Cover Story
Nanoelectromechanical systems (NEMS) are a class of devices
integrating electrical and mechanical functionality on the
nanoscale. NEMS form the logical next miniaturization step from
so-called microelectromechanical systems, or MEMS devices.
NEMS typically integrate transistor-like nanoelectronics with
mechanical actuators, pumps, or motors, and may thereby form
physical, biological, and chemical sensors. The name derives from
typical device dimensions in the nanometer range, leading to low
mass, high mechanical resonance frequencies, potentially large
quantum mechanical effects such as zero point motion, and a
high surface-to-volume ratio useful for surface-based sensing
mechanisms. Uses include accelerometers, or detectors of
chemical substances in the air.
Spintronics
Spintronics is the study of the intrinsic spin of the electron and its
associated magnetic moment, in addition to its fundamental
electronic charge, in solid-state devices.
Spintronics differs from the older magnetoelectronics, in that
spins are manipulated by both magnetic and electrical fields.
Thermal copper pillar bump
The thermal copper pillar bump, also known as the "thermal
bump", is a thermoelectric device made from thin-film
thermoelectric material embedded in flip chip interconnects (in
particular copper pillar solder bumps) for use in electronics and
optoelectronic packaging, including: flip chip packaging of CPU
and GPU integrated circuits (chips), laser diodes, and
semiconductor optical amplifiers (SOA).
Thermal bumps act as solid-state heat pumps and add thermal
management functionality locally on the surface of a chip or to
another electrical component.
Towards New Avenues in Minimally-Invasive
Intracutaneous Electrochemical
The subject highlights the development of a novel class of
minimally-invasive electrochemical biosensors that facilitate the
quantification of relevant metabolomic, ionic, and neurochemical
information residing in the viable epidermis in a continuous, realtime fashion. Fabricated through manufacturing processes that
are scalable, cost-effective, and highly precise, these novel
biosensing modalities seek to bridge the gap between analyticalgrade instrumentation typically found in the hospital laboratory
and user requirements for unobtrusive, low-profile, skin-applied
devices able to deliver timely, actionable information using
existing wirelessly-enabled wearable and mobile platforms.
Home Entertainment & Personal Computing Opens New
Avenues for Active Optical Cables
The active optical cable market has grown at a rapid pace than
what it was in 2007. Cloud and internet data centers are
responsible for fueling the growth.
Application of these cables were then prominent in esoteric space
of HPC data centers. Voracious appetite for internet and
emergence of cloud data centers have been responsible for the
surge in the active cable industry. What really drives the adoption
of the active optical cable market is the demand for much faster
and low latency-resistant data centers. The need is growing
rapidly not only within internet’s huge data centers but also cloud
deployments.
Electric Vehicle Charging Opens New Avenues for
Semiconductors
The bill of semiconductors used in charging stations is vast,
ranging from the power semiconductors that channel electricity
between the charger and the vehicle, to the communication chips
linking the station to the smart grid. The charging infrastructure
for electric vehicles is expanding, buffered by large investments
from the automotive industry, government initiatives, and
international calls to reduce carbon emissions. As a result, the
market for semiconductors used in these charging stations is
expected to grow rapidly over the next few years.
Silk Fibroin for Flexible Electronic Devices
Flexible electronic devices are necessary for applications involving
unconventional interfaces, such as soft and curved biological
systems, in which traditional silicon-based electronics would
confront a mechanical mismatch. Biological polymers offer new
opportunities for flexible electronic devices by virtue of their
biocompatibility, environmental benignity, and sustainability, as
well as low cost. As an intriguing and abundant biomaterial, silk
offers exquisite mechanical, optical, and electrical properties that
are advantageous toward the development of next-generation
biocompatible electronic devices.
Transparent Smartphones
The chip, known as transparent resistive random access memory,
is similar to existing chips known as metal-oxide semiconductor
memory, which we use in new electronics. The difference is that
TRRAM is completely clear and transparent. It is a new milestone
of transparent electronic systems. By integrating TRRAM with
other transparent electronic components, we can create a total
see-through embedded electronic systems. The technology could
enable the windows or mirrors in your home to be used as
computer monitors and television screens.
Hollow Flashlight
Ann Makosinski invented a battery-free flashlight. A free energy
device that is powered by the heat in your hand. Ann recalled
reading how the human body had enough energy to power a 100-
ELE Times | 38 | November, 2016