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NEWS
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Ionic booster
An organic light-emitting device uses positively
and negatively charged atoms to boost electrical flow
and thus produce brighter light. The device could be used
to make light sources and solar cells, and variations
of the technique could be used in electronic devices like
computer memory. (Observation
of Electroluminescence and Photovoltaic Response in Ionic
Junctions, Science, September 8, 2006)
Surface tension power
A device inspired by the spore release mechanism
of ferns provides a simple, inexpensive means of powering
micromachines. The tiny flexible device is a rubber spine
with a series of ribs that hold water between them. Surface
tension pulls the ribs together, which bends the spine,
and evaporation returns the device to its original shape.
(Transpiration
Actuation: The Design, Fabrication, and Characterization
of Biomimetic Microactuators Driven by the Surface Tension
of Water, Journal of Micromechanics and Microengineering,
to be published)
Nanofibers get blood flowing
Nanofibers formed from a protein that initiates
blood vessel formation and a biocompatible polymer promote
extensive blood vessel growth even though the amount of
the protein is too small to promote growth by itself.
The technique could be used to grow human tissue including
organs. (Heparin
Binding Nanostructures to Promote Growth of Blood Vessels,
Nano Letters, September 2006)
Nanotubes tap neurons
A laboratory study shows that neural implants
made from arrays of multiwalled carbon nanotube microelectrodes
are likely to be safer and more efficient than metal microelectrodes.
These neural prostheses are designed to be implanted in
the brain to allow people to control computers and prosthetic
limbs. (Neural
Stimulation with a Carbon Nanotube Microelectrode Array,
Nano Letters, September 2006)
Swimming nanowire circuits
Silicon nanowires suspended in liquid can bridge
pairs of gold electrodes by pulsing voltages in the electrodes,
and can switch between different pairs in sets of three
or four electrodes. The technique could be used to make
new types of reconfigurable computer circuits. (Dielectrophoretic
Reconfiguration of Nanowire Interconnects, Nanotechnology,
October 2006)
Teleportation for two
A quantum teleportation experiment teleported
two qubits at once, which is a step toward high throughput
teleportation. Quantum teleportation, analogous to a fax
machine for quantum particles, is an important component
of quantum communications and computing schemes. (Experimental
Quantum Teleportation of a Two-Qubit Composite System,
Nature Physics, October 2006) |
FEATURES
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View
from the High Ground: ICL's John Pendry
Physics as machine tool, negative refractive
index, metamaterials, shattered wine glasses, higher capacity
DVDs, scientific backwaters, risk perception and practice,
practice, practice.
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How
It Works: Quantum computing: qubits
Photons, electrons and atoms, oh my! These particles are
the raw materials for qubits, the basic building blocks
of quantum computers. |
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"Physics
is to the rest of science what machine tools are
to engineering. A corollary is that science places
power in our hands which can be used for good or
ill. Technology has been abused in this way throughout
the ages from gunpowder to atomic bombs."
- John Pendry, Imperial College London |
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Thanks
to Kevin from
GoldBamboo.com
for technical support |
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