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Mar/Apr 2012  

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Self-sculpting sand research aims high

smart sandApril 2, 2012—Imagine you have a big box of sand in which you bury a tiny model of a footstool. A few seconds later, you reach into the box and pull out a fully formed, full-scale replica of the model that has self-assembled from the sand. That may sound like a scene from a Harry Potter novel, but it’s the vision animating a research project at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

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Wohlers publishes 2012 report on AM and 3-D printing

Wohlers Report 2012Wohlers Report 2012, recently published by Wohlers Associates Inc., shows the compound annual growth rate (CAGR) for additive manufacturing (AM) in 2011 reached 29.4 percent, outpacing the growth rate recorded over the industry’s 24-year history. The lifetime CAGR for the AM industry is 26.4 percent.

Transparent 3-D memory chips could replace flash drives

trans chipNew transparent memory chips that are flexible enough to be folded like a sheet of paper could lead to the development of next-generation memory that competes with flash drives. The new chips could also be used in cell phones and computers, according to research presented at a meeting of the American Chemical Society in March.

RPI introduces manufacturing innovation lab

The Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) introduced its manufacturing innovation learning lab (MILL).


The Rensselaer School of Engineering plans to establish new undergraduate and graduate courses focused on micromanufacturing and nanomanufactuing using MILL.

Micromanufacturing lab tour at Northwestern Univ.

During the 7th International Conference on MicroManufacturing in March, conference co-chairs Jian Cao and Kornel Ehmann, along with a few of their students, provided an overview of their research and work stations at the university's micromanufacturing lab.

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OMAX collaborates on micro-abrasive waterjet white paper

Researchers with the OMAX Corp., Kent, Wash., which recently issued a white paper discussing its efforts to develop micro-abrasive waterjet (μAWJ) technology capable of machining features from 50nm to 100nm, cite a better understanding of microfluidics as key to the development of new processes to improve the flowability of fine abrasives and mitigate nozzle clogging.

Technical-Whitepapers
NEC develops ultrathin organic radical battery

ORBNEC Corp. has developed an ultrathin, 0.3mm-thick, organic radical battery (ORB) that is compatible within standard 0.76mm-thick IC cards. The active electrode in an ORB is made from an organic radical compound and charging occurs through the radical compound’s oxidation-reduction (redox) reaction.

Caliper app makes your cell phone a ruler

Qosina has developed a mobile phone app that takes precise measurements in centimeters and inches, according to the company.

Laser technology manufacturer creates micro laser for mobile phones

MDLMeasurement Devices Ltd. (MDL), York, U.K., has developed a micro laser that weighs 43 grams and measures 36mm × 39mm × 20mm. It can be used in mobile phones to give them an eye-safe laser-measurement capability.

Vishay Precision launches high-resistance micro strain gages

strain gagesVishay Precision Group Inc. launched a series of high resistance miniature foil strain gages. The strain gages feature a modified Karma (nickel-chromium) alloy with gold- or copper-coated solder tabs, and an epoxy overcoat for grid encapsulation.

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