Materials Science News
Explore our archive of materials science news stories.
Nov. 14, 2018
Ongoing research at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory could lead to a cleaner method of transforming acrylonitrile into carbon fiber, replacing petrochemicals with biomass as the starting point.
Oct. 24, 2018
Dan Friedman, manager of NREL's High Efficiency Crystalline Photovoltaics Group, has been elected as a fellow of the American Physical Society for this work on III-V semiconductor physics and multijunction photovoltaic science, including numerous device efficiency records.
Oct. 8, 2018
NREL has recently combined two structures of III-V materials into one, providing a "two-for-the-price-of-one" benefit. The combination enables novel, potentially record-setting, multijunction solar cells.
Oct. 4, 2018
Painting Solar Cells Provides New Path to Market
Sept. 24, 2018
The Hands-On PV Workshop brings graduate students from across the United States to NREL each year to increase their knowledge about photovoltaics and see practical applications of PV technologies.
Sept. 6, 2018
NREL Summer Interns unbox their potential to explore their passions in renewable energy.
Aug. 9, 2018
The unique material properties of hybrid organic/inorganic semiconductors could unlock new energy technologies. The goal of the new Center for Hybrid Organic-Inorganic Semiconductors for Energy (CHOISE) is to better understand and control the emergent phenomena of spin, charge, and light/matter interactions in these materials.
July 16, 2018
Scientists at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory are refining an old technique called hydride vapor phase epitaxy (HVPE), which holds the potential to produce cheaper, more efficient solar cells.
May 22, 2018
On May 19, NREL hosted its 19th annual Middle School Electric Car Competition, where students raced solar and lithium-ion powered cars that they designed and built.
May 10, 2018
Mowafak Al-Jassim, Andy Walker, Robert McCormick, and Gregg Beckham were chosen for their significant contributions to NREL and the larger scientific community.
April 24, 2018
Few scientists reference Kurt Vonnegut in their academic journals, but researchers at the Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) found the parallels between his work and theirs compelling. Both invoke polymorphism--the ability of a material to adopt multiple crystal structures.
April 12, 2018
NREL has played a significant role in the increased efficiency of perovskite solar cells.
April 3, 2018
An extensive experimental database of inorganic thin-film materials that organizes a decade's worth of research at the Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) is now publicly available.
April 2, 2018
Scientists at the Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) have discovered a new approach for developing a rechargeable non-aqueous magnesium-metal battery.
Jan. 30, 2018
Perovskites become a passion for a scientist who had an "experience edge" over other students.
Jan. 23, 2018
NREL postdoc Jeff Christians received a prestigious award from the U.S. Department of Energy for his work on perovskite solar cells, a promising class of materials.
Jan. 18, 2018
The 2018 Hands-On PV Experience workshop is an opportunity for a select group of U.S. graduate students to spend an immersive week at NREL in a hands-on, small-group research setting.
