Research Bits: Nov. 29


Earth-bound, more accurate GPS A new idea for terrestrial-based global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) that uses very accurate national atomic clocks on the ground may help self-driving cars in urban environments get where they are going. Researchers from Delft University of Technology (TU Delft), Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, and VSL have prototyped a hybrid optical–wireless mobile netw... » read more

Designing For Thermal


Heat has emerged as a major concern for semiconductors in every form factor, from digital watches to data centers, and it is becoming more of a problem at advanced nodes and in advanced packages where that heat is especially difficult to dissipate. Temperatures at the base of finFETs and GAA FETs can differ from those at the top of the transistor structures. They also can vary depending on h... » read more

Manufacturing Bits: Dec. 13


Phonon lasers A European consortium recently kicked off a new project that will develop a practical phonon laser. The European consortium, called PHENOMEN, will be coordinated by the Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICN2). Most chips perform functions using an electrical charge (electrons) or by light (photons). In comparison, a phonon “is a quantum of energy or a q... » read more