Confession…

Credit: Freddie Pagani for Physics Today Topics: African Americans, Diversity in Science, Electrical Engineering, Materials Science, Physics Students should strategically consider where to apply to graduate school, and faculty members should provide up-to-date job resources so that undergraduates can make informed career decisions. The number of bachelor’s degrees in physics awarded annually at US institutions isContinue reading “Confession…”

Beyond Attogram Imaging…

When X-rays (blue color) illuminate an iron atom (red ball at the center of the molecule), core-level electrons are excited. X-ray excited electrons are then tunneled to the detector tip (gray) via overlapping atomic/molecular orbitals, which provide elemental and chemical information about the iron atom. Credit: Saw-Wai Hla Topics: Applied Physics, Instrumentation, Materials Science, Nanomaterials,Continue reading “Beyond Attogram Imaging…”

Straining Moore…

Topics: Applied Physics, Chemistry, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Materials Science, Nanotechnology, Quantum Mechanics, Semiconductor Technology Gordon Moore, the co-founder of Intel who died earlier this year, is famous for forecasting a continuous rise in the density of transistors that we can pack onto semiconductor chips. James McKenzie looks at how “Moore’s law” is still going strong afterContinue reading “Straining Moore…”

Magnetic Chirality…

An RNA-making molecule crystallizes on magnetite, which can bias the process toward a single chiral form. S. FURKAN OZTURK Topics: Biology, Biotechnology, Chemistry, Magnetism, Materials Science In 1848, French chemist Louis Pasteur discovered that some molecules essential for life exist in mirror-image forms, much like our left and right hands. Today, we know biology choosesContinue reading “Magnetic Chirality…”

Chiplets…

Source: Semiengineering dot com – Chiplets Topics: Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Materials Science, Semiconductor Technology, Solid-State Physics Depending on who you’re speaking with at the time, the industry’s adoption of chiplet technology to extend the reach of Moore’s Law is either continuing to roll along or is facing the absence of a commercial market. However,Continue reading “Chiplets…”

Organic Solar Cells…

Prof. Li Gang invented a novel technique to achieve breakthrough efficiency with organic solar cells. Credit: Hong Kong Polytechnic University Topics: Chemistry, Green Tech, Materials Science, Photonics, Research, Solar Power Researchers from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) have achieved a breakthrough power-conversion efficiency (PCE) of 19.31% with organic solar cells (OSCs), also known asContinue reading “Organic Solar Cells…”

ALPS and Dark Matter…

Magnet row of the ALPS experiment in the HERA tunnel: In this part of the magnets, intense laser light is reflected back and forth, from which axions are supposed to form. Credit: DESY, Marta Maye Topics: Dark Matter, Materials Science, Particle Physics, Quantum Mechanics The ALPS (Any Light Particle Search) experiment, which stretches a totalContinue reading “ALPS and Dark Matter…”

Nano Sanitizer…

The disinfectant powder is stirred in bacteria-contaminated water (upper left). The mixture is exposed to sunlight, which rapidly kills all the bacteria (upper right). A magnet collects the metallic powder after disinfection (lower right). The powder is then reloaded into another beaker of contaminated water, and the disinfection process is repeated (lower left). (Image credit: TongContinue reading “Nano Sanitizer…”

Balsa Chips…

Modified wood modulates electrical current: researchers at Linköping University, together with colleagues from the KTH Royal Institute of Technology, have developed the world’s first electrical transistor made of wood. (Courtesy: Thor Balkhed) Topics: Applied Physics, Biomimetics, Electrical Engineering, Materials Science, Research Researchers in Sweden have built a transistor out of a plank of wood byContinue reading “Balsa Chips…”

A Charge For All Seasons…

The new composition for fluorine-containing electrolytes promises to maintain high battery charging performance for future electric vehicles even at sub-zero temperatures. (Image by Shutterstock.) Topics: Battery, Chemistry, Climate Change, Global Warming, Lithium, Materials Science Scientists developed a new and safer electrolyte for lithium-ion batteries that work as well in sub-zero conditions as it does atContinue reading “A Charge For All Seasons…”