Conventional catalyst research has mainly focused on incrementally improving catalysts for known reactions or optimizing reaction conditions for known catalysts. A new study demonstrated a new catalyst-catalysis co-exploration strategy that searches for catalysts and reaction conditions simultaneously, rather than optimizing catalysts for a predefined reaction. Using methane conversion as a test case, the team evaluated 200 catalysts, which revealed high-performance catalyst-catalysis combinations.

Nagoya University researchers have developed gallium-doped zinc oxide (GZO) nanosheets that may enhance camera-resolution in compact devices such as smartphones and medical endoscopes. These nanosheets enable a single pixel to detect the intensity of red, green, and blue (RGB) light while remaining nearly transparent, unlike conventional optical sensors. They are ultrathin, lightweight, and can withstand temperatures up to 400 degrees Celsius, making them suitable for extreme environments such as space hardware and automotive systems.

A research team at Saitama University has developed a concise method for synthesizing structurally defined ladder-type oligothiophenes, sulfur-containing molecular frameworks that are important in organic semiconductor research. By precisely controlling the orientation of thiophene rings, the team successfully synthesized all 14 target ladder-type regioisomers based on thienothiophene, dithienothiophene, and trithienothiophene frameworks, opening new possibilities for the molecular design of organic electronic materials.

A compact 300-GHz-band 4×4 bi-directional phased-array transceiver in 65-nm CMOS has been developed, as reported by researchers from Institute of Science Tokyo. While free space path loss is a significant challenge for the 300-GHz-band in wireless systems, this development can mitigate the problem, resulting in significant advancement in 6G wireless communication. 

Urban redevelopment in densely populated areas often involves removing existing piles, backfilling boreholes, and installing new piles. Strength differences between backfilled soil and original ground can lead to drilling deviations, compromising building integrity and leading to economic losses. However, current countermeasures are based on experience-based judgements. In a new study, researchers present a new quantitative framework for evaluating drilling instability induced by backfilling, offering practical guidelines for improving resource efficiency, resilience, and sustainability.

RNA design is central to next-generation therapeutics, yet identifying sequences that reliably fold into desired structures remains a major computational challenge, often constrained by high cost and time. A new study from Keio University explores the use of factorization machine with quadratic-optimization annealing (FMQA) for RNA inverse folding, while also examining how different encoding strategies may influence artificial intelligence (AI)-driven design performance, revealing an underexplored dimension of biomolecular engineering.

A strategy encompassing simultaneous coprecipitation and oxidation has allowed the synthesis of highly oxidized amorphous precursors for BiNi₁₋ₓFeₓO₃. This approach overcomes conventional challenges by reducing environmental impact, improving safety, and reducing synthesis time by generating a highly oxidized amorphous precursor, allowing for a more efficient and controlled production of advanced functional oxides.

An AI assistant for high-entropy alloy (HEA) electrocatalysis named ChatHEA provided a helping hand not just to extract data from the literature, but provide suggestions for promising catalysts, design experiments, and analyze data.