Light-based computing scheme reduces power needed to mine cryptocurrencies

Apr 27, 2023 (Nanowerk News) Researchers have developed a new light-based computing scheme that uses a photonic integrated circuit to reduce the energy necessary for cryptocurrency and blockchain applications. Mining cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin—a process of verifying transactions and adding new cryptocurrency to the blockchain—consumes up to 1% of the world’s...

Better cryoprotection for red blood cells

Apr 27, 2023 (Nanowerk News) Small amounts of nanometer-thin metal-organic layers efficiently protect red blood cells during freezing and thawing, as a team of researchers writing in the journal Angewandte Chemie has discovered ("Dimensional Reduction of Metal–Organic Frameworks for Enhanced Cryopreservation of Red Blood Cells"). The nanolayers, made from metal-organic...

Versatile, high-speed, and efficient crystal actuation with photothermally resonated natural vibrations

Apr 27, 2023 (Nanowerk News) Each material possesses a distinctive natural vibrational frequency, and when an external periodic force is applied at or near this frequency, the vibrations are significantly amplified. In the realm of physics, this phenomenon is referred to as "resonance." Resonance permeates our everyday lives and can...

The world’s first wood transistor

Apr 27, 2023 (Nanowerk News) Researchers at Linköping University and the KTH Royal Institute of Technology have developed the world’s first transistor made of wood. Their study, published in the journal PNAS ("Electrical current modulation in wood electrochemical transistor"), paves the way for further development of wood-based electronics and control...