Category Technology/Electronics

Engineers have succeeded in fabricating topological LC circuits arranged in a honeycomb pattern where electromagnetic (EM) waves can propagate without backscattering even when pathways turn sharply. These circuits may be suitable for use as high-frequency electromagnetic waveguides, which would allow miniaturization and high integration in various electronics devices, such as mobile phones.

There has been a surge in searching for materials with topological properties, whose functions are not influenced even if the sample shapes are changed...

Progress in the development of highly reliable and sensitive diamond MEMS sensors. A NIMS-led research group succeeded in developing a high-quality diamond cantilever with among the highest quality (Q) factor values at room temperature ever achieved. The group also succeeded for the first time in the world in developing a single crystal diamond microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) sensor chip that can be actuated and sensed by electrical signals. These achievements may popularize research on diamond MEMS with significantly higher sensitivity and greater reliability than existing silicon MEMS.

MEMS sensors – in which microscopic cantilevers (projecting beams fixed at only one end) and electronic circuits are int...

Chloride-free electrolyte and organic cathode boosted energy density, stability. Researchers from the University of Houston and the Toyota Research Institute of America have discovered a promising new version of high-energy magnesium batteries, with potential applications ranging from electric vehicles to battery storage for renewable energy systems.

The battery, reported Dec. 21 in Joule, is the first reported to operate with limited electrolytes while using an organic electrode, a change the researchers said allows it to store and discharge far more energy than earlier magnesium batteries...

Future technology for contactless medical procedures. In the perhaps not so distant future, surgeons could perform a range of medical procedures all without touching the patient, thanks to advancements in ‘acoustic tweezers’.

Surgeons won’t be shrunk and sent into the body like in the 1960s Sci-Fi, Fantastic Voyage, but could program a specialised array of mini-speakers to create an intricate sound field that ‘traps’ and manipulates selected objects in ‘acoustic tweezers’ for manipulation within tissue.

Advancements in acoustic tweezers from Professor Bruce Drinkwater in the Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Bristol, and his...