More electricity from the sun

A coating of solar cells with special organic molecules could pave the way for a new generation of solar panels. This coating can increase the efficiency of monolithic tandem cells made of silicon and perovskite while lowering their cost -- because they are produced from industrial, microstructured, standard silicon wafers.

Save your data on printable magnetic devices? New laser technique's twist might make this reality

A team has been developing a new type of laser-induced forward transfer (LIFT) for laser printing using an optical vortex, which has been dubbed OV-LIFT. The team succeeded in printing crystals with helix-like twisted structures, which could hold promise in creating printable magnetic devices for high-density data storage.

'Kink state' control may provide pathway to quantum electronics

The key to developing quantum electronics may have a few kinks. According to researchers, that's not a bad thing when it comes to the precise control needed to fabricate and operate such devices, including advanced sensors and lasers. The researchers fabricated a switch to turn on and off the presence of kink states, which are electrical conduction pathways at the edge of semiconducting materials.

Foam fluidics showcase lab's creative approach to circuit design

Engineers have shown that something as simple as the flow of air through open-cell foam can be used to perform digital computation, analog sensing and combined digital-analog control in soft textile-based wearable systems.

Waste Styrofoam can now be converted into polymers for electronics

A new study describes a chemical reaction that can convert Styrofoam into a high-value conducting polymer known as PEDOT:PSS. Researchers also noted that the upgraded plastic waste can be successfully incorporated into functional electronic devices, including silicon-based hybrid solar cells and organic electrochemical transistors.

Making rechargeable batteries more sustainable with fully recyclable components

Rechargeable solid-state lithium batteries are an emerging technology that could someday power cell phones and laptops for days with a single charge. Offering significantly enhanced energy density, they are a safer alternative to the flammable lithium-ion batteries currently used in consumer electronics -- but they are not environmentally friendly. Current recycling methods focus on the limited recovery of metals contained within the cathodes, while everything else goes to waste.

Biodegradable electronics may advance with ability to control dissolve rate

Biodegradable electronics allow for medical devices -- such as drug delivery systems, pacemakers or neural implants -- to safely degrade into materials that are absorbed by the body after they are no longer needed. But if the water-soluble devices degrade too quickly, they cannot accomplish their purpose. Now, researchers have developed the ability to control the dissolve rate of these biodegradable electronics by experimenting with dissolvable elements, like inorganic fillers and polymers, that encapsulate the device.

New technique pinpoints nanoscale 'hot spots' in electronics to improve their longevity

Researchers engineered a new technique to identify at the nanoscale level what components are overheating in electronics and causing their performance to fail.

Completely stretchy lithium-ion battery for flexible electronics

When you think of a battery, you probably don't think stretchy. But batteries will need this shape-shifting quality to be incorporated into flexible electronics, which are gaining traction for wearable health monitors. Now, researchers report a lithium-ion battery with entirely stretchable components, including an electrolyte layer that can expand by 5000%, and it retains its charge storage capacity after nearly 70 charge/discharge cycles.

Neutrons give a hot new way to measure the temperature of electronic components

A new study presents a method to record the temperature of materials with exceptional temporal resolution, using a Doppler broadening effect in neutron resonance absorption. Using a high-powered laser to generate pulses of neutrons 100 nanoseconds long, a test on samples of silver and tantalum successfully returned characteristic information for both materials and their temperatures.

Researchers show promising material for solar energy gets its curious boost from entropy

Researchers discovered a microscopic mechanism that solves in part the outstanding performance achieved by a new class of organic semiconductors known as non-fullerene acceptors (NFAs).

Key electronic device developed for the massive arrival of 6G networks

Researchers were involved in the development of a switch, an essential device in telecommunications, capable of operating at very high frequency with lower power consumption than conventional technologies. The technology has applications in the new 6G mass communication systems and is more sustainable in terms of energy consumption than current devices.

A 2D device for quantum cooling

Engineers have created a device that can efficiently convert heat into electrical voltage at temperatures lower than that of outer space. The innovation could help overcome a significant obstacle to the advancement of quantum computing technologies, which require extremely low temperatures to function optimally.

Scientists discover way to 'grow' sub-nanometer sized transistors

A research team has implemented a novel method to achieve epitaxial growth of 1D metallic materials with a width of less than 1 nm. The group applied this process to develop a new structure for 2D semiconductor logic circuits. Notably, they used the 1D metals as a gate electrode of the ultra-miniaturized transistor.

Researchers unlock 'materials genome', opening possibilities for next-generation design

A new microscopy method has allowed researchers to detect tiny changes in the atomic-level architecture of crystalline materials -- like advanced steels for ship hulls and custom silicon for electronics. The technique could advance our ability to understand the fundamental origins of materials properties and behavior.

Implantable microphone could lead to fully internal cochlear implants

Researchers developed a prototype of an implantable microphone for a cochlear implant. Their device, which senses the movement of the ear drum in the inner ear, performed as well as commercial hearing aids and could someday enable a fully internalized cochlear implant.

Self-assembling, highly conductive sensors could improve wearable devices

To advance soft robotics, skin-integrated electronics and biomedical devices, researchers have developed a 3D-printed material that is soft and stretchable -- traits needed for matching the properties of tissues and organs -- and that self-assembles. Their approach employs a process that eliminates many drawbacks of previous fabrication methods, such as less conductivity or device failure, the team said.