‘Persistent Photoconductivity’ tagged posts

Physicists turn a Crystal into an Electrical Circuit

Washington State University researchers used light to write a highly conducting electric path in a crystal. This opens up the possibility of transparent, three-dimensional electronics that, like an Etch-A-Sketch, can be erased and reconfigured. On the left, a photograph of a sample with four metal contacts. On the right, an illustration of a laser drawing a conductive path between two contacts. Credit: Washington State University

Washington State University researchers used light to write a highly conducting electric path in a crystal. This opens up the possibility of transparent, three-dimensional electronics that, like an Etch-A-Sketch, can be erased and reconfigured. On the left, a photograph of a sample with four metal contacts. On the right, an illustration of a laser drawing a conductive path between two contacts.
Credit: Washington State University

Transparent, 3D electronics can be configured and erased like an Etch A Sketch. It serves as a proof of concept for a phenomenon that WSU researchers first discovered by accident 4 years ago. At the time, a doctoral student found a 400-fold increase in the electrical conductivity of a crystal simply by leaving it exposed to light...

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Study shows how Radioactive Decay could support Extraterrestrial life

A University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) and Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) team modeled a natural water-cracking process called radiolysis. They applied the model to the icy bodies around our solar system to show how radiation emitted from rocky cores could break up water molecules and support hydrogen-eating microbes. Credit: Southwest Research Institute

A University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) and Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) team modeled a natural water-cracking process called radiolysis. They applied the model to the icy bodies around our solar system to show how radiation emitted from rocky cores could break up water molecules and support hydrogen-eating microbes. Credit: Southwest Research Institute

In the icy bodies around our solar system, radiation emitted from rocky cores could break up water molecules and support hydrogen-eating microbes. To address this cosmic possibility, a University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) and Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) team modeled a natural water-cracking process called radiolysis...

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‘Persistent Photoconductivity’ offers new tool for Bioelectronics

This image illustrates changes in photocurrent before and after exposure to UV light. Persistent photoconductivity is demonstrated even hours after the UV light has been turned off. This is illustrated by the pictograms showing charge carriers that come into contact with cells at the interface during in vitro experiments. Credit: Albena Ivanisevic

This image illustrates changes in photocurrent before and after exposure to UV light. Persistent photoconductivity is demonstrated even hours after the UV light has been turned off. This is illustrated by the pictograms showing charge carriers that come into contact with cells at the interface during in vitro experiments. Credit: Albena Ivanisevic

Researchers have developed a new approach for manipulating the behavior of cells on semiconductor materials, using light to alter the conductivity of the material itself. Albena Ivanisevic, a professor of materials science and engineering at NC Stat said: “Our work here effectively adds another tool to the toolbox for the development of new bioelectronic devices.” The new approach uses a phenomenon called persistent photoconductivity...

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