Molecular ferroelectric is one cool crystal
Scientists find powerful new type of electrocaloric material
Rubidium atoms’ tunnelling time measured with quantum stopwatch
Ultracold atom’s time inside forbidden barrier determined, but experiment might not resolve the controversy surrounding tunnelling time
AI reactivity predictor considers both molecular and electronic properties
Machine-learning model tested on electrochemical systems
Red–orange–yellow reclaims polymorph record with help from molecular cousin
Mixed crystal seeding with molecular mimic yields two new Roy polymorphs, making it (again) the compound with the most crystal structures
Self-replicating molecules show signs of metabolism for the first time
Chemical system combines two of life’s three essential features making it one of the most lifelike yet
Surface sites on gold catalyst edited to control regioselectivity of a click reaction
Steric hindrance created by phosphine ligands restricts how substrates approach catalyst
How does hair blunt steel blades?
Electron microscopy reveals how hairs chip and crack stainless steel blades while shaving
Translating snail venom research from beach to bench and beyond
Meet Mandë Holford, an interdisciplinary scientist following tangents that arise when exploring the molecular-level workings of venom peptides
Knotted molecules can transfer chirality from the nano to the macroscale
Simply unknotting a molecule added to liquid crystals can invert their chirality
Rare trehalulose sugar found in stingless bee’s honey
Stingless bee honey could be beneficial for diabetes patients as our body digests trehalulose more slowly than sucrose
Complex molecule diffraction can start to Bragg
Diffraction with a drug and a dye takes interferometry with large molecules to the next level
Common inactive drug ingredients not as inert as thought
38 out of 639 excipients tested interact with toxicity-related proteins, some reaching levels that might produce unwanted effects
Bond symmetry gauge for three-centre four-electron bonds
Numerical index correlates symmetry to ionic size and electron affinity of central cation
Introducing the tubulararenes, a new class of strained aromatic compounds
Electroactive container molecules built from the bottom-up
Macrocycles slide freely across carbon nanotubes
Simulations suggest macrocycles show superlubricity at room temperature
Computational study supports theory that water has a second critical point
Liquid-liquid phase transition at deeply supercooled conditions could explain water’s distinctive behavior
‘Nanolympiadane’ created from supramolecular building blocks
A self-assembly approach has enabled the synthesis of large interlocked rings including a structure that resembles the Olympic logo
Algorithm predicts mortality of Covid-19 patients from blood biomarkers
Artificial intelligence tool to help doctors prioritise treatment
Mechanism maps predict chemoselectivity of NHC-catalysed transformations
Product forecasts from energy barrier calculations will help guide organocatalytic reactions
Solar powered chemical photoswitches can scavenge heat
Flipping between isomers allows harvesting and storage of ambient heat for months
Photo-rechargeable zinc-ion devices merge solar cell and battery tech
A low cost and stable battery that can recharge itself in sunlight could help make energy more accessible in developing rural areas
Catalyst takes its time to deliver both enantiomers in one pot synthesis
Discovery could enable access to both enantiomers of a drug in a single synthesis
Your new labmate does 700 reactions in eight days – and it’s a robot
Robotic chemist optimises water-splitting photocatalyst by working continuously for eight days even in complete darkness
Photocatalysis in flow makes carbon bonds from nearly inert natural gases
C–H activating methane, ethane and propane in a flow reactor shows that it’s possible to use gaseous hydrocarbons as reagents in organic synthesis
How the products of fire control the formation of snow
Nadine Borduas-Dedekind brings an organic chemist’s arrow-pushing insight to reactions in the atmosphere
Light-harvesting wheel reinvented by chemists copying bacterium
Synthetic mimic of complex at the heart of photosynthesis offers new ways to capture solar energy
Excited state potential energy curves reignite diatomic carbon’s bond order conundrum
Molecular orbital theory-based approach backs quadruple bond
New bond discovered among spodium elements zinc, cadmium and mercury
Group 12 joins the σ-hole interaction family with spodium bonds