Physicists have developed an experimental technique to simulate friction at the nanoscale. Using their technique, the researchers are able to directly observe individual atoms at the interface of two surfaces and manipulate their arrangement, tuning the amount of friction between the surfaces. By changing the spacing of atoms on one surface, they observed a point at which friction disappears.
The nano electronics market is strengthening on the back of a raft of new technologies and products such as mobile wireless devices, the internet of things (IoT) and cloud computing.
Optical computing has been held back by a lack of tiny light emitters to transmit data between a computer’s components, but new material options could overcome this barrier.
Researchers build “teeny, tiny structures” that can change infrared to visible light.
