Manufacturing Bits: Jan. 12


World’s smallest magnet The University of Tokyo has developed what researchers claim is the world's smallest nano-magnet. The nano-size ferrite magnet consists of iron oxide. With the material, researches devised a 7.5nm structure with magnetic properties. [caption id="attachment_24751" align="alignleft" width="300"] Charting the world's smallest magnet (Source: Shin-ichi Ohkoshi)[/ca... » read more

Manufacturing Bits: Nov. 3


World’s fastest phototransistor The University of Wisconsin-Madison has developed what the university claims is the world’s fastest and most responsive flexible silicon phototransistor. Phototransistors are semiconductor light sensors. They are based on a transistor with a transparent cover. They provide better sensitivity than a photodiode. The futuristic phototransistor from the Un... » read more

Manufacturing Bits: Sept. 1


Free-electron laser EUV consortium Extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography is delayed. Chipmakers hope to insert EUV at the 7nm node, but that’s not a given. As before, the big problem is the EUV light source. So far, the source can’t generate enough power to enable the required throughput for EUV in high-volume production. ASML’s current EUV source is operating at 80 Watts, up from 10 ... » read more

Manufacturing Bits: August 5


Double Big Mac chips Using molecular beam epitaxy (MBE), Cornell has devised a method of growing an emerging class of oxide films called Ruddlesden-Poppers. These oxides are layered structures, which consist of 2D-based perovskite slabs interleaved with cations. In the future, these structures could be used in various applications, such as superconductivity, magnetoresistance and ferromagne... » read more

Manufacturing Bits: April 22


Detecting counterfeit goods Rare earths are chemical elements found in the Earth’s crust. They are critical for use in the production of cars, consumer electronics, computers, communications, clean energy, health care, national defense systems and others. Researchers are looking for new ways to integrate rare earths into potential chips and other applications. For example, the Massachuset... » read more

Manufacturing Bits: Feb. 18


Polite cupcake helping robots Cornell and Carnegie Mellon have made a new discovery about robots. If they sound less snippy when they communicate, listeners will respond better. In fact, developers of robots should develop systems that use less confrontational language. In the study, entitled “How a Robot Should Give Advice,” researchers discovered that robots and humans are more lik... » read more

System Bits: Oct. 15


Improving safety with talking vehicles Researchers at USC Viterbi have spent nearly a decade working on algorithms and software to make it possible for cars to “talk” to one another by sending messages through an ad hoc wireless network to alert drivers of impending dangers such as potholes and icy roads to prevent accidents, injuries and the accompanying traffic jams. It’s all about hav... » read more

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