Phys.org April 5, 2018 To understand stochastic resonance, researchers in Japan established a simple model that excluded friction force, a parameter that they consider negligible in nano- and molecular-scale systems. They found that when a transition occurs without friction, the sensitivity of the bistable system to a Gaussian-noise-imposed weak signal becomes significantly high and the relative difference – which determines the sensitivity – of Gaussian distribution function diverges in its tail edge. This means that the sensitivity becomes anomalously high by increasing the threshold of the bistable system. The finding could pave the way for using noise rather than eliminating […]
Category Archives: Communications technology
Tuning in to magnetic ink
Eurekalert April 4, 2018 By injecting iron-based reagents into a hot acetic acid solution, researchers in Saudi Arabia synthesized magnetic iron-oxide nanoparticles that dispersed into deionized water to form an ink. When deposited as a thin film on a glass substrate, the new magnetic substrate could act as an energy-storing inductor device with an adjustable capacity of over 20 percent. By modifying the nanoparticles’ surfaces with hydrocarbon chains, they were able to produce free-standing magnetic sheets of a few millimeters in thickness. The discovery boosts prospects for inexpensive electronics that work worldwide by tuning in to multiple cellular bands and […]
Scientists create diodes made of light
Physorg March 16, 2018 Researchers in the UK created an optical version of a diode by sending lots of light into a microresonator and harnessing the circulating optical power to generate the diode effect. As the microrings can store extremely large amounts of light, even though they were sending small amounts of light into the glass rings, the circulating power was comparable to the light generated by the flood lights. They have shown that the electromagnetic field of clockwise circulating light in these glass rings effectively blocks any counterclockwise circulating light. The research opens the door to cheap and efficient […]
FCC Accuses Stealthy Startup of Launching Rogue Satellites
IEEE Spectrum March 9, 2018 According to IEEE Spectrum among the recently launched satellites, there are four satellites called SpaceBee-1, 2, 3, and 4 developed by a company in California. According to the company its network could enable satellite communications for orders of magnitude less cost than existing options. It envisages the worldwide tracking of ships and cars, new agricultural technologies, and low-cost connectivity for humanitarian efforts anywhere in the world. FCC feared that the four SpaceBees now orbiting the Earth would pose an unacceptable collision risk for other spacecraft…read more.
Study: On Twitter, false news travels faster than true stories
MIT News March 8, 2018 Researchers at MIT found that falsehood diffuses significantly farther, faster, deeper, and more broadly than the truth, in all categories of information, and in many cases by an order of magnitude. Humans, not bots, are primarily responsible for spreading misleading information therefore behavioral interventions become even more important in our fight to stop the spread of false news. The study provides a variety of ways of quantifying this phenomenon… read more. Open Access TECHNICAL ARTICLE
‘Two-way signaling’ possible with a single quantum particle
Physorg February 26, 2018 By using a quantum particle that has been put in a superposition of two different locations, researchers in Austria have theoretically shown that both partners are able to encode their messages into a single quantum particle simultaneously. Being in a quantum superposition means that the quantum particle is “simultaneously present” at each partner’s location. Therefore, both partners are able to encode their messages into a single quantum particle simultaneously, a task that is essentially impossible using classical physics. The experimental results show that the communication is secure and anonymous, the direction of communication is hidden—an eavesdropper […]
New hole-punched crystal clears a path for quantum light
Science Daily February 15, 2018 Researchers at the University of Maryland created a photonic chip that both generates single photons and steers them around. In the new chip, they etched out thousands of triangular holes in an array that resembled a bee’s honeycomb. Along the center of the device they shifted the spacing of the holes, which opens a different kind of travel lane for the light. The team tested the capabilities of the chip by first changing a quantum emitter from its lowest energy state to one of its two higher energy states. When they used photons from the […]
Palmreaders? Japan team builds second skin message display
Physorg February 18, 2018 Researchers in Japan have invented a band-aid-like stretchable device which is one millimetre thick and can monitor important health data as well as send and receive messages, including emojis. The display consists of a 16-by-24 array of micro LEDs and stretchable wiring mounted on a rubber sheet and a lightweight sensor composed of a breathable “nanomesh” electrode, and a wireless communication module. It can be placed on the human body for a week without causing skin inflammation. It has medical applications and wearable displays… read more.
Physicists create new form of light
MIT News February 15, 2018 A team of researchers in the US (MIT, Harvard University, Princeton University, NITS, University of Chicago) has observed groups of three photons interacting and, in effect, sticking together to form a completely new kind of photonic matter. In controlled experiments, the researchers found that when they shone a very weak laser beam through a dense cloud of ultracold rubidium atoms, rather than exiting the cloud as single, randomly spaced photons, the photons bound together in pairs or triplets, suggesting some kind of interaction — in this case, attraction — taking place among them. According to […]
Taking terahertz data links around the bend
Science Daily February 6, 2018 Unlike microwaves, terahertz waves are entirely blocked by most solid objects. The assumption has been that it’s not possible to bounce a terahertz beam around — say, off a wall or two — to find a clear path around an object. A team of researchers in the US (Brown University, New Jersey Institute of Technology) bounced terahertz waves at four different frequencies off a variety of objects and showed that acceptable bit-error-rates were achievable with modest increases in signal power… read more. Open Access TECHNICAL ARTICLE