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Stanford researchers mimic brain structure with ferroelectric material.

After thousands of years as a highly valuable commodity, silk continues to surprise. Now it may help usher in a whole new direction for microelectronics and computing.

Photonic crystals are materials with repeating internal structures that interact with light in unique ways. We can find natural examples in opals and the vibrant colored shells of some insects. Even though these crystals are made of transparent materials, they exhibit a “photonic bandgap” that blocks light at certain wavelengths and directions.

Understanding how light travels through various materials is essential for many fields, from medical imaging to manufacturing. However, due to their structure, materials often show directional differences in how they scatter light, known as anisotropy. This complexity has traditionally made it difficult to accurately measure and model their optical properties. Recently, researchers have developed a new technique that could transform how we study these materials.

TU Wien (Vienna) has succeeded in generating laser-synchronized ion pulses with a duration of well under 500 picoseconds, which can be used to observe chemical processes on material surfaces. The work has been published in Physical Review Research.

Getting tips from the design of the human body.

Scientists create bone-inspired cement, over five times stronger than concrete.

Continue reading “Human bone-inspired cement is 5 times tougher than standard concrete” »

A team of researchers from the Max Planck Institute for the Structure and Dynamics of Matter (MPSD) in Hamburg, Germany, and Brookhaven National Laboratory in the United States has demonstrated a new way to study disorder in superconductors using terahertz pulses of light.

NiO-functionalized graphene sensor detects ammonia in real time, offering a powerful tool for monitoring beef freshness and ensuring food safety.

The widespread use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools designed to process large amounts of data has increased the need for better performing memory devices. The data storage solutions that could help to meet the computational demands of AI include so-called high-bandwidth memories, technologies that can increase the memory bandwidth of computer processors, speeding up the transfer of data and reducing power consumption.

Currently, flash memories are the most prominent memory solutions capable of storing information when a device is turned off (i.e., non-volatile memories). Despite their widespread use, the speed of most existing flash memories is limited and does not best support the operation of AI.

In recent years, some engineers have thus been trying to develop ultrafast flash memories that could transfer data faster and more efficiently. Two-dimensional (2D) materials have shown promise for fabricating these better performing memory devices.