A group of scientists has discovered how to make better wires using a promising material known as Bi-2212. With this discovery comes the possibility of creating magnetic fields in excess of 30 Tesla, three to four times higher than those generated by present accelerator magnet technology. Bi-2212 stands out as the only HTS (high temperaure …
Scientists from DOE’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory and Stanford University have set a world record for energy storage, using a clever “yolk-shell” design to store five times more energy in the sulfur cathode of a rechargeable lithium-ion battery than is possible with today’s commercial technology. The cathode also maintained a high level of performance after …
A new compact high-flux source of energetic neutrons has been built by physicists in Germany and the US. The new laser-based device has the potential to be cheaper and more convenient than the large neutron facilities currently used by physicists and other scientists. The inventors say the source could be housed in university laboratories and …
In recent years, the use of a simple inkjet technology for cell printing has triggered tremendous interest and established the field of biofabrication. A key challenge has been the development of printing processes which are both controllable and less harmful, in order to preserve cell and tissue viability and functions. Here, we report on the …
The cable distribution giants like Time Warner Cable and Comcast are already making a 97 percent margin on their “almost comically profitable” Internet services, according to Craig Moffet, an analyst at the Wall Street firm Bernstein Research. As Levin points out, “If you are making that kind of margin, it’s hard to improve it.” And …
A chance discovery that sea urchins use Nickel particles to harness carbon dioxide from the sea to grow their exoskeleton could be the key to capturing tonnes of CO2 from the atmosphere. Experts at Newcastle University, UK, have discovered that in the presence of a Nickel catalyst, CO2 can be converted rapidly and cheaply into …
Nature Materials – Quantum dots embedded within nanowires represent one of the most promising technologies for applications in quantum photonics. Whereas the top-down fabrication of such structures remains a technological challenge, their bottom-up fabrication through self-assembly is a potentially more powerful strategy. However, present approaches often yield quantum dots with large optical linewidths, making reproducibility …
An MIT team says that it has succeeded in overcoming all the obstacles to improved quantum dots performance at once, while earlier efforts have only been able to tackle them one or a few at a time. Quantum dots — in this case, a specific type called colloidal quantum dots — are tiny particles of …
46 minute podcast interview of Aubrey de Grey on Gluck radio. Aubrey is emphasizing that he wants to eliminate the diseases of aging and making people healthy. He is de-emphasizing the life extension. Meet revolutionary scientist Aubrey de Grey. Aubrey started a foundation called SENS, which is looking to do what seems like the impossible: …
An international team of researchers affiliated with Göttingen University has found a way to store vast amounts of data – up to one petabyte – per square inch. One petabyte is equivalent to 1,000 terabytes or one million gigabytes. Using information stored in the spin of an electron, the scientists succeeded in storing the information …
Traditionally, carbon fibers are made by “carbonizing” a polymer called poly-acrylonitrile, or PAN. First, the polymer is spun into a fiber and then it is heated to very high temperatures. This causes the polymer molecules to to be converted into a homogenous carbon structure, causing the material to become a stiff solid. Some research groups …