Lifeboat Foundation

Researchers at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) have developed a fully indigenous gallium nitride (GaN) power switch that can have potential applications in systems like power converters for electric vehicles and laptops, as well as in wireless communications. The entire process of building the switch—from material growth to device fabrication to packaging—was developed in-house at the Center for Nano Science and Engineering (CeNSE), IISc.

Due to their high performance and efficiency, GaN transistors are poised to replace traditional silicon-based transistors as the building blocks in many electronic devices, such as ultrafast chargers for electric vehicles, phones and laptops, as well as space and military applications such as radar.

“It is a very promising and disruptive technology,” says Digbijoy Nath, Associate Professor at CeNSE and corresponding author of the study published in Microelectronic Engineering. “But the material and devices are heavily import-restricted … We don’t have gallium nitride wafer production capability at commercial scale in India yet.” The know-how of manufacturing these devices is also a heavily-guarded secret with few studies published on the details of the processes involved, he adds.

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The long read: When a microbe was found munching on a plastic bottle in a rubbish dump, it promised a recycling revolution. Now scientists are attempting to turbocharge those powers in a bid to solve our waste crisis. But will it work?

The Transportation Authority of Marin board has voted to accept a framework to accelerate the transition to electric vehicles, in some cases faster than required under state law.

The “Marin Countywide Electric Vehicle Acceleration Strategy,” developed by the interagency Marin County Climate and Energy Partnership, is meant to provide a playbook of policies and actions for jurisdictions to employ to ready their communities for a growing number of electric vehicles.

Several Marin communities have already accepted the strategy, and the Transportation Authority of Marin board did so on Thursday. The authority is a state-managed congestion management agency that also provides rebates to public agencies for installing charging stations and electrifying their vehicle fleets.

Jintong Gao and Zhenyuan Xu.

This new system was developed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in collaboration with engineers from China.

Researchers used laser pulses to enhance MXene’s electrode properties, leading to a potential breakthrough in rechargeable battery technology that could surpass traditional lithium-ion batteries.

As the global community shifts towards renewable energy sources like solar and wind, the demand for high-performance rechargeable batteries is intensifying. These batteries are essential for storing energy from intermittent renewable sources. While today’s lithium-ion batteries are effective, there’s room for improvement. Developing new electrode materials is one way to improve their performance.

For nearly five years, Austin Energy’s EVs for Schools program has provided access to electric vehicle charging infrastructure and related technology curriculum to more than 150 schools across Central Texas. Now, AE is gearing up for the rollout of its upgraded program, adapted to meet the changing landscape of EV technology.

Automotive manufacturers, including Mazda and Toyota, are currently developing hydrogen engines to power their vehicles, and these engines could one day replace not only hydrogen fuel cell technology and traditional combustion engines, but perhaps even electric vehicles (EVs).

Scientists at the University of Washington have developed flying robots that change shape in mid-air, all without batteries, as originally published in the research journal Science Robotics. These miniature Transformers snap into a folded position during flight to stabilize descent. They weigh just 400 milligrams and feature an on-board battery-free actuator complete with a solar power-harvesting circuit.

Here’s how they work. These robots actually mimic the flight of different leaf types in mid-air once they’re dropped from a drone at an approximate height of 130 feet. The origami-inspired design allows them to transform quickly from an unfolded to a folded state, a process that takes just 25 milliseconds. This transformation allows for different descent trajectories, with the unfolded position floating around on the breeze and the folded one falling more directly. Small robots are nothing new, but this is the first solar-powered microflier that allows for control over the descent, thanks to an onboard pressure sensor to estimate altitude, an onboard timer and a simple Bluetooth receiver.