Anyone who has ever toasted the top of their legs with their laptop or broiled their ear on a cell phone knows that microelectronic devices can give off a lot of heat. These devices contain a multitude of transistors, and although each one produces very little heat individually, their combined thermal output is significant and […]
Researchers Use ‘Voting’ & ‘Penalties’ to Overcome Errors
Seeking a solution to decoherence—the “noise” that prevents quantum processors from functioning properly—scientists at USC have developed a strategy of linking quantum bits together into voting blocks, a strategy that significantly boosts their accuracy. In a paper published today in Nature Communications, the team found that their method results in at least a five-fold increase […]
Cheap, Strong Lithium-Ion Battery Developed
Researchers at USC have developed a new lithium-ion battery design that uses porous silicon nanoparticles in place of the traditional graphite anodes to provide superior performance. The new batteries—which could be used in anything from cell phones to hybrid cars—hold three times as much energy as comparable graphite-based designs and recharge within 10 minutes. The […]