Phys.org September 9, 2019 Researchers in Germany have developed and manufactured a novel molecule called 3-methoxy-9-fluorenylidene which is based on a fluorine scaffold with a methoxy group attached in the shape of a rotational tail. They figured out that the molecule’s magnetic properties are determined by the orientation of the methoxy group, which changes its conformation depending on the kind of light that hits it. It can be used to switched on and off magnetism; it is not brittle like conventional magnets, but flexible and can be processed like plastics. Using this group of atoms, we can study the spin […]
Tag Archives: S&T Germany
Analytical tool designs corkscrew-shaped nano-antennae
Science Daily August 23, 2019 The nano corkscrews are highly sensitive to light: depending on frequency and polarisation, they can strongly enhance it. Usually, the interaction of such nano-antennas with an electromagnetic field is determined using numerical methods. Each helix geometry, however, requires a new numerically expensive calculation. Researchers in Germany have a formula that tells them how a nano-antenna with specific parameters responds to light. This analytical description can be used as a design tool, as it specifies the required geometrical parameters of a nano-helix to amplify electromagnetic fields of desired frequencies or polarisation. The research could have applications […]
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 […]
Computer scientists predict lightning and thunder with the help of artificial intelligence
Science Daily June 26, 2019 Current satellite-based approaches to predict thunderstorms are usually based on the analysis of the observed brightness temperatures in different spectral channels and emit a warning if a critical threshold is reached. Researchers in Germany have developed a method using the error of two-dimensional optical flow algorithms applied to images of meteorological satellites as a feature for machine learning models. They trained different tree classifier models as well as a neural network to predict lightning. The results show a high accuracy of 96% for predictions over the next 15 minutes which slightly decreases with increasing forecast […]
Sensors and metrology as the driving force for digitalization
Fraunhofer Research News June 19, 2019 Researchers in Germany will be presenting the results of their research into sensor technology and its applications in the field of testing and measurement at Sensor+Test 2019, a forum for sensor and measurement technology. They will demonstrate how the quality of workpieces and components can be assured using a non-contact, non-destructive test method based on audio sensing of product and process parameters combined with machine learning. The nanoSPECTRAL technology developed by Fraunhofer IIS is based on optical nanostructures and enables a very cost-effective monolithic production of the required optical filters directly in CMOS semiconductor […]
Hand-held scanner for detecting hazardous substances and explosives
Phys.org June 3, 2019 Researchers in Germany working under the EU project CHEQUERS www.chequers.eu combined very fast widely tunable quantum cascade lasers with adjusted transmission and receiver optics, fast IR detectors and a fitting control and detection software. The miniaturized quantum cascade laser with an external resonator can scan the whole spectral range of the QC laser chip within just a millisecond. The measuring principle is based on selective spectral lighting of the target in the wavelength range of 1000—1300 cm-1. The chemical substance is identified based on the intensity of the backscattered light and the illumination wavelength. The spectral […]
A step towards probabilistic computing (w/video)
Eurekalert May 14, 2019 In the search for new computer concepts, research is concentrating, amongst others, on probability-based computing. Researchers in Germany have succeeded in developing a material in which skyrmions can form. The researchers have also developed a method to exploit thermal diffusion of skyrmions in what is referred to as a reshuffler, a component of probability-based computing that automatically scrambles input data. The reshuffler produces a sequence with the same number of memory units but in a different order. Their probability has therefore remained the same. They have shown according to which laws diffusion occurs, its length and […]
Bionics: Electric view in murky waters
Science Daily April 9, 2019 African Elephantnose fish use two different types of electro-receptors for active electrolocation. One only measures the intensity of the signal, the other the waveform of the pulse. Researchers in Germany showed that the fish uses the ratio of the two readings to identify its prey. This creates “electric colors” analogous to visual colors perceived by the human eye, but through electrical signals instead of visible light. They introduced an image cue, called the ‘electric outline’, which provided information resembling a target’s optical contour. The results indicate that bio-inspired electric imaging principles provide promising cues for […]
Fleets of autonomous satellites to coordinate tasks among themselves
Phys.org March 27, 2019 Working under the CORDIS project NetSat researchers in Germany aim to launch four small satellites, at the end of this year, to orbit the Earth and test formations with varying degrees of autonomy, with light-touch supervision from ground control. Each satellite weighs 3 kilogram and they will be placed in low Earth orbit. The satellites will be able to coordinate with each other over distances from about 100 kilometres down to 10 metres, as well as change their formation depending on the tasks they need to perform. AI can make a satellite aware of its surroundings and […]
‘Biological bandage’ could help heal wounds
Nanowerk March 28, 2019 Fibrinogen is a blood protein which through self-organization process turns dissolved proteins into ultrafine fibers that then combine to form tissue. Researchers in Germany introduced a novel biofabrication technique to prepare three-dimensional, nanofibrous fibrinogen scaffolds by salt-induced self-assembly. They were able to fabricate either free-standing or immobilized fibrinogen scaffolds on demand by tailoring the underlying substrate material and adding a fixation and washing procedure after the fiber assembly. Thickness can be adjusted by altering the salt concentration. The possibility to choose between free-standing and immobilized scaffolds makes the process attractive for the preparation of versatile tissue […]