https://techxplore.com/rss-feed/hi-tech-news/ en-us The latest news on hi-tech, innovation and new inventions technology, computer news and information Arco Bast studies how neurons communicate. Earlier this year, the Janelia postdoc encountered a more mechanical version of the same problem: The components of his custom microscope could not easily communicate with one another. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-memory-ai-microscope-components-real.html Hi Tech & Innovation Fri, 28 Aug 2026 15:40:04 EDT news707138721 Inside every electronic device, the flow of electricity is controlled by a switch called a transistor. For decades, these switches were made from silicon. More recently, engineers have turned to a material called gallium nitride (GaN), which enables small, efficient devices like smartphone chargers. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-transistor-high-voltage-microchip-scale.html Electronics & Semiconductors Fri, 28 Aug 2026 10:40:03 EDT news707129462 While it may sound like science fiction, earbuds that read brain activity are already on sale. Wearable technology company Neurable claims that its headphones, equipped with electroencephalography (EEG) sensors, can track your fatigue and reduce burnout. At night, NextSense's Smartbuds pick up the electrical signals of your brain to chart your sleep. By day, the same EEG sensors help schedule demanding tasks for the hours when you are sharpest. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-brain-earbuds-prompting-urgent-children.html Consumer & Gadgets Fri, 28 Aug 2026 09:20:01 EDT news707126125 Modern cameras can capture an extraordinary amount of detail, producing images made up of millions of pixels that reveal textures, edges and colors invisible to earlier generations of digital photography. In poor lighting conditions, however, much of that information becomes difficult to recover, with pictures coming out grainy and details getting lost in dark patches of the frame. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-stage-ai-sharpens-uhd-images.html Hi Tech & Innovation Thu, 27 Aug 2026 14:40:04 EDT news707059731 Many AI technologies depend on accurately reconstructing dynamic 3D environments, from self-driving vehicles to immersive virtual reality. However, representing the wide variety of motions found in real-world scenes remains a fundamental challenge because no single dynamic representation can consistently model the diverse motions encountered in practice. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-ai-combines-complementary-motion-experts.html Hi Tech & Innovation Thu, 27 Aug 2026 14:20:03 EDT news707058268 Metals, semiconductors and insulators are fundamental components of modern electronics. However, efforts to improve device performance have largely focused on semiconductor quality, while metal crystallinity has received far less attention. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-nanoscale-transistors-contact-resistance-stepwise.html Electronics & Semiconductors Thu, 27 Aug 2026 14:00:13 EDT news707049961 For major tech companies and aerospace firms, space may be the next frontier for data centers. With public opinion of data centers declining amid rising concerns about power infrastructure, water scarcity and environmental degradation, deploying data centers in orbit is becoming closer to reality. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-ai-space.html Hi Tech & Innovation Thu, 27 Aug 2026 07:00:04 EDT news707026861 A hiker is lost in the forest, and winter weather is setting in. The search needs to be speedy, thorough and efficient. Searchers send out an autonomous robotic drone. But how does it know where it should go? New research from Rohan Ghuge, assistant professor of information, risk and operations management at McCombs School of Business at The University of Texas at Austin, can help. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-path-unmanned-vehicles-fast-conventional.html Hi Tech & Innovation Wed, 26 Aug 2026 14:20:07 EDT news706972741 A research team has developed a flexible near-infrared (NIR) photodetector that delivers photoresponsivity more than five times higher while maintaining its performance under repeated bending. The technology is expected to serve as a core platform for next-generation flexible optoelectronic devices, including wearable health care devices, medical diagnostic sensors and optical communication receivers. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-flexible-sensor-infrared-higher-response.html Electronics & Semiconductors Wed, 26 Aug 2026 12:00:05 EDT news706961041 Combinatorial optimization problems are ubiquitous, underpinning decision-making in a wide range of fields, including logistics, transportation, communication networks, drug discovery and materials science. However, these problems are computationally expensive, especially for conventional computing systems. As a result, researchers are exploring new computing paradigms capable of solving such problems more efficiently. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-amoeba-method-enable-energy-efficient.html Hi Tech & Innovation Wed, 26 Aug 2026 11:40:07 EDT news706960921 Nonuniformities can be a big deal on a manufacturing line. But they can be tough to identify in materials measured on a nanometer scale, as Alex Bordovalos came to appreciate during an internship with a solar cell manufacturer integrated into his master's program at The University of Toledo. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-physics-phd-student-ai-tools.html Hi Tech & Innovation Wed, 26 Aug 2026 07:00:01 EDT news706944302 Merchant ships, coastal infrastructure and maritime facilities are often built with iron and steel, which can corrode over time despite their strength, eventually to the point of failure. With lives and goods on the line, monitoring is essential, but visual inspections can be time-consuming and inexact. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-cheaper-easier-metal-corrosion.html Engineering Tue, 25 Aug 2026 09:00:03 EDT news706867082 Evaporation, the process by which water becomes vapor and disperses into the environment, draws heat from its surroundings. This heat, also known as atmospheric thermal energy, is abundant but diffuse, making it difficult to convert into electricity. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-vertical-microrods-boost-electricity-generation.html Energy & Green Tech Tue, 25 Aug 2026 08:20:02 EDT news706793081 In partnership with A.J. Tuck Company, scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) have developed a new manufacturing approach that could simplify production of critical components for advanced nuclear reactors and other energy and defense applications. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-hybrid-nuclear-bottlenecks.html Energy & Green Tech Tue, 25 Aug 2026 07:00:07 EDT news706851542 Hydrogen gas (H₂) is widely regarded as a promising clean energy source. By weight, it stores nearly three times more energy than gasoline, and its use does not directly release carbon dioxide (CO₂). Yet most H₂ is still produced from fossil fuels through CO₂-intensive processes. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-baker-yeast-green-hydrogen-alcohols.html Energy & Green Tech Tue, 25 Aug 2026 06:58:12 EDT news706859873 Organic solar modules score points for their flexibility, transparency, and a particularly good environmental footprint. Wavelength-dependent transparency, in particular, is a major strength of organic photovoltaics. Researchers at the University of Freiburg and the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE have now succeeded in building 14.5 by 14.5- centimeter organic PV modules with an average transparency of 43.2% and an efficiency of up to 9.26%. To achieve this, they used a combination of sputtering and slot-die coating—both processes that are industrially proven and highly scalable to large module areas. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-scalable-semitransparent-pv-modules-windows.html Energy & Green Tech Mon, 24 Aug 2026 16:00:05 EDT news706803601 Semiconductor devices such as LEDs and transistors generally consist of two halves: an n-type, which carries negative charge via electrons, and a p-type, which moves positive charge carriers called holes that are essentially electron voids. Both halves rely on contacts that allow electric current to flow in and out with minimal energy loss. These connections, known as ohmic contacts, have been an efficiency bottleneck in thin p-type GaN semiconductors for decades because of their high resistance. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-resistance-contacts-pave-gallium-nitride.html Electronics & Semiconductors Mon, 24 Aug 2026 15:00:01 EDT news706802341 "Pics or it didn't happen" was something people used to say online when they wanted to verify a claim. Technology has changed this. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-photos-real-ai-fake-image.html Hi Tech & Innovation Mon, 24 Aug 2026 10:40:06 EDT news706786022 Despite significant advances in technology, knowing the atomic arrangement of metals in their microstructure—which defines their strength, deformability and other properties—is still tricky. In a new study, Yale researchers show that a mold about half the size of a fingernail could solve that problem and lead to the development of stronger, higher-performing materials for airplanes and other uses. Their results are published in Nature Communications. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-metals-small-square-billions-holes.html Engineering Mon, 24 Aug 2026 10:20:05 EDT news706784866 A new purple cooling fabric developed by Chinese and Australian researchers could help people stay cooler during scorching summer days without having to resort to wearing white. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-purple-fabric-sunlight-cooling-simulated.html Engineering Mon, 24 Aug 2026 10:00:07 EDT news706783202 For more than two decades, silicon carbide (SiC) has been promoted as the key to developing extreme-environment electronics. Yet despite its promise, the field has remained stuck at the stage of basic research, failing to result in the development of practical devices. Now, a team of researchers at Kyoto University has set out to change that. "We believe the lack of development is because the research community has been trying to apply silicon-era thinking to a fundamentally different material," says Mitsuaki Kaneko first author of a new study published in APL Electronic Devices. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-silicon-carbide-transistor-600c.html Electronics & Semiconductors Mon, 24 Aug 2026 08:20:03 EDT news706777211 Lithium-ion batteries (LiBs) power electric vehicles and most existing electronics, ranging from laptops to smartphones, tablets, smart appliances and wearable devices. These batteries charge and discharge by moving lithium ions between two electrodes, known as the anode and cathode. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-cartilage-lithium-battery-coating-cushions.html Energy & Green Tech Sat, 22 Aug 2026 11:40:06 EDT news706527054 When we watch a metal part being built by laser-based metal additive manufacturing (AM), we're only seeing part of the story. In one kind of metal AM process, a high-powered laser sweeps across a bed of metal powder, creating a tiny pool of molten material—often a few human hairs wide. In a fraction of a second, the metal powder beneath the moving laser spot heats up, melts, flows and solidifies into continuous metal. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-beneath-surface-metal-additive.html Engineering Fri, 21 Aug 2026 16:20:05 EDT news706528867 Researchers at the Advanced Science Research Center at the CUNY Graduate Center (CUNY ASRC) and Honeywell Aerospace have developed a new way to reduce the transfer of radiant heat between closely spaced bodies by using thin, nonmetallic coatings. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-nonmetallic-metasurfaces-block-radiant.html Engineering Fri, 21 Aug 2026 12:20:06 EDT news706531922 As extreme weather intensifies, Reese Greenlee is testing the limits of 3D-printed concrete to create stronger, more accessible storm shelters for vulnerable communities. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-3d-concrete-stronger-storm-vulnerable.html Energy & Green Tech Thu, 20 Aug 2026 18:40:05 EDT news706454391 An electronic skin with a sensing system that can detect pressure and temperature could someday help amputees gain feeling in their prosthetics. The work, led by Washington State University researchers and published in the journal Cell Reports Physical Science, can sense at a scale 10 times finer than current commercial glove sensors. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-electronic-skin-temperature-pressure-personalized.html Engineering Thu, 20 Aug 2026 16:00:03 EDT news706459621 Researchers at the University of Utah's John and Marcia Price College of Engineering, in collaboration with researchers from The University of Texas at Austin, have demonstrated a new method of 3D printing that avoids the leaky seams that come with the layer-by-layer process. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-holographic-laser-3d-voids-shot.html Engineering Thu, 20 Aug 2026 12:40:01 EDT news706448341 As transistors inside microchips continue to shrink, the metal wiring that connects them is becoming a growing obstacle to faster, more energy-efficient chips. Narrower wires have greater electrical resistance, while smaller gaps between them increase interference between adjacent signals. These effects impede data transfer and raise energy consumption—an issue known as an interconnect bottleneck, which is especially acute in data-hungry artificial intelligence processors. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-nanometers-carbon-layers-future-chip.html Electronics & Semiconductors Thu, 20 Aug 2026 11:40:09 EDT news706444021 Anyone who's ever wrestled with a claw machine at an arcade can appreciate the difficulty of pulling and pushing joysticks in just the right way to get a mechanical arm to scoop up that one special toy. Coordinating the joysticks and connecting their movement to the claw's motion is a type of "mental mapping" that is not immediately intuitive. (And it's what arcade owners depend on to bring players back again and again.) https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-miniature-digger-arm-significantly-slash.html Engineering Thu, 20 Aug 2026 10:20:11 EDT news706439163 MIT researchers have overcome a major challenge holding back the real-world deployment of microwave quantum technologies for advanced signal processing and secure communications. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-08-hybrid-magnetic-device-enables-quantum.html Electronics & Semiconductors Wed, 19 Aug 2026 13:22:50 EDT news706364544