Phys.org July 20, 2020 Spin-orbit qubits coherence have shown limited coherence times, far too short for quantum technologies. An international team of researchers (Australia, Japan, Germany) has demonstrated that increasing the strength of that spin-orbit coupling lets us achieve significantly longer coherence times. They showed ultra-long coherence times of 10 ms for holes where spin–orbit coupling yields quantized total angular momentum. They focused on holes bound to boron acceptors in bulk silicon 28, whose wavefunction symmetry can be controlled through crystal strain, allowing direct control over the longitudinal electric dipole that causes decoherence. These results open a pathway to develop new […]
‘Seeing’ and ‘manipulating’ functions of living cells
EurekAlert July 22, 2020 Researchers in Japan investigated the effect of indentation speed on the cell membrane perforation of living HeLa cells based on highly localized photochemical oxidation with catalytic titanium dioxide functionalized AFM probe. Based on force–distance curves obtained during the indentation process, the probability of cell membrane perforation, penetration force, and cell viability was determined quantitatively. They demonstrated that the intracellular TERS imaging has the potential to visualize distinctly different features in Raman spectra between the nucleus and the cytoplasm of a single living cell and to analyze the dynamic behavior of biomolecules inside a living cell…read more. […]
Shells and grapefruits inspire first manufactured non-cuttable material
Science Daily July 20, 2020 An international team of researchers (UK, Germany) has created a bio-inspired metallic cellular structure (with an internal grid of large ceramic segments). It is non-cuttable by an angle grinder and a power drill, and it has only 15% steel density. The architecture derives its extreme hardness from the local resonance between the embedded ceramics in a flexible cellular matrix and the attacking tool, which produces high-frequency vibrations at the interface. The contrast between the ceramic segments and cellular material was also effective against a waterjet cutter because the convex geometry of the ceramic spheres. Shifting […]
Solar Storms May Have Hindered SOS During Historic “Red Tent” Expedition
IEEE Spectrum July 20, 2020 On 25 May 1928, the airship “Dirigible Italia” after overflying the North Pole, shipwrecked on the ice pack about 400 km northeast of Svalbard Islands. Survivors were unsuccessful in sending SOS messages using a portable high frequency (HF) radio transmitter. Only after 9 days of repeated radio‐distress transmissions, a Russian radio amateur about 1,900 km away was able to receive the messages. An international team of researchers (Italy, UK) conducted a retrospective analysis of the ionospheric and geomagnetic conditions of that epoch to explain the HF radio communications problems encountered by the survivors. They concluded […]
U.S. and Japan Seeking to Break China’s Grip on Rare Earths Production
IEEE Spectrum July 23, 2020 Over time China has monopolized the rare earth elements (RREs) production with government partnerships and lax production regulations. China restricts REE exports when aggrieved. The Japanese were quick to respond to the threat of blocked exports by encouraging recycling and diversification of REE supplies. The state and private sector collaborated to and importing more rare earth from Asian countries. They discovered rich supplies of REEs in deep sea mud within Japan’s exclusive economic zone in the Pacific Ocean. In 2016 the U.S. and Australia agreed to work together on securing REE resources and to support […]
Top 10 Science and Technology Inventions for the Week of July 17, 2020
01. Artificial ‘neurotransistor’ created 02. UBCO researchers create liquid-repelling substance that works on all surfaces 03. Underused part of the electromagnetic spectrum gets optics boost from metamaterial 04. Tiny bubbles make a quantum leap 05. Using magnetic worms to engineer nanoscale communication systems 06. Recognising fake images using frequency analysis 07. New materials for extra thin computer chips 08. New organic material unlocks faster and more flexible electronic devices 09. ‘Blinking’ nanocrystals may convert CO2 into fuels 10. Seventy-Five Years After Trinity And others… Agriculture – a climate villain? Maybe not! Corralling Groups of Photons Liquid crystals create easy-to-read, color-changing […]
Agriculture – a climate villain? Maybe not!
Science Daily July 7, 2020 The UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) agriculture has affirmed that one of the main sources of greenhouse gases. According to the researchers in Sweden agriculture produces a significant amount of negative greenhouse gases, and it is important to reduce this in a sustainable manner. Carbon dioxide is caught by crops that, in turn, produce oxygen and at the same time binds carbon in roots and shoots. One part of this C transforms into soil organic C. But the main part transforms into harvested crops, that is, cereals like wheat and other carbohydrate products […]
Artificial ‘neurotransistor’ created
Science Daily July 14, 2020 An international team of researchers (Germany, India, South Korea, USA – UC Berkeley) simulated the properties of neurons using the principles of biosensors and modified a classical field-effect transistor to create an artificial neurotransistor. They applied solgel to a conventional silicon wafer with circuits. When solgel hardens and becomes a porous ceramic the ions move between the holes. As they are heavier than electrons and slower to return to their position after excitation, hysteresis causes the storage effect. The plasticity of the neurotransistor, which is similar to that of the human brain, enables them to […]
‘Blinking’ nanocrystals may convert CO2 into fuels
Nanowerk July 16, 2020 Using polymer‐derived mesoporous carbon (PDMC) as a template, an international team of researchers (USA- State University of New Jersey, China, Czech Republic) has synthesized mesoporous titanium dioxide comprised of small, crystalline, vacancy‐rich anatase nanoparticles that show unique optical, thermal, and electronic properties. When exposed to a slow electron beam, the nanoparticles exhibit a charge/discharge behavior, lighting up and fading away for an average period of 15 s. They show a 50 nm red‐shift in their UV/Vis absorption and long‐lived charge carriers at room temperature in the dark, even long after UV irradiation. As photocatalysts they show […]
Corralling Groups of Photons
APS Synopsys July 14, 2020 An international team of researchers (Germany, Spain, Denmark) propose a device to create flocks of photons by sorting a coherent pulse of light into bunches of strongly correlated photons. The device consists of an optical waveguide that is strongly coupled to a row of two-level quantum systems. A laser pulse is shone down the waveguide. Photons within the pulse are strongly connected to each other such that the arrival of one portends the quick arrival of the next. The atoms absorb pulse photons, entering an excited state. If photons connected to the absorbed ones interact […]