Popular Science reporter Andrew Paul writes that MIT researchers have developed a new ultra-thin solar cell that is one-hundredth the weight of conventional panels and could transform almost any surface into a power generator. The new material could potentially generate, “18 times more power-per-kilogram compared to traditional solar technology,” writes Paul. “Not only that, but its production methods show promising potential for scalability and major manufacturing.”
Physics World has named two research advances by MIT researchers to its list of the Top 10 Breakthroughs of the Year. Prof. Gang Chen and his colleagues were selected for their work “showing that cubic boron arsenide is one of the best semiconductors known to science.” Prof. Asegun Henry, grad student Alina LaPotin and their colleagues were nominated for “constructing a thermophotovoltaic (TPV) cell with an efficiency of more than 40%.”
MIT researchers have developed “a programmable wireless device that can control light orders of magnitude more quickly than commercial devices,” reports Susannah Sudborough for Boston.com. “The device, which is called a spatial light modulator (SLM), will have impactful practical uses beyond creating holograms,” writes Sudborough.
MIT scientists have developed a miniature antenna that could one day be used to help safely transmit data from within living cells “by resonating with acoustic rather than electromagnetic waves,” reports Andrew Chapman for Scientific American. “A functioning antenna could help scientists power, and communicate with, tiny roving sensors within the cell,” writes Chapman, “helping them better understand these building blocks and perhaps leading to new medical treatments.”
Alexander Sludds, a graduate student in MIT’s Research Lab for Electronics, joins Megan Cantwell on the Science magazine podcast to discuss his team’s new method for processing data on edge devices, which are devices that connect two networks together.
Prof. Fadel Adib speaks with CBC Radio about his lab’s work developing a wireless, battery-free underwater camera that runs on sound waves. "We want to be able to use them to monitor, for example, underwater currents, because these are highly related to what impacts the climate," says Adib. "Or even underwater corals, seeing how they are being impacted by climate change and how potentially intervention to mitigate climate change is helping them recover."
Research scientist Barmak Heshmat, CEO and founder of MIT spinout Brelyon, speaks with TechCrunch reporter Haje Jan Kamps about the company’s work in immersive digital monitors. “Our logic is pretty simple: If we can give you even half of the immersion of headsets with a device that doesn’t have to sit on your face and works with all existing content, then that would be a much more compelling progression of your computer experience and thus a better bridge to the emerging metaverse,” says Heshmat.
Researchers from MIT’s Research Laboratory for Electronics have developed a portable desalinator that can turn seawater into safe drinking water, reports Ian Mount for Fortune. Research scientist Jongyoon Han and graduate student Bruce Crawford have created Nona Technologies to commercialize the product, writes Mount.
MIT researchers have “developed a free-floating desalination unit consisting of a multilayer evaporator that recycles the heat generated when the water vapor condenses, boosting its overall efficiency,” reports Nell Lewis for CNN. “Researchers suggested it could be configured as a floating panel on the sea, delivering freshwater through pipes to the shore, or it could be designed to serve a single household, using it atop a tank of seawater,” writes Lewis.
MIT researchers have developed a new hardware that offers faster computation for artificial intelligence with less energy, reports Kyle Wiggers for TechCrunch. “The researchers’ processor uses ‘protonic programmable resistors’ arranged in an array to ‘learn’ skills” explains Wiggers.
NBC News reporter Kimmy Yam notes that months after having all charges he faced under the “China Initiative” dismissed, Prof. Gang Chen and his colleagues have discovered a new material that can perform better than silicon. "The discovery could have far-reaching effects, as silicon is currently among the most widely used semiconductors, making up the foundation of modern technology from computer chips to smartphones," writes Yam.
Prof. Jörn Dunkel and his colleagues have proposed the use of nematic liquid crystals as the potential future basic building blocks for computers, reports Karmela Padavic-Callaghan for New Scientist. According to Dunkel, “because the liquid crystal computer wouldn’t use only 0s and 1s, some of its computations would be analogous to how quantum computers work, as they can simultaneously process more information than conventional computers,” writes Padavic-Callaghan.
Researchers at MIT believe they have found a new semiconductor that's better than silicon, which could open the doors to potentially faster and smaller computer chips in the future, reports Rachel Cheung for Vice. “Cubic boron arsenide has significantly higher mobility to both electronics and their positively charged counterparts than silicon, the ubiquitous semiconductor used in electronics and computers,” explains Cheung.
Researchers at MIT and other institutions proved “that cubic boron arsenide performs better than silicon at conducting heat and electricity,” reports Nicholas Gordon for Fortune. “The new material may help designers overcome the natural limits of current models to make better, faster, and smaller chips,” writes Gordon.
Prof. Yoel Fink speaks with Washington Post reporter Pranshu Verma about the growing field of smart textiles and his work creating fabrics embedded with computational power. Fink and his colleagues “have created fibers with hundreds of silicon microchips to transmit digital signals — essential if clothes are to automatically track things like heart rate or foot swelling. These fibers are small enough to pass through a needle that can be sown into fabric and washed at least 10 times.”