ECN Magazine News

Penn engineers’ nanoantennas improve infrared sensing

mbarnes — Tue, 21 May 2013 15:10:52 +0000

A team of University of Pennsylvania engineers has used a pattern of nanoantennas to develop a new way of turning infrared light into mechanical action, opening the door to more sensitive infrared cameras and more compact chemical-analysis techniques.

Researchers perform fastest measurements ever made of ion channel proteins

mbarnes — Tue, 21 May 2013 15:00:18 +0000

The miniaturization of electronics continues to create unprecedented capabilities in computer and communications applications, enabling handheld wireless devices with tremendous computing performance operating on battery power. This same miniaturization of electronic systems is also creating new opportunities in biotechnology and biophysics.

Opening doors to foldable electronics with inkjet-printed graphene

mbarnes — Tue, 21 May 2013 14:45:35 +0000

McCormick researchers develop method to print highly conductive, bendable layers of graphene.

Imagine a bendable tablet computer or an electronic newspaper that could fold to fit in a pocket.

Iron-platinum alloys could be new-generation hard drives

mbarnes — Tue, 21 May 2013 14:26:25 +0000

Meeting the demand for more data storage in smaller volumes means using materials made up of ever-smaller magnets, or nanomagnets. One promising material for a potential new generation of recording media is an alloy of iron and platinum with an ordered crystal structure.

NASA builds unusual testbed for analyzing X-ray navigation technologies

mbarnes — Tue, 21 May 2013 14:20:49 +0000

Pulsars have a number of unusual qualities.

Softbank to revise or cancel Hokkaido megasolar power plant

mbarnes — Tue, 21 May 2013 14:04:05 +0000

SAPPORO, May 21 (Kyodo) — Softbank Corp. may revise or cancel its plan to build three megasolar power plants in Hokkaido as Hokkaido Electric Power Co. has rejected its electricity sales application, industry sources said Tuesday.

The local utility in April vowed to limit its electricity purchases from solar power plants to 400,000 kilowatts, noting its heavy purchases from solar power plants where output depends on weather conditions could destabilize electricity supply.

Bacteria use hydrogen, carbon dioxide to produce electricity

mbarnes — Mon, 20 May 2013 15:56:27 +0000

Researchers have engineered a strain of electricity-producing bacteria that can grow using hydrogen gas as its sole electron donor and carbon dioxide as its sole source of carbon. Researchers at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst report their findings at the 113th General Meeting of the American Society for Microbiology.

"This represents the first result of current production solely on hydrogen," says Amit Kumar, a researcher on the study who, along with his co-authors are part of the Lovley Lab Group at the university.

Computational tool translates complex data into simplified 2-dimensional images

mbarnes — Mon, 20 May 2013 15:52:28 +0000

Kinks and curves at the nanoscale

mbarnes — Mon, 20 May 2013 15:46:36 +0000

Disney researchers develop fast, economical method for high-definition video compositing

mbarnes — Mon, 20 May 2013 15:35:15 +0000

DuctTake system combines multiple takes into single video

ZURICH - Video compositing to create special effects, replace backgrounds or combine multiple takes of an actor's performance is an integral, but highly labor-intensive, part of modern film making. Researchers at Disney Research, Zürich, however, have found an innovative way to create these composite videos that is simple, fast, and easy to use.