Research Bits: October 31


Skinlike sensor for robots University of British Columbia engineers with help from researchers from Frontier Robotics, Honda research institute, created a soft sensor that approximates skin. Mostly made of silicone rubber, the sensor uses weak electric fields to sense objects, even at a distance, and can detect forces into and along its surface. The sensor could provide touch sensitivity and d... » read more

Research Bits: June 27


Tunable soliton microcomb Researchers from the University of Rochester and CalTech say they have created the first microwave-rate soliton microcomb that can control the repetition rate at a high speed. Microcombs are frequency combs that can fit on a microchip, which will be useful in photonics. Solitons are solitary waves that keep their shape as they move at a constant speed. The team put an... » read more

Research Bits: Nov. 1


Atomic-level rare earth manipulation Scientists from Ohio University, Argonne National Laboratory, and the University of Illinois at Chicago have rotated a single, charged rare earth molecule on a metal surface without changing the charge. The team used scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) system to rotate a positively charged Europium base molecule with negatively charged counterions as a p... » read more