Tag Archives: NanoWires

New process for nanotube semiconductors could be graphene’s ticket to primetime (video)

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New patented nanotube semiconductors could be graphene's ticket to primetime

In many ways, graphene is one of technology's sickest jokes. The tantalizing promise of cheap to produce, efficient to run materials, that could turn the next page in gadget history has always remained frustratingly out of reach. Now, a new process for creating semiconductors grown on graphene could see the super material commercialized in the next five years. Developed at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, the patented process "bombs" graphene with gallium, which forms droplets, and naturally arranges itself to match graphene's famous hexagonal pattern. Then, arsenic is added to the mix, which enters the droplets and crystallizes at the bottom, creating a stalk. After a few minutes of this process the droplets are raised by the desired height. The new process also does away with the need for a (relatively) thick substrate to grow the nanowire on, making it cheaper, more flexible and transparent. The inventors state that this could be used in flexible and efficient solar cells and light emitting diodes. We say forward the revolution.

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New process for nanotube semiconductors could be graphene's ticket to primetime (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 30 Sep 2012 12:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Harvard scientists grow human cells onto nanowire scaffold to form ‘cyborg’ skin

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DNP Artificial skin

Growing human tissue is old hat, but being able to measure activity inside flesh is harder -- any electrical probing tends to damage the cells. But a new breakthrough from Harvard researchers has produced the first "cyborg" tissue, created by embedding functional, biocompatible nanowires into lab-grown flesh. In a process similar to making microchips, the wires and a surrounding organic mesh are etched onto a substrate, which is then dissolved, leaving a flexible mesh. Groups of those meshes are formed into a 3D shape, then seeded with cell cultures, which grow to fill in the lattice to create the final system. Scientists were able to detect signals from heart and nerve cell electro-flesh made this way, allowing them to measure changes in response to certain drugs. In the near-term, that could allow pharmaceutical researchers to better study drug interaction, and one day such tissue might be implanted in a live person, allowing treatment or diagnosis. So, would that make you a cyborg or just bionic? We'll let others sort that one out.

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Harvard scientists grow human cells onto nanowire scaffold to form 'cyborg' skin originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 28 Aug 2012 20:12:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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NCSU creates stretchable conductors from silver nanowires, lets gadgets go the extra inch

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NCSU creates stretchable conudctors from silver nanowires, lets gadgets go the extra inchAs often as we've seen flexible electronics, there haven't been many examples that could stretch -- a definite problem for wearables as well as any gadget that could afford to take a pull or squeeze. North Carolina State University's Yong Zhu and Feng Xu may have covered this gap through a form of silver nanowire conductor that keeps the energy flowing, even if the wire is stretched as much as 50 percent beyond its original length. By coating the nanowires with a polymer that traps the silver when solid, the researchers create an elastic material that can crumple and let the nanowire take the strain without interruption. Although the stretchy conductor's nature as a research project could put any practical use years into the future, Zhu notes that it can take loads of abuse, making it a perfect fit for rugged mobile devices. It should also allow for robots with a gentler touch and a more natural look... although we'll admit we're skittish about the creepy androids likely to follow.

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NCSU creates stretchable conductors from silver nanowires, lets gadgets go the extra inch originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 16 Jul 2012 17:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Researchers take nanowire transistors vertical, double up on density

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3D silicon is all the rage, and now nanowire transistors have further potential to keep Moore's Law on life support. Researchers at A*STAR have found a way to double the number of transistors on a chip by placing the atomic-scale wires vertically, rather than in the run-of-the-mill planar mode, creating two "wrap-around gates" that put a pair of transistors on a single nanowire. In the future, the tech could be merged with tunnel field effect transistors -- which use dissimilar semiconductor materials -- to create a markedly denser design. That combo would also burn a miniscule percentage of the power required conventionally, according to the scientists, making it useful for low-powered processors, logic boards and non-volatile memory, for starters. So, a certain Intel founder might keep being right after all, at least for a few years more.

Researchers take nanowire transistors vertical, double up on density originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 21 Jun 2012 08:49:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Copper-nickel nanowires from Duke University could make ubiquitous printable circuits

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Nanowires

Nanowires, although they're building steam, still have to overcome the not-so-small problem of cost -- they often have to use indium tin oxide that's not just expensive, but fragile. Duke University has developed copper-nanowire films that could remedy this in style. The choice of material is both a hundred times less expensive to make than indium and is much more durable. It's flexible, too: if layered on as a coating, the nanowires would make for considerably more viable wearable electronics that won't snap under heavy stress. The catch, as you might suspect, stems from the copper itself, which doesn't conduct as much electricity as indium. The nickel will keep your copper electronics from oxidizing faster than the Statue of Liberty, however. Any practical use could be years away, but further successes from Duke could quickly see printable electronics hit the mainstream power and power our dreams of flexible displays.

Copper-nickel nanowires from Duke University could make ubiquitous printable circuits originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 31 May 2012 04:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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