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Categories: Energy: Technology, Physics: Optics
Published More efficient TVs, screens and lighting



New multidisciplinary research could lead to more efficient televisions, computer screens and lighting.
Published A tiny spot leads to a large advancement in nano-processing, researchers reveal



Focusing a tailored laser beam through transparent glass can create a tiny spot inside the material. Researchers have reported on a way to use this small spot to improve laser material processing, boosting processing resolution.
Published Heat, cold extremes hold untapped potential for solar and wind energy



Conditions that usually accompany the kind of intense hot and cold weather that strains power grids may also provide greater opportunities to capture solar and wind energy. A study found that widespread, extreme temperature events are often accompanied by greater solar radiation and higher wind speeds that could be captured by solar panels and wind turbines. The research, which looked at extensive heat and cold waves across the six interconnected energy grid regions of the U.S. from 1980-2021, also found that every region experienced power outages during these events in the past decade. The findings suggest that using more renewable energy at these times could help offset increased power demand as more people and businesses turn on heaters or air conditioners.
Published Implantable batteries can run on the body's own oxygen



From pacemakers to neurostimulators, implantable medical devices rely on batteries to keep the heart on beat and dampen pain. But batteries eventually run low and require invasive surgeries to replace. To address these challenges, researchers have devised an implantable battery that runs on oxygen in the body. The study shows in rats that the proof-of-concept design can deliver stable power and is compatible with the biological system.
Published Bullseye! Accurately centering quantum dots within photonic chips



Researchers have now developed standards and calibrations for optical microscopes that allow quantum dots to be aligned with the center of a photonic component to within an error of 10 to 20 nanometers (about one-thousandth the thickness of a sheet of paper). Such alignment is critical for chip-scale devices that employ the radiation emitted by quantum dots to store and transmit quantum information.
Published New method to measure entropy production on the nanoscale



Entropy, the amount of molecular disorder, is produced in several systems but cannot be measured directly. A new equation sheds new light on how entropy is produced on a very short time scale in laser excited materials.
Published Micro-Lisa! Making a mark with novel nano-scale laser writing



High-power lasers are often used to modify polymer surfaces to make high-tech biomedical products, electronics and data storage components. Now researchers have discovered a light-responsive, inexpensive sulfur-derived polymer is receptive to low power, visible light lasers -- promising a more affordable and safer production method in nanotech, chemical science and patterning surfaces in biological applications.
Published Research lights up process for turning CO2 into sustainable fuel



Researchers have successfully transformed CO2 into methanol by shining sunlight on single atoms of copper deposited on a light-activated material, a discovery that paves the way for creating new green fuels.
Published Pairing crypto mining with green hydrogen offers clean energy boost



Pairing cryptocurrency mining -- notable for its outsize consumption of carbon-based fuel -- with green hydrogen could provide the foundation for wider deployment of renewable energy, such as solar and wind power, according to a new study.
Published Pushing back the limits of optical imaging by processing trillions of frames per second



Pushing for a higher speed isn't just for athletes. Researchers, too, can achieve such feats with their discoveries. A new device called SCARF (for swept-coded aperture real-time femtophotography) can capture transient absorption in a semiconductor and ultrafast demagnetization of a metal alloy. This new method will help push forward the frontiers of knowledge in a wide range of fields, including modern physics, biology, chemistry, materials science, and engineering.
Published A self-cleaning wall paint



Beautiful white wall paint does not stay beautiful and white forever. Often, various substances from the air accumulate on its surface. This can be a desired effect because it makes the air cleaner for a while -- but over time, the color changes and needs to be renewed. Now, special titanium oxide nanoparticles have been developed that can be added to ordinary, commercially available wall paint to establish self-cleaning power: The nanoparticles are photocatalytically active, they can use sunlight not only to bind substances from the air, but also to decompose them afterwards.
Published New all-liquid iron flow battery for grid energy storage



A new iron-based aqueous flow battery shows promise for grid energy storage applications.
Published Researchers take major step toward developing next-generation solar cells



Engineers have discovered a new way to manufacture solar cells using perovskite semiconductors. It could lead to lower-cost, more efficient systems for powering homes, cars, boats and drones.
Published Cleaning up environmental contaminants with quantum dot technology



The 2023 Nobel Prize in Chemistry was focused on quantum dots -- objects so tiny, they're controlled by the strange rules of quantum physics. Quantum dots used in electronics are often toxic, but their nontoxic counterparts are being explored for uses in medicine and in the environment, including water decontamination. One team of researchers has specially designed carbon- and sulfur-based dots for these environmental applications.
Published Researchers add swept illumination to open-top light-sheet microscope



Researchers have incorporated a swept illumination source into an open-top light-sheet microscope to enable improved optical sectioning over a larger area of view. The advance makes the technique more practical for nondestructive 3D pathology.
Published Metamaterials and AI converge, igniting innovative breakthroughs



Scientists unveil next-generation research trends in metaphotonics platforms with AI.
Published Molecular crystal motors move like microbes when exposed to light



At first glance, Rabih Al-Kaysi's molecular motors look like the microscopic worms you'd see in a drop of pond water. But these wriggling ribbons are not alive; they're made from crystallized molecules that perform coordinated movements when exposed to light. With continued development, these tiny machines could be used as drug-delivery robots or engineered into arrays that direct the flow of water around submarines.
Published Brain-inspired wireless system to gather data from salt-sized sensors



In a new study, researchers describe a novel approach for a wireless communication network that can efficiently transmit, receive and decode data from thousands of microelectronic chips that are each no larger than a grain of salt.
Published Spectroscopy and theory shed light on excitons in semiconductors



Researchers have made very fast and very precise images of excitons -- in fact, accurate to one quadrillionth of a second and one billionth of a meter. This understanding is essential for developing more efficient materials with organic semiconductors.
Published Backyard insect inspires invisibility devices, next gen tech



Leafhoppers, a common backyard insect, secrete and coat themselves in tiny mysterious particles that could provide both the inspiration and the instructions for next-generation technology, according to a new study. In a first, the team precisely replicated the complex geometry of these particles, called brochosomes, and elucidated a better understanding of how they absorb both visible and ultraviolet light.