Results from TU Wien and collaborators show that it is better than expected. How can the strange properties of quantum particles be exploited to perform extremely accurate measurements? This question is at the heart of the research field of quantum metrology.

International researcher team develops scalable aluminium alloys for the hydrogen economy To the point Novel alloy design for aluminum: Researchers mix scandium with aluminum alloys to achieve 40 percent higher strength and five times higher resistance to hydrogen embrittlement - while maintaining the same ductility.

A team at EPFL and the University of Arizona has discovered that making molecules bigger and more flexible can actually extend the life of quantum charge flow, a finding that could help shape the future of quantum technologies and chemical control. In the emerging field of attochemistry , scientists use laser pulses to trigger and steer electron motion inside molecules.

An innovative combination of methods enables the precise localization of individual atoms in ultrathin materials. A research team from the University of Vienna and TU Wien has successfully embedded individual platinum atoms into an ultrathin material and, for the first time, pinpointed their positions within the lattice with atomic precision.

Chemists at UCL and the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology have demonstrated how RNA (ribonucleic acid) might have replicated itself on early Earth - a key process in the origin of life. Scientists believe that, in the earliest life forms, genetic material would have been carried and replicated by strands of RNA, before DNA and proteins later emerged and took over.

Chemists at the University of Münster have successfully substituted carbon atoms with nitrogen atoms in pharmaceutical components / New possibilities for drug design Skeletal editing is a modern approach to chemical synthesis. By making precise alterations at the atomic level, researchers are able to directly convert existing drug scaffolds into new, biologically relevant compounds.

Life Published: 21 May 2025, 8:00 Fatty acids and the substances formed from them play an important role in inflammation in the human body-and therefore also in health and disease progression. However, the quantitative analysis of such compounds poses considerable technical challenges for research. An international team of around 100 scientists has now developed comprehensive guidelines for the standardised quantification of oxidised fatty acids using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS).

Göttingen researchers develop algorithm to uncover overlooked chemical linkages in proteins   Proteins are among the most studied molecules in biology, yet new research from the University of Göttingen shows they can still hold surprising secrets. Researchers have discovered previously undetected chemical bonds within archived protein structures, revealing an unexpected complexity in protein chemistry.