Washing
away impurities with water is the key to growing
densely-packed, pure carbon nanotubes. The
nanotube forests can be grown in a variety
of shapes and patterns, opening the way to
widespread use of the much-hyped carbon molecules
in microscopic structures and bulk materials. Full
story
Solar
cell doubles as battery
A solar cell that stores the electricity it converts
from sunlight promises to power all manner of portable
devices. The cell has a sandwich structure that
could be made flexible and less than a millimeter
thick. The cell is good at harvesting weak light,
making it useful on rainy days and indoors.
Conversational
engagement tracked
It is relatively easy for humans to sense how engaged
a person is in a conversation. Giving computers
this ability could improve remote communications
and help computers find appropriate times to interrupt.
An experimental system begins by tracking your emotions.
Pure
silicon laser debuts
Silicon is the lifeblood of electronics, but it
does a poor job of generating light. Given that
sensors and communications devices tend to use light,
researchers are looking for ways to make light sources
from silicon chips. A prototype silicon laser shows
that it is possible. The key is paying attention
to the way silicon scatters light.
