Features for September 2011
Spinning out
24 September, 2011
Applications of colloidal semiconductor quantum dots (QDs) have recently begun to move from the laboratory into the commercial sector. This article provides a brief description of QDs and their associated optical properties, highlighting the concept that QD size is now a parameter used to tune photophysical properties.
23 September, 2011
Exploration of the Stranski-Krastanow growth of strained semiconductor heterostructures marked the major breakthrough for easy fabrication of defect-free quantum dots (QDs). For the first time, single QDs are facilitating the development of electrically operated emitters of single polarized or entangled photons on demand: an essential component for quantum communication systems.
23 September, 2011
Many electronic systems such as flat-panel displays, optical detectors, and sensor arrays would benefit greatly from mechanical flexibility. Ultraflexible and foldable electronics demonstrate ultimate flexibility, and are highly portable. A major obstacle toward the development of foldable electronics is the fundamental compromise between operation voltage, transistor performance, and mechanical flexibility.
23 September, 2011
An overview of III-Nitride based laser diodes (LDs) is presented focusing on the materials challenges in each phase of device development. We discuss early breakthroughs leading to the first commercial GaN LDs, covering crystal growth, p-type doping, and defect reduction.
23 September, 2011
With the emergence of the printed electronics industry, the development of sensing technologies on non conventional substrates such as plastic foils is on-going.
23 September, 2011
Bio-sensing represents one of the most attractive applications of carbon material based electronic devices; nevertheless, the complete integration of bioactive transducing elements still represents a major challenge, particularly in terms of preserving biological function and specificity while maintaining the sensor's electronic performance.
23 September, 2011
The absence of an optimal nano-sized reference material has been the biggest obstacle in evaluating the safety of carbon nanotubes as biomaterials.
23 September, 2011