Research Bits: Nov. 26


Hydrogel NAND gate Researchers from McMaster University and the University of Pittsburgh created a functionally complete NAND gate in a soft material using only beams of visible light. The NAND logic operation was completed by shining three self-trapped light beams into a photoresponsive merocyanine-functionalized hydrogel that is capable of performing compute tasks in the material itself w... » read more

Power/Performance Bits: Aug. 20


Six-angstrom waveguide Engineers at the University of California San Diego, City University of New York, and Johns Hopkins University created the thinnest optical waveguide yet. At only three atoms thick, the team says the waveguide serves as a proof of concept for scaling down optical devices. The waveguide consists of a tungsten disulfide monolayer (made up of one layer of tungsten atoms ... » read more