Research

Researchers at Sweden’s Digital Cellulose Center have improved their paper supercapacitor technology, getting 10F from a demonstration device. The active ingredient of the capacitor is a water-based ink made from the conductive polymer PEDOT:PSS and cellulose pulp derived from softwood, plus some other ingredients including activated carbon. Previously, the Center screen-printed this onto an aluminium-coated plastic substrate, but in this ...

Researchers in Saudi Arabia are exploring an unusual idea: modulating daylight coming through a window to transmit data. The scheme will use quadrature amplitude modulator and a pair of liquid crystal shutters to change the polarisation of light as it passes. “Change in light polarisation is imperceptible to the eye, eliminating the flicker problem,” said researcher Sahar Ammar (pictured) of ...

Sodium-ion batteries could be a lower-cost alternative to Li-ion batteries, if ways are found to prevent the large sodium ions destroying their electrodes as they shuttle back and forth. As a possible sodium-ion anode for such batteries, materials scientists at Qingdao University have used titanium dioxide and graphite to produce a stable structure, unchanged after 2,000 cycles. “The researchers found ...

Australian National University scientists have engineered a room-temperature enclosure in which to concentrate ‘exciton polaritons’ – an exotic form of energy and matter with potential for optoelectronics in transition-metal dichalcogenide monolayers, such as tungsten disulphide. The exciton polariton is a hybrid particle composed of an exciton, formed from a bound electron-hole pair, and a photon. They are “a promising platform ...

Vanadium carbide ‘MXene’ two dimensional materials can absorb up to 90% of electromagnetic radiation between 8.2 and 12.4GHz, according to Drexler University, out-performing more conventional materials for protecting objects against detection by X-band radar. This is not the first time MXenes have been used to block radio waves – titanium carbonates have been studied, for example – but they are ...

Sara Pellegrini, advanced photonics pixel architect, STMicroelectronics, talks to Caroline Hayes about her work, her research and how to encourage students to be curious about what’s inside today’s electronic devices. Sara Pellegrini is based in Edinburgh, her home since she arrived at Heriot-Watt University as part of a PhD project in SPAD (single photon avalanche diodes). She is responsible for ...

Skoltech researchers have developed a novel material for lithium-ion batteries powering electric vehicles. The material is a familiar nickel-rich layered transition metal oxide, but with an altered microstructure that packs more energy per unit volume. “The cathodes in batteries powering electric cars tend to use layered transition metal oxides, including nickel-rich ones. We improved two commonly used materials of this kind, achieving a ...

Imec has developed a piezoelectric Micromachined Ultrasound Transducer (pMUT) array that is compatible with flat-panel-displays (FPD) process technologies. The array demonstrates acoustic pressures in mid-air above 1kPa, a pressure level relevant for enabling mid-air haptics and directed sound. Moving from wafer-based to FPD-compatible processes prepares the pMUT technology for the integration of future mid-air applications, such as vibro-haptics, time-of-flight (3D) ...

Harvard scientists have managed to create a processing circuit usign ionics rather than electronics. Working with biotech start-up DNA Script, they designed an ionic transistor which consists of an aqueous solution of quinone molecules, interfaced with two concentric ring electrodes with a centre disc electrode (see photo). The ring electrodes electrochemically lower and tune the local pH around the centre disc ...

The University Research category for the Elektra Awards 2022 is launching, sponsored by Panasonic – with the awards in their twentieth year – and we are looking to readers to express their choice and help determine the winner. You are invited to select the university research project from the last year that you feel will make the largest impact on ...