Tiny electronic spies the size of an aspirin could one day provide key intelligence for troops in the field, scientists say.
Microelectromechanical systems are currently used in a variety of applications, including triggering airbags and measuring the Casimir force. In the future, they may revolutionize the way we think about machines.
Researchers are applying MEMS technology to the fight against terrorism in three ways: inertial measurement for weapons, navigation and stabilization; distributed sensing and control for maintenance, intelligence and chemical identification; and information technology for mass data storage and displays.
Tiny micro electro-mechanical systems dubbed MEMS may be the key to maintaining giant space-based structures, according to U of A researchers Steve Tung and Larry Roe. Although space-based solar collectors or antenna arrays can be many square miles in size, tiny MEMS devices can keep them oriented correctly to ensure their long-term operation.
Adding a new dimension to the world of creepy-crawlies, researchers at the Sandia National Laboratories have developed mobile, electronic micro-bugs - sensor-equipped robots the size of a nickel. The lab sees the devices as potential environmental monitors or antiterrorist agents - capable of silently scampering under a door, quietly rolling into a corner and eavesdropping on whatever is going on inside.
Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, are aiming to create biologically inspired 'roboflies' -- tiny, inexpensive, quick-moving robots they can send into space for planetary exploration.
Researchers have mated tiny metal propellers with organic molecules to create ultramicroscopic machines that are powered by the same processes that fuel life. The contraptions demonstrate techniques that could be used in a new generation of chemical sensors and factories, working within living cells.
Krisotfer Pister is leading a team of researchers at the University of California at Berkeley that is developing tiny, electronic devices called "smart dust," designed to capture mountains of information about their surroundings while literally floating on air. If the project is successful, clouds of smart dust could one day be used in an astonishing array of applications, from following enemy troop movements and hunting Scud missiles to detecting toxic chemicals in the environment and monitoring weather patterns around the globe.
A tiny spy plane, propelled by the flap of insect-like wings, is being developed by British scientists to combat terrorism. The design is based on the aeronautical feats of the hover fly, which can flutter over flowers while drawing nectar.
An overview of the work of Jim Tour, the cofounder of Molecular Electronics Corp. and one of the leading researchers in molecular computing and nanotechnology. Molecular Electronics' work of developing atom-size computer components is among the most advanced in the country, and might produce working prototypes in the next 12 to 18 months.