Important Innovations

Breakthrough New Material from National University of Singapore Next Generation of Soft, Conductive Robots An innovative, new metallic material that bends, folds and stretches has just been unveiled by inventors at the National University of Singapore.  Experts say this material is so innovative it could lead to a next generation of soft conductive robots. Singapore Innovation The team at NUS developed a new process called "graphene oxide-enabled templating synthesis".  They take paper, soak it in graphene oxide, dip it in metallic ions and burn it twice.  The result is a thin metal layer that can stretch, bend and fold.  It can withstand high temperatures, remain electrically conductive and function as an antenna for wireless devices. De-icing Robots The inventors say the new metal's properties could allow robots made with a backbone of the material to operate in hazardous conditions and de-ice themselves if necessary.  For a free listen ...

New Semiconductor with Organic & Inorganic Materials Enables Bendability Source:  ANU -  Innovators Asso. Prof. Larry Lu and PhD researcher Ankur Sharma Bendable Phones, Displays, Electronics Australian National University engineers have invented a breakthrough semiconductor.  The innovation is composed of organic and inorganic material.  It converts electricity into light very efficiently.  And it's so thin and flexible it can help to make cellphones and display screens bendable. Biodegradable Electronics Potentially Cutting E-Waste  This breakthrough could also enable a new generation of electronic devices made from organic material that's biodegradable or easily recycled.  This could greatly reduce E-Waste which is a huge and growing threat to the global environment. Scientific Specifics The organic component of the semiconductor is made of hydrogen and oxygen and has the thickness of just 1 atom.  The inorganic component...

Bending Diamonds World's Strongest Material Now Bendable Researchers have been able to bend and stretch the strongest of all natural materials, diamonds.  The international team led by Dao Ming of MIT showed that narrow diamond needles, similar in shape to rubber tips on toothbrushes, could flex and stretch by as much as 9% without breaking.  These narrow diamond needles are just a few 100 nanometers across.  The team was able to bend them like rubber and let them snap back to their original shape. That's an important first. Significance and Importance The importance of this breakthrough is the potential multi-uses.  The door is now open to a variety of diamond based devices for future electronics, drug delivery directly into cells, data storage where lasers could encode data into diamonds.  Also MRI imaging far more accurate, sensing, optoelectroncs and biocompatible in vivo imaging.  That's just to name a few. Unique Breakthrough and Approach T...