Phys.org January 4, 2022 Only few imaging schemes can resolve sub-wavelength fields in the THz range, such as scanning-probe techniques, electro-optic sampling, and ultrafast electron microscopy. The intrinsic constraints on sample geometry, acquisition speed and field strength limit their applicability. An international team of researchers (Germany, Australia) harnessed the quantum-confined Stark-effect to encode ultrafast electric near-fields into colloidal quantum dot luminescence. Their approach, termed Quantum-probe Field Microscopy (QFIM), combines far-field imaging of visible photons with phase-resolved sampling of electric waveforms. By capturing ultrafast movies, they spatio-temporally resolved a Terahertz resonance inside a bowtie antenna and unveiled the propagation of a […]
Top 10 Science and Technology Inventions for the Week of December 31, 2021
01. New data-decoding approach could lead to faster, smaller digital tech 02. Allying meta-structures with diverse optical waveguides for integrated photonics and more 03. Nanotube Fibers Stand Strong – But for How Long Under Stresses and Strains? 04. DARPA Joins Public-Private Partnership to Address Challenges Facing Microelectronics Advancement 05. Fingers made of laser light: Controlled grabbing and rotation of biological micro-objects 06. International team of scientists proposes a global network to monitor major threats on our environment 07. ‘Nano-chocolates’ that store hydrogen 08. Scientists find ways to help perovskite solar cell ‘self-healing’ 09. Scientists invent lead-free composite shielding material for […]
2021’s Top Stories About AI Spoiler: A lot of them talked about what’s wrong with machine learning today
IEEE Spectrum December 27, 2021 Many of this year’s top articles grappled with the limits of deep learning and spotlighted researchers seeking new paths. Here are the 10 most popular AI articles that Spectrum published in 2021. Several came from Spectrum’s October 2021 special issue on AI, The Great AI Reckoning … read more.
Allying meta-structures with diverse optical waveguides for integrated photonics and more
Phys.org December 27, 2021 An international team of researchers (China, USA – Pennsylvania State University, Stanford University, Italy) reviewed recent advances in meta-structured waveguides that synergize various functional subwavelength photonic architectures with diverse waveguide platforms, such as dielectric or plasmonic waveguides and optical fibers, summarized foundational results and representative applications, cataloged brief physical models with explicit design tutorials, and highlighted how meta-optics can infuse new degrees of freedom to waveguide-based devices and systems. They discussed current challenges and outlined emerging opportunities of the field for applications in photonic integrated circuits, biomedical sensing, and artificial intelligence…read more. Open Access TECHNICAL ARTICLE
The Chip Shortage, Giant Chips, and the Future of Moore’s Law IEEE Spectrum’s
IEEE Spectrum December 28, 2021 To recap the semiconductor stories, we have read most this year, IEEE has put together this set of highlights…read more.
COVID has had an impact on academics’ well-being
Phys.org December 1, 2021 Researchers in Denmark conducted research into how the situation has been for academics and have recommendations on how to mitigate potential adverse effects of the pandemic. The research into the academics’ well-being showed that as many as 40 percent of the almost 6,000 academics who took the survey reported a loss of research time. Over half of the Ph.D. candidates, postdocs and tenure-track academics reported COVID-related delays that they expect will prevent them from finishing their projects or meeting tenure track requirements in time. Their recommendations are – Prevent brain drain, invest in talent retention, especially […]
DARPA Joins Public-Private Partnership to Address Challenges Facing Microelectronics Advancement
DARPA December 22, 2021 DARPA today announced its participation in a new long-term university research collaboration with the Semiconductor Research Corporation (SRC) and a consortium of companies in the commercial semiconductor industry and the defense industrial base called the Joint University Microelectronics Program 2.0 (JUMP 2.0). The program aims to establish seven collaborative, multidisciplinary, multi-university research centers focused on supporting exploratory research with an eight- to twelve-year time horizon for transition to defense and commercial opportunities. To focus the research, each center will define an overarching challenge and a set of specific technical goals by which the center will be […]
Fingers made of laser light: Controlled grabbing and rotation of biological micro-objects
Science Daily December 23, 2021 Although optical trapping forces are strong enough and related photodamage is acceptable, the precise (re-) orientation of large specimen with multiple optical traps is difficult, since they grab blindly at the object and often slip off. Researchers in Germany have developed an approach to localize and track regions with increased refractive index using several holographic optical traps with a single camera in an off-focus position. They estimated the 3D grabbing positions around several trapping foci in parallel through analysis of the beam deformations, which are continuously measured by defocused camera images of cellular structures inside […]
International team of scientists proposes a global network to monitor major threats on our environment
Phys.org December 27, 2021 An international team of researchers (China, Canada, USA – MIT, Sweden) show that the geometry required for the International Meridian Circle Program global observation system leads to a deployment of instruments in priority along the 120°E–60°W great meridian circle, which will cover in an optimal way both the dominant geographic and geomagnetic latitude variations, possibly complemented by a second Great Circle along the 30°E–150°W meridians to capture longitude variations. Then, starting from the Chinese Meridian Project network and using it as a template, they give a preliminary description of the instruments to be integrated and deployed […]
‘Nano-chocolates’ that store hydrogen
Science Daily December 27, 2021 Storing hydrogen is costly. Researchers in Germany proposed storing hydrogen in palladium nanoparticles. To ensure that the tiny particles are sufficiently sturdy, they are stabilized by a core made of the rare precious metal iridium and attached to a graphene support. They are attached at intervals of two and a half nanometres resulting in a regular, periodic structure. When the palladium particles come into contact with hydrogen, hydrogen sticks to the nanoparticles’ surfaces, with hardly any of it penetrating inside. A small amount of heat is added to release hydrogen from the surface of the […]