Sniffer, E coli Clues, Graphene

The second batch of physical science and biomedical research news in the SpectroscopyNOW ezines are live:

Optical sniffer detects poison gas – US researchers have developed an optoelectronic nose that can sniff out toxic gases. The sensor is fast and inexpensive and could be used to detect high exposure risk to hazardous industrial chemicals.

E coli clues – New clues as to the virulence of the potentially lethal bacterium Escherichia coli O157:H7 has emerged from structural and functional relationship studies of its autotransport and proteolytic EspP proteins. A comparison with X-ray diffraction results reveals important clues about these proteins.

Imaging a semiconductor sandwich – A technological mash-up between graphene and the semiconductor gallium arsenide as characterised by optical microscopy and Raman spectroscopy and other techniques could pave the way to hybrid electronics devices that bridge the gap between current silicon circuitry and future molecular electronics