Engineers have developed a way to build soft robots that are compact, portable and multifunctional. The advance was made possible by creating soft, tubular actuators whose movements are electrically controlled, making them easy to integrate with small electronic components. As a proof of concept, engineers used the new actuators to build an untethered, battery-powered, walking soft robot and a soft gripper.
Read moreA group of physicists have used Monte Carlo modelling to produce a consistent theoretical interpretation of accurate experimental measurements of ion beams in liquid water, which is the most relevant substance for simulating interactions with human tissue.
Read moreResearchers have designed and tested a new electrolyte composition that could greatly accelerate the adoption of the next generation of lithium-ion batteries.
Read moreResearchers have constructed a framework for starting and raising a fusion plasma to temperatures rivaling the sun in hundreds of milliseconds.
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The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2019 is being awarded to John B. Goodenough, M. Stanley Whittingham, and Akira Yoshino "for the development of lithium-ion batteries."
Electrical and computer engineering researchers have developed a new kind of optical lens that is much thinner and lighter than conventional camera lenses that also works with night imaging, a future boon for smartphones that could flatten those unsightly 'camera bumps' as well as for drones and night vision cameras for soldiers.
Read moreResearchers analysed the contamination levels in household items from a home suspected to have previously been used for cooking methamphetamine, to determine whether surface wipe samples can adequately establish contamination and define the health risks. Results demonstrate methamphetamine has continued to mobilise after manufacture for a period exceeding five years when the property was under new ownership.
Read moreThe swarming behavior of about 100 million molecular machines can be controlled by applying simple mechanical stimuli such as extension and contraction. This method could lead to the development of new swarming molecular machines and small energy-saving devices.
Read moreToday's computer processors are increasingly pushed to their limits due to their physical properties. Novel materials could be the solution. Physicists have investigated if and how these materials might be developed. They have created, tested and filed a patent for a concept that utilizes the latest findings from the field of spintronics.
Read moreScientists have synthesized magnetically-doped quantum dots that capture the kinetic energy of electrons created by ultraviolet light before it's wasted as heat.
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