ElectronicsOnline Feature Articles

Soldiers turn a march into a charge

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 04:33:58 +0000

Engineers at Leeds are developing a way to capture the kinetic energy produced when soldiers march and use it to power their equipment.

'Cloned faces' look to behaviour

Thu, 15 Oct 2009 01:24:09 +0000

Computer scientists have developed a way of cloning facial expresssions during live conversations to help us better understand what influences our behaviour when we communicate with others.

Giving electronics the big spin

Thu, 08 Oct 2009 22:13:55 +0000

European researchers have developed novel concept devices using ferromagnetic semiconductors.

'Tin whiskers' being probed

Wed, 30 Sep 2009 03:22:22 +0000

The National Physical Laboratory (NPL) in Britain has been studying the allotropic phase transformation in tin and its alloys, commonly known as tin pest, to measure the implications of adopting lead-free solder manufacturing practices.

Computers taught to lip-read many languages

Thu, 24 Sep 2009 01:24:14 +0000

Scientists have created lip-reading computers that can distinguish between different languages. Computers that can read lips are already in development but, according to Brian Bell of London Press Service, this is the first time they have been ‘taught’ to recognise various languages.

Big impact from tiny laser

Thu, 03 Sep 2009 23:32:44 +0000

A massive European effort to develop high-brightness semiconductor lasers could transform healthcare, telecoms and display applications and make Europe an undisputed leader in the field.

Doing more with less – driving connector changes

Thu, 03 Sep 2009 04:34:13 +0000

Constant innovation and product development underpin a rosy future for the connector industry, says Peter Davis, Australia New Zealand regional director for electronics distribution company Farnell.

Reading the brain without poking it

Tue, 25 Aug 2009 01:49:48 +0000

Experimental devices that read brain signals have helped paralysed people use computers and may let amputees control bionic limbs.

Faster, smaller devices forecast

Tue, 04 Aug 2009 03:26:00 +0000

Electronic devices of the future could be smaller, faster, more powerful and consume less energy because of a discovery claimed by researchers at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory in the US.

Transistors of the future

Tue, 04 Aug 2009 03:36:28 +0000

The fast pace of growing computing power could be sustained for many years to come due to new research from Britain's National Physical Laboratory (NPL) that is applying advanced techniques to magnetic semiconductors.

Single cell creature is solar cell future

Fri, 31 Jul 2009 02:19:34 +0000

Ancient microscopic organisms are the tools of the future for the advancement of material science in areas such as solar cell technology.

Malicious web activity grows at record pace

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 22:51:02 +0000

Malicious code activity continued to grow at a record pace throughout 2008, primarily targeting confidential information of computer users, says Symantec.

Plasmonic research boosts nano ICs

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 22:54:42 +0000

IMEC, Europe’s independent nanoelectronics research institute has developed a method of integrating high-speed CMOS electronics and nanophotonic circuitry based on plasmonic effects.

Canada claims lithium battery breakthrough

Tue, 02 Jun 2009 23:31:17 +0000

A Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC)-funded lab at the University of Waterloo, Ontario, has laid the groundwork for a lithium battery that can store and deliver more than three times the power of conventional lithium-ion batteries.

Spammers become image conscious

Fri, 22 May 2009 03:33:07 +0000

Symantec has published its April 2009 MessageLabs Intelligence Report that highlights a spam increase of almost 10% in one month, reaching heights of 85.3%, levels not experienced since September 2007.

Soft hardware for a flexible chip

Thu, 07 May 2009 00:05:41 +0000

Technology is struggling to meet the demands of high-performance, specialised computing systems according to a European consortium, which has responded by developing a reconfigurable chip that is both efficient and flexible.

Managers pressured to do 'more with less'

Wed, 06 May 2009 03:17:08 +0000

Symantec has released the findings of its 2008 state of the data centre report that finds data centre managers caught between two conflicting goals — more demanding user expectations and higher levels of performance, yet reducing costs.

New chips bring new programming

Wed, 15 Apr 2009 02:00:08 +0000

Moore’s Law, which states that the number of transistors on a chip doubles every 18 to 24 months, still holds as true as it has for the last 40 years, but it no longer translates into a linear increase in performance. Previously, chip manufacturers increased processor clock speed to double chip performance — from 100 to 200 MHz and more recently into the multi-gigahertz (GHz) range.

MEMS market declines 2%

Thu, 02 Apr 2009 00:56:38 +0000

In 2008, the MEMS market saw significant changes in the ranking of the top 30 MEMS companies.

Making memory smaller

Thu, 02 Apr 2009 01:56:23 +0000

The long-term trend that has persisted in the computer industry since the invention of the integrated circuit in 1958 has been for the hardware to become smaller and smaller. But scientists believe that conventional miniaturisation processes could soon reach their fundamental limits.