Page 30

RA2012_en

Technological sensations Detecting explosives by imitating a moth’s antennae, developing a new sound spatialization system, or writing with the eyes: science makes use of the senses to advance technology. 28 These titanium dioxide nanotubes seen in profile form an explosives detection system with unparalleled performance. The researchers took inspiration from the antennae of the silkmoth, Bombyx mori. Ever more efficient photonic circuits Putting light at the heart of future communication systems is the goal of silicon photonics. Aiming to go beyond the limits of optical transmission, whether in long-distance networks or inside integrated circuits, researchers are developing new optical modulators and photodetectors with data rates as high as 40 Gbit/second. Speed, low optical loss and moderate energy consumption are just some of the advantages of these systems. Optics Express January 2012 Astronomy provides... 3D images of biological material French researchers have borrowed a technique commonly used in astronomy, adaptive optics, to produce images of biological material. This method increases the resolution and depth of observations by measuring the optical aberrations generated by the systems observed and then correcting them. By combining adaptive optics with selective plane illumination microscopy, the team was able to obtain 3D images of thick, inhomogeneous biological samples with an excellent resolution and a very good depth of field. PLOS ONE April 2012 online Mimicking a moth to detect explosives ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Researchers have designed a system for detecting explosives inspired by the structure of the antennae of the silkmoth. Made up of a silicon microcantilever bearing around 500,000 aligned titanium dioxide nanotubes, this device offers unparalleled performance, improving one thousand-fold the detection limit of existing systems. This innovative concept could also be adapted for the detection of drugs, toxic agents and traces of organic pollutants. Angewandte Chemie International Edition April 2012 online A year at CNRS 2012


RA2012_en
To see the actual publication please follow the link above