Neutrons Help Improve 3D-Printed Superalloys

Researchers successfully used laser-based 3D printing to make alloys from two different metals, Inconel 718 and René 41, without cracking. Read on to learn more.

7 Key Engineering Hurdles in Building High-Precision Gantry Systems for Automation

If you are building a high-accuracy gantry system inhouse, understand that the tolerance for error is measured in microns, while the number of interacting failure modes is vast. Read on for more tips.

How Robotic Micro-Actuators Are Enhancing Bone Healing

Smart implants that not only stabilize a fracture but also monitor the healing process from day one — and deliver targeted support when required — are currently being developed at Saarland University by a team of engineers, medical researchers, and computer scientists. Read on to learn more about it.

Enhancing Laser Processing Head Service and Quality Assurance: How Advanced Laser Diagnostics Transform Service Operations and Product Development for High-Power Laser Applications at Precitec US

In the rapidly evolving arena of high-power...

DESI Completes Largest High-resolution 3D Map of universe to Date

On April 14, the 5,000 fiber-optic eyes of the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI), which scientists and students at UC Santa Cruz are key collaborators on, swiveled...

Groundbreaking Study in Light Control Opens Door to New Technological Frontiers

Scientists at Heriot‑Watt University have demonstrated in a world-first, that light can be used to control every aspect of how electromagnetic waves...

Optimizing 3D-Printed Helixes as Terahertz Optical Materials

Researchers at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory have optimized and 3D-printed helix structures as optical materials for Terahertz frequencies, a potential way to address a technology gap for next-generation telecommunications, non-destructive evaluation, chemical/biological sensing and more. Read on to learn more.

New on the Market

See what's new on the market, including The Imaging Source's Aptiris, USB 3.1 autofocus cameras designed for dynamic machine vision applications; Würth Elektronik's Proteus-IV and Ophelia-IV components, two new high-performance RF modules based on the latest Nordic nRF54L15-SoC semiconductor; Novotechnik U.S.'s Vert-X 13E Series of touchless rotary sensors; and much more.

MEMS in Transition

Wide-scale applications for Micro-Electromechanical Systems (MEMS) became practical in the 1980s when they started being fabricated with the same silicon wafer processes as semiconductor chips. Once they could be mass produced, they found a major market in automobile safety systems as inertial sensors for airbag deployment. Then came the introduction of smart phones in the late 2000s. Read on to learn where they're heading.

Cars and Planes Could Avoid Hazardous Ice and Freezing Rain with New Sensors

Pilots, drivers, and automated safety systems in cars and airplanes could be alerted to icy hazards by a pair of sensors developed at the University of Michigan. Read on to learn more about it.

Wireless Transceiver Rivals Fiber-Optic Speed

A new transceiver invented by electrical engineers at the University of California, Irvine boosts radio frequencies into 140-gigahertz territory, unlocking data speeds that rival those of physical fiber-optic cables and laying the groundwork for a transition to 6G and FutureG data transmission protocols. Read on to learn more about it.

LiDAR Goes Digital

Early LiDAR sensors, built on legacy mechanical architectures, proved the possibility of 3D perception but struggled to meet the demands of production. As the industry matures, the focus has shifted from simply detecting objects to doing so reliably, at scale, and at a price point suitable for commercial deployment. Read on to learn more.

Light-Responsive Perovskites Exhibit Reversible Shape-Shifting Behavior

Researchers at the University of California, Davis recently found that perovskites may enable a new class of light-responsive semiconductor devices. Read on to learn more.

Ultrasound Wristband Precisely Tracks Hand Movements in Real Time

MIT engineers have designed an ultrasound wristband that precisely tracks a wearer’s hand movements in real time. Read on to learn more.

Lincoln Laboratory Laser Communications Terminal Launches on Historic Artemis II Moon Mission

As it orbits the Moon, the Orion spacecraft will carry an optical (laser) communications system developed at MIT Lincoln Laboratory in collaboration with NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. Called the Orion Artemis II Optical Communications System (O2O), the system is capable of higher-bandwidth data transmissions from space compared to traditional radio-frequency (RF) systems. Read on to learn more.

Light-Powered Soft Lens Brings Human-Like Vision to Robotics

A team of biomedical engineers at Georgia Tech has unveiled a breakthrough in adaptive optics: a bio-mimetic, light-powered soft lens that mimics the human eye’s ability to refocus and adjust to varying light conditions. Read on to learn more.

A Compact Metalens Telescope Capable of Imaging the Moon

Astronomers and amateurs alike know the bigger the telescope, the more powerful the imaging capability. To keep the power but streamline one of the bulkier components, a Penn State-led research team created the first ultrathin, compact metalens telescope capable of imaging faraway objects, including the Moon. Read on to learn more.

New on the Market

See what's new on the market, including Nikon Corporation's newest version of NEXIV software, “AutoMeasure”; the ImageIR® 6300 Z, from InfraTec; PI's new technology platform for electro-optical wafer-level testing; HORIBA's release of EzSpec-SDK, a flexible and robust software development kit; and more.

Quantum Eyes on Energy Loss: Diamond Quantum Imaging for Next-Gen Power Electronics

Improving energy conversion efficiency in power electronics is vital for a sustainable society. Wide-bandgap semiconductors like GaN and SiC power devices offer advantages due to their high-frequency capabilities. However, energy losses in passive components at high frequencies hinder efficiency and miniaturization. Find out what a research team from the School of Engineering, Institute of Science Tokyo, Japan, developed to help.

A Smart Sensor Performs AI Tricks While Capturing Spectral Images

By folding AI algorithms into a camera’s sensor itself, researchers at the Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have now eliminated a data-processing bottleneck that has long plagued the performance of spectral imaging technology. The result is an intelligent sensor capable of identifying chemicals and characterizing materials quickly and efficiently. Read on to learn more.

Using ‘Doughnut’ Beams to See Incredibly Small Objects

In a new study, researchers at CU Boulder have used doughnut-shaped beams of light to take detailed images of objects too tiny to view with traditional microscopes. The new technique could help scientists improve the inner workings of a range of “nanoelectronics,” including the miniature semiconductors in computer chips. Read on to learn more.

First Electronic-Photonic Quantum Chip Created in a Commercial Foundry

In a milestone for scalable quantum technologies, scientists from Boston University, UC Berkeley, and Northwestern University have reported the world’s first electronic–photonic–quantum system on a chip, according to a study published in Nature Electronics. Read on to learn more about it.

Super-Fast Camera Sees Through Dynamic Disorder of Atoms

When materials function inside an operating device, they can behave as if they are dancing. This dynamic disorder is difficult to study because the clusters are not only so small and disordered, but they also fluctuate in time. Researchers report that they have developed a new kind of “camera” that can see the local disorder. Read on to learn more about it.

What Can Dogs Tell Us About How Robots Can Locate Objects?

Whether in the kitchen or on a workshop floor, robot assistants that can fetch items for people could be extremely useful. Now, a team of Brown University researchers has developed...