Phys.org July 27, 2019 Researchers at Stanford University built a hybrid platform that integrates nanomechanical piezoelectric resonators with a microwave superconducting qubit on the same chip. They excited the phonons with resonant pulses and probed the resulting excitation spectrum of the qubit to observe phonon-number-dependent frequency shifts that are about five times larger than the qubit linewidth. The result demonstrated a fully integrated platform for quantum acoustics that combines large couplings, considerable coherence times and excellent control over the mechanical mode structure. With modest experimental improvements, the approach could enable quantum nondemolition measurements of phonons and will lead to quantum […]
Recovering color images from scattered light
EurekAlert July 29, 2019 Researchers at Duke University used a coded aperture, which acts as a filter that allows light to pass through some areas but not others in a specific pattern, followed by a prism. After the speckle is “stamped” by the coded aperture, it passes through a prism that causes different frequencies of light to spread out from each other. The pattern from the coded aperture shifts slightly in relation to the image being captured by the detector; the amount it shifts is directly related to the color of light passing through. They developed an algorithm that teases […]
Russia and China Deploy Hypersonic Weapons and the US Spends Billions to Catch Up
The Next Big Future July 29, 2019 Russia has the Avangard and the 3M22 Tsirkon (aka Zircon)—and has reportedly fielded the Kh-47M2 Kinzhal (“Dagger”), a maneuvering air-launched ballistic missile. The US believes the Avangard will not be operational until 2020. China has tested the DF-41 intercontinental ballistic missile, which could be modified to carry a conventional or nuclear HGV (Hypersonic Glide Vehicle). China has tested the DF-ZF HGV (aka WU-14) at least nine times since 2014. It has a range of about 1,200 miles and should be very maneuverable. It could be operational as early as 2020. The United States, […]
Single-electrode material streamlines functions into a tiny chip
Phys.org July 29, 2019 An international team of researchers (Saudi Arabia, USA – Georgia Institute of Technology) has demonstrated transistor‐level integration of electrochemical microsupercapacitors and thin film transistor rectifiers using ruthenium oxide as the common electrode material connecting all devices in the microcircuits. Thin film rectifiers are shown to be capable of rectifying AC signal input from either triboelectric nanogenerators or standard function generators. They exhibit exceptionally slow self‐discharge rate and sufficient power to drive various electronic devices. The study opens a new avenue for developing compact on‐chip electrochemical micropower units integrated with thin film electronics, simplifying device fabrication and […]
Technologies for the Sixth Generation Cellular Network
EurekAlert July 25, 2019 Seamless integration of THz links into existing fibre-optic infrastructures is of great importance to complement the inherent portability and flexibility advantages of wireless networks. Researchers in Germany have demonstrated a THz link that is seamlessly integrated into a fibre-optic network using direct THz-to-optical (T/O) conversion at the wireless receiver. They explored an ultra-broadband silicon-plasmonic modulator having a 3-dB bandwidth in excess of 0.36 THz for T/O conversion of a 50 Gbit s−1 data stream that is transmitted on a 0.2885 THz carrier over a 16-m-long wireless link. Optical-to-THz (O/T) conversion at the wireless transmitter relies on photomixing in a uni-travelling-carrier […]
Travelling towards a quantum internet at light speed
Science Daily July 29, 2019 An international team of researchers (Japan, Germany) used laser light to send quantum information to a quantum dot by altering the spin state of a single electron trapped there. While electrons don’t spin in the usual sense, they do have angular momentum, which can be flipped when absorbing circularly polarized laser light. They were able to monitor the inter-dot charge tunneling which only occur when the photo-electron spin in one QD is anti-parallel to the electron spin in the other. The transfer of superposition states or entangled states allows for completely secure quantum key distribution […]
Top 10 Science and Technology Inventions for the Week of July 26, 2019
01. Developing technologies that run on light 02. New low-cost thermoelectric material works at room temperature 03. New nanoantennas to improve ultra-fast wireless connections 04. New safer, inexpensive way to propel small satellites 05. Closing the terahertz gap: Tiny laser is an important step toward new sensors 06. Scientists make fundamental discovery to creating better crops 07. What do dragonflies teach us about missile defense? 08. The Nation Faces Long-Standing Challenges Related to Defending Against Biological Threats 09. Systems (IRDSTM) Sets Course for Computer and Electronics Industry Growth 10. Emotion-detection applications built on outdated science, report warns And others… Best […]
Best of arXiv.org for AI, Machine Learning, and Deep Learning – June 2019
Inside Big Data July 18, 2019 A selection of recent research papers appearing on the arXiv.org preprint server for compelling subjects relating to AI, machine learning and deep learning – from disciplines including statistics, mathematics and computer science is presented…read more.
Closing the terahertz gap: Tiny laser is an important step toward new sensors
EurekAlert July 24, 2019 Current terahertz imaging technologies are expensive to produce and cumbersome to operate. A team of researchers in the US (Princeton University, MIT, University of Notre Dame, Sandia National Laboratory) has demonstrated hyperspectral imaging with chip-scale frequency combs based on terahertz quantum cascade lasers. The dual combs are free-running and emit coherent terahertz radiation that covers a bandwidth of 220 GHz at 3.4 THz with ∼10 μW per line. The combination of the fast acquisition rate of dual-comb spectroscopy with the monolithic design, scalability, and chip-scale size of the combs is highly appealing for future imaging applications in biomedicine […]
Coaching scientists to play well together
Science Daily July 18, 2019 When scientists from different disciplines collaborate — as is increasingly necessary to confront the complexity of challenging research problems — interpersonal tussles often arise. A free online training tool developed by researchers at Northwestern University called teamscience.net has proven to develop skills to work with other scientists outside their own discipline. Scientists who completed the program’s modules — called COALESCE — significantly boosted their knowledge about team science and increased their self-confidence about being able to successfully work in scientific teams…read more.