10 Holiday Gift Ideas for Engineers

To-Go Cup Lids May Help Drones Sense Danger

The work showed that when a certain level of force inverts a dome, embedded sensors surrounding the dome can detect the change.

Silicon Forging Ahead for Higher-Performance Battery Anodes

Silicon-infused anodes, already widely considered one of the most promising candidate technologies for the next significant performance-improvement phase of electric-vehicle...

Spacecraft to Remove Orbital Debris

Innovators at NASA Johnson Space Center have designed an Active Debris Removal Vehicle that can remove large orbital debris from low-Earth orbit.

Soft, Mechanical Metamaterials

Researchers produced a soft, mechanical metamaterial that can “think” about how forces are applied to it and respond via programmed reactions. The metamaterials feature flexible, conductive polymer...

High-Bandwidth Communications Device

Communications systems using higher-frequency electromagnetic waves can transfer more data at faster rates but lack network components to handle these higher bandwidths. Sugar-cubesized blocks of an...

Tentacle Robot Can Grasp Fragile Objects

Most of today’s robotic grippers rely on embedded sensors, complex feedback loops, or advanced machine learning algorithms, combined with the skill of the operator, to grasp fragile or...

AI Pilot Can Navigate Crowded Airspace

A team of researchers at Carnegie Mellon University believe they have developed the first AI pilot that enables autonomous aircraft to navigate a crowded airspace.

Vertiport Assessment and Mobility Operations System

It is widely believed that Advanced Air Mobility is poised to have a significant societal impact in the coming years to move people and cargo more rapidly and efficiently.

Solid Electrolyte–Based Microthrusters for Precision Propulsion

Researchers at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory are developing a novel microthruster that could provide easy-to-control propulsion during spaceflight.

Chipset-Specific IPDs Simplify Development of Next-Gen Wireless Medical IoT Applications

The design goal is to provide exceptional RF signal range and stability, while also reducing power consumption, in a miniaturized package.

Shape-Shifting Materials Offer Infinite Possibilities

Researchers have developed a shape-shifting material that can take and hold any possible shape, paving the way for a new type of multifunctional material that could be used in a...

How Virtual, Cloud-Based Technologies Are Powering the Next Industrial Revolution

Companies in many industries, including technology, construction, and healthcare are completely revamping the way in which their manufacturing arms are...

Graphene Boosts Flexible and Wearable Electronics Boosts

At 200 times stronger than steel, graphene has been hailed as a super material of the future since its discovery in 2004. The ultrathin carbon material is an incredibly strong...

New Material Will Make Locally Flexible Diodes Possible

Diodes allow directed flows of current. Without them, modern electronics would be inconceivable. Until now, they had to be made from two materials with different characteristics. A...

Novel Nanowire Fabrication Technique Paves Way for Next Generation Spintronics

The challenge of fabricating nanowires directly on silicon substrates for the creation of the next generation of electronics has finally been solved by...

Advanced LiDAR — On the Road to SAE Level 3 Partially Automated Driving

For automated driving, LiDAR combines the best features of two of the other sensing technologies: radar and cameras.

How Artemis I Launched

The Artemis I launch took place at Launch Pad 39B at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida with support from University of Central Florida alums, faculty, and students. However, it didn’t go off without a hitch.

The Power of Power Electronics for a Sustainable Future

Power electronics are critical for renewable energy. They require special design and testing to ensure that they will reliably perform their critical duties.

High-Power Electrostatic Actuators to Realize Artificial Muscles

Electrostatic actuators are simple and lightweight devices that emulate human muscles. However, their usage has primarily been restricted to moving small devices since they...

NYU Tandon Researchers Explore a More Frictionless Future

Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering Elisa Riedo and her team have discovered a fundamental friction law that is leading to a deeper understanding of energy...

The Skillful Skydiving of Wingless Springtails

Early in the pandemic, Víctor Ortega-Jiménez was exploring creeks near his home and observing springtails. The organisms are the most abundant non-insect hexapods on earth, and...

Q&A: Nanoelectronic Heart Cell Sensor

Professor Jun Yao and his team at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, have created a tiny sensor that can simultaneously measure electrical and mechanical cellular responses in cardiac tissue.