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Topology helps build more robust photonic networks

Researchers have shown that topology can guide multiple, information-carrying light signals through chip-based photonic communication systems, making them more powerful and reliable. This breakthrough could enable the creation of networks of chips that communicate using light while taking advantage of topology's robustness.

IEEE honors Pitt’s Fang Peng with medal in power engineering

Fang Peng has made significant contributions to Z-source and modular multi-level converters for distribution and transmission networks. These technologies improve safety, flexibility, and performance in diverse energy sources. Peng's work aims to create resilient systems that can handle faults and prevent devastating wildfires.

Apple iPhone 17 Pro

Apple iPhone 17 Pro delivers top performance and advanced cameras for field documentation, data collection, and secure research communications.

Back to the future: Is light-speed analog computing on the horizon?

Scientists have developed a programmable electronic circuit that harnesses high-frequency electromagnetic waves to perform complex parallel processing at light-speed. This breakthrough has the potential to power next-generation wireless networks, real-time radar, and advanced monitoring in various industries.

Machine learning-based design enables more efficient wireless power transfer

A new machine learning-based design method has been proposed to achieve stable and efficient wireless power transfer. The approach uses real-world circuit modeling and numerical simulations to optimize system performance, demonstrating significant improvements in output voltage stability and power-delivery efficiency.

Scientists find new way to control electricity at tiniest scale

Researchers at University of California, Riverside, found that symmetrical silicon molecules can be fine-tuned for quantum electron behavior, turning conductivity on or off like a molecular-scale switch. This discovery could lead to ultra-small switches and thermoelectric devices, revolutionizing electronics.

SAMSUNG T9 Portable SSD 2TB

SAMSUNG T9 Portable SSD 2TB transfers large imagery and model outputs quickly between field laptops, lab workstations, and secure archives.

Can AI make critical communications chips easier to design?

A multi-university team is using AI to design radio frequency integrated circuits (RFICs), reducing development time and cost. The project aims to lower the barrier to entry for researchers and companies, making RFICs more accessible to solve problems and advance technological innovation.

Gene circuits enable more precise control of gene therapy

Researchers at MIT developed a control circuit that can precisely regulate gene expression levels, improving the efficacy and safety of gene therapy treatments. The 'COMMAND' circuit uses microRNA to suppress gene expression, allowing for tighter control over treatment outcomes.

Davis Instruments Vantage Pro2 Weather Station

Davis Instruments Vantage Pro2 Weather Station offers research-grade local weather data for networked stations, campuses, and community observatories.

AI slashes cost and time for chip design, but that is not all

Researchers at Princeton University have developed an AI-powered system to design complex wireless chips, reducing time and cost. The AI creates intricate electromagnetic structures that improve performance and efficiency, often in ways that human designers cannot understand.

Celestron NexStar 8SE Computerized Telescope

Celestron NexStar 8SE Computerized Telescope combines portable Schmidt-Cassegrain optics with GoTo pointing for outreach nights and field campaigns.

Major breakthrough for ‘smart cell’ design

Researchers have made a major breakthrough in synthetic biology by developing a new construction kit for building custom sense-and-respond circuits in human cells. The new approach harnesses the power of phosphorylation to amplify weak input signals into macroscopic outputs, enabling rapid response times and sensitivity to external sig...

GQ GMC-500Plus Geiger Counter

GQ GMC-500Plus Geiger Counter logs beta, gamma, and X-ray levels for environmental monitoring, training labs, and safety demonstrations.

Towards implementing neural networks on edge IoT devices

A new training algorithm called ternarized gradient BNN (TGBNN) enables learning capabilities for binarized neural networks (BNNs) on IoT edge devices. The proposed MRAM-based CiM architecture achieves faster convergence and matching accuracy with regular BNNs.

Foam fluidics showcase Rice lab’s creative approach to circuit design

Engineers have shown that air flow through open-cell foam can be used to perform digital computation, analog sensing, and combined digital-analog control in soft textile-based wearable systems. The researchers designed foam-based fluidic resistors to create two-dimensional pneumatic logic circuits embedded in textile-based devices.

AmScope B120C-5M Compound Microscope

AmScope B120C-5M Compound Microscope supports teaching labs and QA checks with LED illumination, mechanical stage, and included 5MP camera.

A high-boost and high-efficiency DC power converter

The new circuit design uses resonant tank circuits to store energy during switching periods, reducing losses and increasing efficiency. It also employs a planar transformer for compactness and good thermal performance. The prototype achieved an unprecedented 91.3% energy efficiency and reduced electromagnetic noise.

GoPro HERO13 Black

GoPro HERO13 Black records stabilized 5.3K video for instrument deployments, field notes, and outreach, even in harsh weather and underwater conditions.

Advancing toward wearable stretchable electronics

Researchers at Stanford have created skin-like integrated circuits that are five times smaller and operate at one thousand times higher speeds than earlier versions. These soft electronic devices can drive a micro-LED screen and detect Braille arrays with high sensitivity.

Rail industry urged to consider safety risks of space weather

Researchers found that space weather events can trigger 'wrong side' failures in rail signalling systems, which are more hazardous than 'right side' failures. This study highlights the need for the industry to consider the risks of space weather and explore mitigation strategies.

Refreshing a computer chip to a “chiplet”

A team of researchers from Pitt and Notre Dame have received a $2 million NSF grant to develop 'chiplets' - refurbished integrated chips that can be reused in new products, reducing manufacturing waste and emissions. The project aims to create a more sustainable computing lifecycle by mapping the reuse of decommissioned FPGAs.

Meta Quest 3 512GB

Meta Quest 3 512GB enables immersive mission planning, terrain rehearsal, and interactive STEM demos with high-resolution mixed-reality experiences.

Interdisciplinary Rice team tackles the future of semiconductors

The interdisciplinary team, led by Kaiyuan Yang, will focus on leveraging the spin and charge of electrons in multiferroics to process and store information. The goal is to improve energy efficiency for computing devices, potentially reducing energy consumption by three orders of magnitude.

Toward high-efficiency thin crystalline silicon solar cells

A new strategy optimizes optical and electrical characteristics of thin c-Si solar cells, improving conversion efficiency by 28% compared to industrial thick counterparts. The proposed design uses a layer transfer method and metal nanofilms for enhanced light absorption and surface passivation.

Researchers fabricate chip-based optical resonators with record low UV losses

The new resonators exhibit a record low UV light loss, enabling the development of miniaturized devices for applications such as spectroscopic sensing, underwater communication, and quantum information processing. The researchers achieved this by combining optimized design and fabrication techniques with amorphous alumina materials.

Aranet4 Home CO2 Monitor

Aranet4 Home CO2 Monitor tracks ventilation quality in labs, classrooms, and conference rooms with long battery life and clear e-ink readouts.

Electrons take flight at the nanoscale

A new device design inspires improved integrated circuit designs by visualizing electric current flow lines around sharp bends. The research enables better understanding of heat generation in electronic devices, leading to more efficient circuit creation and reduced risk of overheating.

Battery-free robots use origami to change shape in mid-air

Researchers at the University of Washington have developed small robotic devices that can change their shape in mid-air using a Miura-ori origami fold, enabling battery-free control over descent. The devices can transition from tumbling to falling states, allowing for precise landings in turbulent wind conditions.

Photonic integration: Transforming the future of chip-scale applications

Researchers have developed a groundbreaking photonic integrated circuit chip that combines light source, modulator, photodiode, waveguide, and Y-branch splitter on a single substrate. The GaN-on-silicon platform reduces fabrication complexity and cost, enabling compact and high-performing devices.

Anker Laptop Power Bank 25,000mAh (Triple 100W USB-C)

Anker Laptop Power Bank 25,000mAh (Triple 100W USB-C) keeps Macs, tablets, and meters powered during extended observing runs and remote surveys.

Designing antennas for 6G V2X (Vehicle to Everything) communication

The Indian Institute of Science researchers developed a full-duplex antenna system that cancels out self-interference, enabling faster and more efficient data transfer. The compact design eliminates the need for bulky components, making it suitable for integration into devices.

Like flipping the switch

Researchers at The University of Tokyo have developed a programmable gate driver for solid-state electronic transistor switches, reducing switching loss under changing input current and temperature fluctuations. The device includes automatic timing control, allowing for single-chip integration and real-time control.

Kestrel 3000 Pocket Weather Meter

Kestrel 3000 Pocket Weather Meter measures wind, temperature, and humidity in real time for site assessments, aviation checks, and safety briefings.

New chip for mobile devices knocks out unwanted signals

MIT researchers have developed a receiver chip that targets and blocks unwanted signals without hurting device performance. The chip uses a mixer-first architecture and block digital filtering to remove harmonic interference, enabling it to handle high-power signals effectively.

Improving the performance of satellites in low Earth orbit

Researchers at Tokyo Institute of Technology have developed a new phased array receiver strategy to reduce radiation degradation and power consumption in small satellites. The approach uses on-chip distributed radiation sensors and current-sharing techniques, achieving less than 10% gain variation and lowest reported power consumption.

Nikon Monarch 5 8x42 Binoculars

Nikon Monarch 5 8x42 Binoculars deliver bright, sharp views for wildlife surveys, eclipse chases, and quick star-field scans at dark sites.

ASAP: New NSF center tackling microelectronic chips' energy efficiency

The Center for Aggressive Scaling by Advanced Processes for Electronics and Photonics (ASAP) aims to develop new fundamental technology solutions to reduce energy consumption in microprocessors. The center will focus on materials discovery, heterogeneous 3D integration, and highly energy-efficient circuits and architectures.

Apple Watch Series 11 (GPS, 46mm)

Apple Watch Series 11 (GPS, 46mm) tracks health metrics and safety alerts during long observing sessions, fieldwork, and remote expeditions.

Hard to crack hardware

Researchers at KAUST have developed a spintronics-based logic lock to defend chip security, which can be integrated into electronic chips to fend off malicious attacks. The design uses magnetic tunnel junctions to scramble the circuit's operation unless the correct key combination signal is supplied.

Building energy-efficient computing platforms

Scientists at IISc report the development of a highly energy-efficient computing platform that offers promise in building next-generation electronic devices. The platform uses memristors to perform computation and storage at the same physical location, reducing energy consumption by orders of magnitude.

Garmin GPSMAP 67i with inReach

Garmin GPSMAP 67i with inReach provides rugged GNSS navigation, satellite messaging, and SOS for backcountry geology and climate field teams.

UTD engineers join initiative to tackle hardware trojans

Researchers aim to improve detection and removal of hardware trojans, which can disrupt wireless communication and leak sensitive information. The project is part of a public-private partnership aiming to accelerate the translation of research findings into new technologies.

A golden ticket to smaller electronics

A team of researchers at Osaka University developed a new method for direct three-dimensional bonding of copper electrodes using silver, enabling reliable connections at low temperatures without external pressure. The process can be performed under gentle conditions, resulting in permanent connections as small as 20 micrometers.

Sky & Telescope Pocket Sky Atlas, 2nd Edition

Sky & Telescope Pocket Sky Atlas, 2nd Edition is a durable star atlas for planning sessions, identifying targets, and teaching celestial navigation.

Stronger security for smart devices

MIT researchers demonstrate two security methods that protect analog-to-digital converters from powerful attacks, including power and electromagnetic side-channel attacks. The techniques are more efficient and less expensive than other security methods, minimizing power consumption and cost for portable smart devices.

New transistor could cut 5% from world’s digital energy budget

A new magneto-electric transistor has been developed by researchers at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and the University at Buffalo. The design can reduce energy consumption by up to 75% and retain memory in event of power loss, making it a promising alternative to silicon-based transistors.

Fluke 87V Industrial Digital Multimeter

Fluke 87V Industrial Digital Multimeter is a trusted meter for precise measurements during instrument integration, repairs, and field diagnostics.

Kaiyuan Yang wins NSF CAREER Award

Kaiyuan Yang's five-year grant will focus on enhancing the reliability and security of bioelectronic implants by making them aware of and adaptive to their physical and logical contexts. The goal is to develop WBMI bioelectronics that can be deeply implanted in humans through minimally invasive injection, ingestion or through vessels.

Optoacoustics for high-precision neuromodulation

Researchers at Boston University have developed optoacoustic neurostimulation with single neuron and subcellular level precision. Optoacoustic neuromodulation may offer advantages over ultrasonic neuromodulation, including higher spatial temporal resolution.

Tiny battery-free devices float in the wind like dandelion seeds

Researchers developed tiny sensor-carrying devices inspired by dandelion seeds to monitor environmental conditions like temperature and humidity. The devices can travel up to 100 meters on a breeze, share data wirelessly up to 60 meters away, and power themselves using solar panels.