Silicon (Si) photonics is a disruptive technology on the fast track to revolutionise integrated photonics. As an indispensable branch thereof, heterogeneous Si integration, has evolved from a science project 15 years ago to a growing business and compelling research field today. We review recent progress in III-V compound
semiconductors heterogeneously integrated on Si substrates including the tremendous commercial success in optical transceivers and representative new innovations for many existing and emerging applications.
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RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C. The U.S. Army awarded grants to seven academic teams across scientific disciplines to advance basic science research and enable the development of technologies critical to national defense.
The teams will research topics in human agent-teaming, artificial intelligence, novel materials and quantum physics, among others.
The awards are a part of the Department of Defense Multidisciplinary University Research Initiative, known as MURI. Army Research Office, an element of the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command, known as DEVCOM, Army Research Laboratory, represents the Army s portion of the MURI program.
The awards are typically funded at $1.25 million per year for three years with an option for two additional years and supports research teams whose efforts intersect more than one traditional scientific and engineering discipline.
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VIDEO: Stretch testing of an artificial tendon material developed by UCLA materials scientists. The width of the test material is about 2 mm. view more
Credit: Mutian Hua, Shuwang Wu, and Ximin He/UCLA
UCLA materials scientists and their colleagues have developed a new method to make synthetic biomaterials that mimic the internal structure, stretchiness, strength and durability of tendons and other biological tissues.
The researchers developed a two-pronged process to enhance the strength of existing hydrogels that could be used to create artificial tendons, ligaments, cartilage that are 10 times tougher than the natural tissues. Although the hydrogels contain mostly water with little solid content (about 10% polymer), they are more durable than Kevlar and rubber, which are both 100% polymer. This kind of breakthrough has never been achieved in water-laden polymers until this study, which was recently published in
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IMAGE: This picture shows the two qubit modules (red atom between two blue mirrors) that have been interconnected to implement a basic quantum computation (depicted as light blue symbol) over a. view more
Credit: Stephan Welte, Severin Daiss (MPQ)
Today s quantum computers contain up to several dozen memory and processing units, the so-called qubits. Severin Daiss, Stefan Langenfeld, and colleagues from the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics in Garching have successfully interconnected two such qubits located in different labs to a distributed quantum computer by linking the qubits with a 60-meter-long optical fiber. Over such a distance they realized a quantum-logic gate - the basic building block of a quantum computer. It makes the system the worldwide first prototype of a distributed quantum computer.
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X-rays are used to study the atomic and microstructure properties of matter. Such studies are conducted with special accelerator complexes called synchrotrons. A synchrotron source generates powerful electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength equal to fractions of a nanometer. Some X-rays are reflected from the atomic planes of a crystal and some go through the crystal plane that plays the role of a beam-splitter (or the so-called semitransparent mirror). If the radiation passes through monochromators-optical devices that consist of two or more ideal crystals - its optimal exit wavelength can be regulated. The parameters of electromagnetic radiation depend on the material that the optical element is made of. By improving the properties of optical devices one can increase the quality and efficiency of X-ray research methods and use modern scientific unique megascience facility to their full potential.