Articles tagged with Silicon
Scientists have developed a functional binder for silicon oxide electrodes used in lithium-ion batteries, enhancing electrochemical performance and durability. The new binder outperforms conventional options, offering improved alternatives for electric vehicles.
Rice University researchers have developed a new, energy-efficient process to upcycle glass fiber-reinforced plastic (GFRP) into silicon carbide, widely used in semiconductors and sandpaper. The method involves heating the mixture of GFRP and carbon to extremely high temperatures, transforming it into conductive silicon carbide.
A team of researchers has discovered ways to optimize efficiency and control degradation in perovskite solar cells by engineering their nanoscale structure. The study provides new insights on how to make high-efficiency perovskite solar cells and offers a roadmap for improving their performance.
A team led by Prof. Wolf Gero Schmidt used Hawk supercomputer to study how strategic impurities in solar cells can improve performance. They discovered that certain defects can improve exciton transfer, leading to more energy captured. This breakthrough could lead to more efficient and climate-friendly energy production.
The University of Illinois has developed a new nanoscale sensor that can monitor areas 1,000 times smaller than traditional technology, tracking subtle changes in brain chemistry with sub-second resolution. The device takes advantage of silicon-based manufacturing techniques to achieve 100% efficiency and high spatial resolution.
Researchers from Oxford University have developed a breakthrough in creating and designing magnetic whirls in membranes that can be seamlessly integrated with silicon. The findings reveal the existence of a robust family of magnetic whirls in free-standing layers, which could enable ultra-fast information processing.
Researchers at UNSW Sydney have successfully encoded quantum information in four distinct ways using a single antimony atom. This breakthrough enables more flexibility in designing future quantum computing chips, with each method offering unique advantages and potential trade-offs.
Researchers at HKUST have developed a novel selective direct epitaxy method, called lateral aspect ratio trapping (LART), to efficiently integrate III-V compound semiconductor devices with silicon. This breakthrough enables high-speed, low-cost connections that can handle massive amounts of data.
Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania have developed a new silicon-photonic chip that can perform vector-matrix multiplication using light waves, allowing for accelerated AI computing. The chip's design has privacy advantages, as sensitive information can be processed simultaneously without being stored in memory.
Scientists at University of Utah and University of Massachusetts Amherst uncover the physics behind dopant-polymer interactions that explain inconsistent conductivity issues in organic materials. The discovery reveals that a critical mass of electrons triggers collective screening, allowing rest of electrons to flow unimpeded.
Researchers develop enzyme that can break silicon–carbon bonds in siloxanes, a first step towards rendering chemicals biodegradable. The discovery opens possibilities for natural organisms to degrade siloxane contaminants in wastewater and treat them in the environment.
A new bifunctional water electrolysis catalyst made from ruthenium, silicon, and tungsten enables the efficient production of high-purity green hydrogen. The catalyst demonstrates exceptional durability in acidic environments, making it an attractive alternative to traditional precious metal catalysts.
Researchers at Uppsala University and Columbia University have created a new 2D quantum material, CeSiI, with atoms-thin layers of cerium, silicon, and iodine. The material features super-heavy electrons with an effective mass up to 100 times that of ordinary materials.
Researchers at PPPL developed a new theoretical model explaining the process of making black silicon using fluorine gas. The model precisely explains how fluorine breaks certain bonds in silicon, resulting in a rough surface that traps more light, ideal for solar cells.
A team of researchers led by Walter de Heer at Georgia Institute of Technology has created a functional graphene semiconductor with 10 times the mobility of silicon. This breakthrough technology could enable smaller and faster devices, as well as applications for quantum computing.
A multi-institutional research team, including Osaka University, has developed a new approach to enhance the efficiency of Mie scattering, which could lead to significant advancements in meta-photonics and applications like all-optical transistors. The researchers found that misaligning the incident laser on a nanometer scale can induc...
Researchers from MIT have developed a new method to integrate fragile 2D materials into devices, opening the path to next-generation devices with unique optical and electronic properties. The technique relies on engineering surface forces available at the nanoscale, allowing for pristine interfaces.
The study found that 3D integration can lead to significant heat spreading and crosstalk, reducing heater efficiency by up to -43.3% and increasing thermal crosstalk by up to +44.4%. However, optimizing design variables, such as spacing between µbumps and interconnect linewidth, can minimize the thermal penalty of 3D integration.
A laboratory test shows that silicon application stimulates olive plant growth and increases nutrient absorption, particularly potassium. Plants treated with silicon grew longer stems and more branches than those without the element.
Rice physicists find that a 'strange metal' quantum material exhibits greatly suppressed shot noise, suggesting unconventional charge transport mechanisms. The study provides direct empirical evidence for the idea that electricity may flow through strange metals in an unusual liquidlike form.
A team of researchers from City University of Hong Kong and Shanghai Jiao Tong University has developed a novel aluminium alloy with unprecedented fatigue resistance using advanced 3D printing techniques. The new alloy, called NTD-Al, surpasses the fatigue strength of high-strength wrought Al alloys and conventional metals.
Advances in VR display technology have overcome the 'screen door effect' by introducing 2117 PPI LCDs with high partition mini LED backlighting. This enhances contrast, color accuracy, and viewing angles, making VR experiences more immersive.
Researchers propose analysis protocol to evaluate feasibility of silicon-containing batteries with reduced particle size and uniform dispersion. The study finds promising results from innovative synthesis technology and initial efficiencies exceeding 90% with improved lifespan characteristics.
Researchers have developed a hybrid silicon photocatalyst that efficiently produces hydrogen and high-value compounds using solar power. The non-toxic catalyst achieves an impressive rate of 14.2 mmol gcat−1 h−1, significantly higher than conventional silicon photocatalysts.
Researchers have devised an efficient method of recovering high-purity silicon from expired solar panels, which can help meet the increasing global demand for electric vehicles. The new extraction method using phosphoric acid achieved a recovery rate of 98.9% and purity of 99.2%, comparable to existing methods.
Researchers at the University of Michigan have developed a computational methodology to accurately calculate Auger-Meitner recombination rates in silicon. This breakthrough enables a detailed understanding of the process, which is crucial for reducing its impact on device efficiency.
A recent publication in Science reports on improvements in silicon-perovskite tandem cells, achieving a record-breaking 32.5% efficiency. The development of these high-efficiency solar cells was led by Lithuanian researchers from Kaunas University of Technology.
Gallium oxide-based flash memory device demonstrates high performance and stability in extreme temperatures and radiation, retaining data for over 80 minutes. The team aims to improve device properties through further material quality and design advancements.
A breakthrough in photonic memory has been achieved, enabling fast volatile modulation and nonvolatile weight storage for rapid training of optical neural networks. The 5-bit photonic memory utilizes a low-loss PCM antimonite to achieve rapid response times and energy-efficient processing.
A new approach boosts light absorption in thin silicon photodetectors with photon-trapping structures, increasing the absorption efficiency over a wide band in the NIR spectrum. The findings demonstrate a promising strategy to enhance the performance of Si-based photodetectors for emerging photonics applications.
Researchers have made significant breakthroughs in high-speed photonic sources using metal-halide perovskites, promising to increase bandwidths into the gigahertz levels. The technology has vast potential for future data communication, IoT devices, and other emerging services.
Metalenses have been developed with differentiated design principles to eliminate chromatic aberration. By merging bright spots into a single focusing spot, researchers achieved an efficiency of up to 43% and demonstrated the versatility of their approach for various optical applications.
A new approach enables the precise transfer of thousands of microscopic semiconductor devices in a single shot, paving the way for large-scale arrays of optical components. The method is scalable, inexpensive, and can be used to manufacture micro-LED displays with high accuracy and resolution.
Songtao Chen, an assistant professor at Rice University, has won a prestigious NSF CAREER Award to study the interaction between photons and T center qubits. The research aims to address signal-loss during transmission, which is crucial for large-scale implementation of quantum communication.
Researchers at Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin have achieved a record-breaking efficiency of 32.5% for their tandem solar cells, combining perovskite and silicon technology. The breakthrough was made possible by improved perovskite compounds and surface modification techniques.
SUTD researchers created a CMOS-compatible, slow-light-based transmission grating device for high-speed data dispersion compensation. The devices achieved minimal loss and improved error correction performance, paving the way for on-chip integration in transceivers.
Researchers developed a nano-antenna that forms a near field of circularly polarized light, enhancing optical chirality and preserving helicity. This technology has promising applications in highly sensitive sensing and asymmetric photochemical reactions for molecular chirality.
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.
Researchers believe Earth's formation was facilitated by the accumulation of small pebbles, resulting in the presence of water as a byproduct. This new theory increases the likelihood of finding habitable planets outside our Solar System.
A new composite material made of ultra-tiny silicon nanoparticles and an organic element can convert lower-energy light into higher-energy light, enabling the formation of free radicals to attack cancer tissue. The material has potential applications in boosting solar panel efficiency and improving bioimaging technologies.
Researchers propose a device design that can take the efficiencies of 2D TMDC devices from 5% to 12%, doubling the weight-saving potential. This breakthrough could address the energy supply challenges in space exploration and settlements, where traditional solar cells are too heavy to be transported by rocket.
Researchers have discovered that extremophilic bacteria from high-temperature marine environments can be used to remove iron, silicon, and magnesium from asbestos minerals, reducing their toxicity. This finding has the potential to develop new methods for detoxifying and reusing asbestos as a secondary raw material.
Researchers at Rice University developed a new priming method to optimize prelithiation in silicon anodes, improving battery life cycles by up to 44% and energy density. The method uses stabilized lithium metal particles with surfactants, enabling more stable SEI layer formation and reduced lithium depletion.
Engineers at the University of New South Wales have created a solution for overcrowded circuitry in quantum computer chips by developing jellybean quantum dots in silicon. The device allows for spaced-out qubits that can interact with each other, enabling more efficient quantum computing.
Researchers at MIT have successfully grown layers of 2D transition metal dichalcogenide materials directly onto silicon chips at low temperatures, paving the way for denser and more powerful computer chips. This new technology allows for faster and more uniform growth of these materials, enabling larger-scale integration.
Researchers have developed a new germanium-tin transistor that exhibits improved electronic properties compared to silicon-based transistors. The material combines the benefits of germanium and tin, resulting in enhanced performance at low temperatures.
Researchers developed a new photonic blockchain called LightHash that uses a silicon photonics chip to reduce energy consumption in cryptocurrency mining. The approach could enable low-energy optical computing, reducing data centers' energy consumption and paving the way for more eco-friendly cryptocurrencies.
Scientists at the National University of Singapore have developed a new method for synthesizing organosilanes using eosin Y, a low-cost and readily available dye molecule. This enables stepwise customised functionalisation of multihydrosilanes to access fully substituted silicon compounds.
Researchers at Colorado State University propose using ultrathin films of molybdenum disulfide to improve solar cell efficiency. The material displays unprecedented charge carrier properties that could lead to drastic improvements in solar technologies.
Researchers at DTU found that conventional materials like silicon cannot prevent backscattering in photonic systems, despite attempts to create topological waveguides. The study suggests that new materials breaking time-reversal symmetry are needed to achieve protection against backscattering.
Scientists have developed BiBurst mode, which groups femtosecond laser pulses in MHz envelopes to increase ablation speed and improve throughput. The technique achieves 23 times faster ablation of silicon without compromising quality.
Researchers at Kyoto University have successfully created silicon-based photovoltaics at room temperature using a hybrid PEDOT:PSS/silicon heterojunction. This breakthrough technology offers improved production speed and cost, with power generation efficiency above 10%. The new process has the potential to facilitate large-scale diffus...
A recent project at KAUST has reported multifunctional logic gates that offer users a range of hardware security advantages, including tamper protection and watermarking. The gates use spintronic devices called magnetic tunnel junctions, which can be easily switchable and obscure their layout, making them hard to reverse engineer.
Researchers modeled how elements move across star-forming regions, finding that galactic winds influence temperature and metal distribution. The study's findings suggest a non-spherical wind pattern, contrary to previous spherical models.
Researchers at the University of Illinois Grainger College of Engineering have successfully integrated arrays of electrochemical random-access memory (ECRAM) onto silicon transistors, creating a practical AI accelerator. This innovation eliminates energy costs associated with data transfer and enables efficient deep learning operations.
Researchers at King Abdullah University of Science & Technology (KAUST) successfully integrated two-dimensional materials on silicon microchips, achieving high integration density, electronic performance, and yield. The resulting hybrid devices exhibit special electronic properties that enable low-power consumption artificial neural ne...
Researchers developed a novel design for the chip using a crossbar layout, outperforming state-of-the-art photonic counterparts in terms of scalability and technical versatility. The synergy of powerful photonics with the novel crossbar architecture enables next generation neuromorphic computing engines.
A comprehensive product stewardship scheme has been proposed to address the environmental impact of solar panel disposal in Australia. The plan includes recycling steps, serial numbers for tracking, and legislation to ensure environmentally friendly disposal.
Researchers from Tokyo Metropolitan University have developed a new catalyst that converts plastic and biomass into organosilane compounds. The hybrid gold nanoparticle catalyst on zirconium oxide support enables mild conditions for the reaction, reducing environmental burden.
Scientists at EPFL and IBM have developed a new type of laser using lithium niobate, enabling precise distance measurements in LiDAR applications. The hybrid integrated tunable laser offers low frequency noise and fast wavelength tuning.