Phys.org September 21, 2018 An international team of researchers (Austria, Switzerland, Germany, South Korea, Belgium, China, India) has designed a direct X-ray detector based on halide perovskite semiconductor (Cs2AgBiBr6) which has high sensitivity and structural stability. By optimising the materials and lowering the operating temperature they were even able to improve the X-ray sensitivity of the device tenfold, ultimately peaking near 500 times more sensitive than commercial direct conversion X-ray detectors on the market. The finding has applications as a diagnostic tool in fundamental research and medical fields… read more. TECHNICAL ARTICLE 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ,
Category Archives: Sensors
Spray-on antennas could unlock potential of smart, connected technology
Nanowerk September 21, 2018 Researchers at Drexel University developed a method for spraying invisibly thin antennas, made from MXene (titanium carbide), a two-dimensional, metallic material. It is stronger than metals, metallically conductive and can be dissolved in water to create an ink or paint. The exceptional conductivity of the material enables it to transmit and direct radio waves, even when it’s applied in a very thin coating. Even transparent antennas with thicknesses of tens of nanometers were able to communicate efficiently. By increasing the thickness up to 8 microns, the performance of MXene antenna achieved 98 percent of its predicted […]
Enabling ‘internet of photonic things’ with miniature sensors
Science Daily September 12, 2018 In IoT there are vast numbers of spatially distributed wireless sensors predominately based on electronics which are often are hampered by electromagnetic interference. Researchers at Washington University developed whispering gallery mode (WGM) sensors resonating at light frequencies and at vibrational or mechanical frequencies. The 127 mm by 67 mm mainboard of the WGM sensor integrates the entire architecture of the sensor system. The sensor, made of glass, is connected to the mainboard by a single optical fiber. A laser light is used to probe a WGM sensor. Light coupled out of the sensor is sent […]
Regular old WiFi spots dangerous objects in bags
Futurity August 16, 2018 A team of researchers in the US (Rutgers University, Indiana University, Binghamton University) have developed a system which detects the existence of suspicious objects and identifies the material type based on the reconstructed CSI complex value (including both amplitude and phase information); it then determines the risk level of the object by examining the object’s dimension (i.e., liquid volume and metal object’s shape) based on the reconstructed CSI complex of the signals reflected by the object. In tests the system was able to detect over 95% suspicious objects in different types of bags and successfully identify […]
Uncovering the interplay between two famous quantum effects
Phys.org July 23, 2018 According to some physicists the next scientific breakthroughs could lie in the interplay between Casimir force and superconductivity. Researchers in the Netherlands developed a sensor that consists of a microchip on which two strings are placed in close proximity. The wires can be cooled down to cryogenic temperatures, making them superconducting. The strings have holes in the centre that act as an optical resonator trapping laser light of a certain wavelength. They used this light to measure small displacements between the two wires, in essence it is possible to measure the forces that are acting upon […]
New photodetector could improve night vision, thermal sensing and medical imaging
Phys.org June 28, 2018 Researchers at UCLA laid strips of graphene over a silicon dioxide layer, which itself covers a base of silicon. Then, they created a series of comb-like nanoscale patterns, made of gold, with “teeth” about 100 nanometers wide. The graphene acts as a net to catch incoming photons and then convert them into an electrical signal. The gold comb-shaped nanopatterns transfer the information to a processor, which produces a corresponding high-quality image, even under low-light conditions. The design enables operation across a broad range of light, quicker processing of images and provides greater sensitivity to lower levels […]
Engineer creates new design for ultra-thin capacitive sensors
Science Daily June 26, 2018 Being able to move with the air is how sensors can tell when a sound is present and which direction it is coming from. Researchers at SUNY Binghamton have developed a new platform that provides a way to detect the motion of extremely thin fibers or films by sensing changes in an electric field without the use of a magnet. The sensor has a nearly constant potential energy but can also return to its equilibrium after large motions… read more. TECHNICAL ARTICLE
Russian scientists created ‘flying’ gas chromatograph
Eurekalert June 18, 2018 The portable gas microchromatograph developed by researchers in Russia weighs a little more than a kilogram and it completely replaces bulky laboratory devices. It can provide accurate data on the composition of the atmosphere, qualitative and quantitative composition of oil and gas, as well as analyse biomarkers in exhaled human air within a few minutes. It can perform an operational analysis of the state of the atmosphere at altitudes of up to 1000 meters and within a radius of 2 km from the source, record and track the level of concentration of substances in the air […]
A nanotech sensor that turns molecular fingerprints into bar codes
Eurekalert June 7, 2018 The system developed by an international team of researchers (Switzerland, Australia) consists of an engineered surface covered with hundreds of tiny sensors (metapixels) each one resonating at a different frequency. Different vibrational frequencies are mapped to different areas on the surface which creates a pixelated map of light absorption that can be translated into a molecular bar code – all without using a spectrometer. They have used the system to detect polymers, pesticides and organic compounds. It is highly sensitive and generates bar codes even with broadband light sources and detectors. Applications include portable medical testing […]
A fresh sensation in sensing technology
Phys.org June 01, 2018 In optical fiber sensor networks a fiber Bragg grating is one of the key sensor devices used because of compactness and immunity to electromagnetic interference. But their sensitivity is not always satisfactory. Researchers in Japan have developed an inexpensive super spectral resolution method for multi-channel spectrometers to conventional interrogators for optical fiber sensing. The technology may find applications in IoT… read more. TECHNICAL ARTICLE