HIGHLIGHTS
RESEARCH IMPACT & COLLABORATIONS
Exploring the metamaterials revolution
The scientist behind a real-life Harry Potter-style invisibility cloak recently presented a guest lecture at CDE as part of the ARTIC Distinguished Talks series.
Professor Sir John Pendry, a Distinguished Visiting Professor at CDE’s Advanced Research and Technology Innovation Centre (ARTIC) and theoretical physicist from Imperial College London, holds a rare distinction among scientists for having established a completely new and unexpected area of research known as metamaterials.
Prof Pendry gave a compelling 90-minute talk to an audience of undergraduate, graduate, and PhD students from NUS and other institutions, as well as faculty, scientific researchers, and representatives of industry. The lecture took the audience through his work in metamaterials, as well as related research in transformational optics, negative refraction and development of the so-called “perfect lens” whose resolution is limited only by the perfection of manufacture, transcending the constraints imposed by the laws of nature.
Read more at: https://cde.nus.edu.sg/news-detail/exploring-the-metamaterials-revolution/
BioHeal: Tree upcycling for architectural healing
BioHeal: Tree upcycling for architectural healing
CDE Associate Professor Shinya Okuda (Department of Architecture) has partnered with Alexandra Hospital in the construction of a new medical rehabilitation centre incorporating natural timber installations made from upcycled trees.
The BioHeal (Biophilic Healing) journey, incorporated into the rehabilitation centre within the hospital’s recently opened Cocoon building, includes features crafted from timber harvested from the hospital grounds during the clearing of the construction site.
Assoc Prof Okuda heads the SkyTimber: Tropical Renewable Architecture Design Lab at NUS, which aims to be a pioneer in the development and architectural use of tropical Mass-Engineered Timber (MET), in line with CDE’s commitment to sustainability and multi-disciplinary innovation across design and engineering.
Read more at: https://cde.nus.edu.sg/news-detail/bioheal-tree-upcycling-for-architectural-healing/
Tumour platform cuts drug testing and screening time for cancer patients
Tumour platform cuts drug testing and screening time for cancer patients
A novel bioengineered hydrogel platform that allows tumours to be grown and better preserved outside of the body could herald a breakthrough in personalised cancer treatment.
This first-of-its-kind technology, developed by a team co-led by Asst Prof Eliza Fong and working with scientists from the National Cancer Centre Singapore, extends tumour viability up to 10 days allowing for faster and more accurate drug testing. The study could have significant implications for personalised medicine and the development of targeted therapies.
“Cancer treatment can be a challenging and uncertain journey,” said Asst Prof Fong. “But with innovations in biomaterials and personalised oncology, and strong collaborations with clinicians, we can accelerate the time taken to test and optimise drugs for individual patients.”
Read more at: https://cde.nus.edu.sg/news-detail/tumour-platform-cuts-drug-testing-and-screening-time-for-cancer-patients/
Rethinking cooling
In this video, discover how researchers at CDE are rethinking cooling, developing innovative solutions to beat the heat and cut the financial and environmental cost of our reliance on air-conditioning. It’s an example of how building a more sustainable world depends on multidisciplinary collaboration, sharing ideas, knowledge and skills.
Triple-junction tandem solar cells demonstrate world-record efficiency
Triple-junction tandem solar cells demonstrate world-record efficiency
NUS researchers led by Asst Prof Yi Hou have invented innovative triple-junction perovskite/silicon tandem solar cells with a certified world-record energy conversion efficiency of 27.1 per cent. The team engineered a cyanate-integrated perovskite structure for these cells demonstrating exceptional stability and energy efficiency. Furthermore, they say the technology has the potential to reach over 50 per cent efficiency.
Their breakthrough offers significant possibilities for harnessing solar energy in diverse applications, especially in situations with space constraints such as in urban environments or on mobile platforms.
Read more at: https://cde.nus.edu.sg/news-detail/triple-junction-tandem-solar-cells-demonstrate-world-record-efficiency/
A cleaner, greener construction industry
A cleaner, greener construction industry
At CDE, research led by Dr Du Hongjian is exploring ways to use waste materials to produce more environmentally sustainable cement.
In this video he introduces one ongoing project, using waste from expired Electric Vehicle (EV) batteries that would otherwise end up in landfill as a cement replacement in the production of concrete. The project uses iron phosphate from EV batteries supplied by NEU Battery Materials, a battery recycling start-up supported by NUS.
The project was also recently backed by a $50,000 grant from the Decentralised Gap (DeGap) Fund from NUS Enterprise.
Nature-inspired 3D-printed alloy redefines material strength
Nature-inspired 3D-printed alloy redefines material strength
A ground-breaking new alloy material inspired by nature could redefine the way we design ultra-resilient materials for use in extreme environments.
Designed and developed by Asst Prof Tan Xipeng as part of an international collaboration, the innovation leverages laser-based 3D printing to create an ultra-strong alloy with unmatched fracture toughness. Inspired by nature, the alloy's durability stems from a microscopic honeycomb structure, enabling applications ranging from aerospace to deep-sea exploration and cryogenic instruments.
This nature-inspired approach not only challenges the traditional trade-off between strength and resilience but also paves the way for materials that can withstand high pressure, ultra-low temperatures, and corrosive environments.
The team’s findings were recently published in Nature Communications.
Read more at: https://cde.nus.edu.sg/news-detail/nature-inspired-3d-printed-alloy-redefines-material-strength/
Major Grants Awarded
The major grants (start date in March 2024) with total project value > $1M.
| Hosting Unit | Project Title | Funding Programme (Source of Funding) |
Principal Investigator | Co-Investigator |
| CEE;ECE | ENabling Future Systems for Offshore Wind ResourCEs (ENFORCE) | A*STAR MANUFACTURING, TRADE AND CONNECTIVITY (MTC) INDUSTRY ALIGNMENT FUND - PRE POSITIONING (IAF-PP) - 2023
(A*STAR) |
QIAN XUDONG | LOW YING MIN; QUEK SER TONG; KOH CHAN GHEE; GE SHUZHI |
| ECE;ME | Chip-scale Multispectral 3D Scanner (CMUS) | A*STAR MANUFACTURING, TRADE AND CONNECTIVITY (MTC) INDUSTRY ALIGNMENT FUND - PRE POSITIONING (IAF-PP) - 2023
(A*STAR) |
LEE CHENGKUO; ZHOU GUANGYA | |
| ChBE | Carbon Negative Synthetic Biology for Biomaterial Production from CO2 | (NRF) | LIN ZHIQUN | |
| AMAT-NUS | AMAT-NUS Advanced Materials Corporate Lab 2.0 | INDUSTRY ALIGNMENT FUND - INDUSTRY COLLABORATION PROJECTS (IAF-ICP) - 2023
(A*STAR) |
SILVIJA GRADECAK-GARAJ | GONG XIAO; ANG KAH WEE; WU JISHAN (CHEMISTRY); WONG MING WAH, RICHARD (CHEMISTRY); HUYNH, HAN VINH (CHEMISTRY); UTKUR MIRZIYODOVICH MIRSAIDOV (PHYSICS) |
| CPT | Effects of Climate Change and Rising Temperatures on Asphalt Pavements in Airfields | (DSTA) | ONG GHIM PING, RAYMOND |