Researchers at the University of Michigan, U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, and the University of California at San Diego recently demonstrated the fastest quantum computer bit that exploits the main advantage of the qubit over the conventional bit. The scientists used lasers to create an initialized quantum state of this...

Each month, NTB highlights tech briefs related to a particular area of technology in a special section called Technology Focus. Here are some of the technologies featured in the September issue focus on Nano Materials & Manufacturing.

Scientists from Finland, Germany, and the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF) have developed a new X-ray technique for the early detection of breast cancer. Current X-ray mammography fails to identify about 10 to 20% of palpable breast cancers because glandular tissues can mask cancer lesions. Better results are...

University of Utah engineers devised a new way to slice thin wafers of the chemical element germanium for use in the most efficient type of solar power cells. The new method should lower the cost of such cells by reducing the waste and breakage of the brittle semiconductor. Primarily used on NASA, military, and commercial...

University of Chicago scientists have discovered how to make magnetic sensors capable of operating at the high temperatures required for engines in future cars and aircraft. The key involves slightly diluting samples of a well-known semiconductor material, called indium antimonide, which is valued for its purity. Most...

Gold's ability to catalyze the conversion of toxic carbon monoxide (CO) into more benign carbon dioxide (CO2) at room temperature lay hidden until the 1980s. Since the discovery, scientists have sought to determine exactly how gold nanoparticles function as catalysts. Now researchers from Lehigh University, Cardiff University, and the...

The advantage of using two eyes to see the world around us has long been associated with our capacity to see in 3-D. Now, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute scientist Mark Changizi has uncovered an eye-opening advantage to binocular vision: our ability to see through things. An assistant professor of cognitive science at Rensselaer,...

Researchers from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and Seoul National University (SNU) have learned how to tweak a new class of polymer-based semiconductors that could enable the design of practical, large-scale manufacturing techniques for a wide range of printable, flexible electronic displays...

A yeast geneticist on the campus of Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) is close to developing mutant yeast for ethanol production that would reduce or eliminate the need to use corn to make the alternative fuel. When corn is used to make ethanol, corn kernels are ground to produce starch and the starch is...

NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has found an answer to a long-standing puzzle by resolving giant but delicate filaments shaped by a strong magnetic field around the active galaxy NGC 1275. One of the closest giant elliptical galaxies, NGC 1275 hosts a supermassive black hole. Energetic activity of gas swirling near the black...

Engineers at Georgia Tech have used skin cells to create artificial bones that mimic the ability of natural bone to blend into other tissues, such as tendons or ligaments. The artificial bones display a gradual change from bone to softer tissue rather than the sudden shift of previously developed artificial tissue, allowing them to...

Register today for NASA Tech Briefs' National Nano Engineering Conference (NNEC), the premier event focused on current and future developments in engineering innovations at the nanoscale, as well as the commercialization of nanotechnology. The event returns to Boston this year on November 12-13 at the Boston Colonnade Hotel, featuring...

Costly drugs to treat conditions such as cancer and arthritis could be manufactured more cheaply with a new technique developed by scientists at the University of Edinburgh that uses cell cultures removed from dead cells. Up to now, these medicines have been expensive to make due to the time-consuming, labor-intensive...

Founded in 1984 to promote VMEbus technology, VITA is a non-profit organization of more than 125 vendor companies who share a common interest in real-time, modular embedded computing systems. In August 2008, VITA's Executive Director, Ray Alderman, agreed to speak with Embedded Technology's...

A group at the University of Washington has developed software that enables deaf and hard-of-hearing Americans to use sign language over a mobile phone. This is the first time two-way real-time video communication has been demonstrated over cell phones in the U.S. Communication rates on U.S. cellular networks allow about one...

In this podcast John Dunec, Branch Manager of COMSOL, Inc., discusses how the breakthrough of multiphysics modeling techniques is making waves in the electronics industry. Applications cover everything from modeling p-n junctions in semiconductors and joule heating in circuits to forced...

Founded in 1984 to promote VMEbus technology, VITA is a non-profit organization of more than 125 vendor companies who share a common interest in real-time, modular embedded computing systems. In August 2008, VITA's Executive Director, Ray Alderman, agreed to speak with Embedded Technology's...