Category Chemistry/Nanotechnology

The network, composed of a series of polymer layers, works using light that travels through it. Each layer is 8 centimeters square. Credit: UCLA Samueli / Ozcan Research Group

The 3D-printed artificial neural network can be used in medicine, robotics and security. Electrical and computer engineers have created a physical artificial neural network that can analyze large volumes of data and identify objects at the actual speed of light. The device was created using a 3D printer.

Numerous devices in everyday life today use computerized cameras to identify objects – think of automated teller machines that can “read” handwritten dollar amounts when you deposit a check, or internet search engines that can quickly match photos to other similar images in their databases...

This brightly colored dragon was produced by 3D printing, using gold nanorods as photosensitizers.
Credit: American Chemical Society

People are exploring the use of 3D printing for wide-ranging applications, including manufacturing, medical devices, fashion and even food. But one of the most efficient forms of 3D printing suffers from a major drawback: It can only print objects that are gray or black in color. Now, researchers have tweaked the method so it can print in all of the colors of the rainbow. They report their results in the ACS journal Nano Letters.

Selective laser sintering (SLS) printers use a laser to heat specific regions of a powdered material, typically nylon or polyamide, so that the powder melts or sinters to form a solid mass...

Table 1: θSH: spin Hall angle, δ: conductivity, δSH: spin Hall conductivity. The figures in the bottom row are those achieved in the present study. Remarkably, the spin Hall conductivity, shown in the right-hand column, is two orders of magnitude greater than the previous record. (Image: Pham Nam Hai)

BiSb expands the potential of topological insulators for ultra-low-power electronic devices. Scientists have developed the world’s best-performing pure spin current source made of bismuth-antimony (BiSb) alloys, which they report as the best candidate for the first industrial application of topological insulators...

Lattice architecture can provide channels for effective transportation of electrolyte inside the volume of material, while for the cube electrode, most of the material will not be exposed to the electrolyte. The cross-section view shows the silver mesh enabling the charge (Li+ ions) transportation to the current collector and how most of the printed material has been utilized.
Credit: Rahul Panat, Carnegie Mellon University College of Engineering

Additive manufacturing, otherwise known as 3D printing, can be used to manufacture porous electrodes for lithium-ion batteries – but because of the nature of the manufacturing process, the design of these 3D printed electrodes is limited to just a few possible architectures...