Our mission on All About Circuits is to keep you informed about key developments in electronics and technology, and that includes research news. With that in mind, we’re introducing a new article format—Research Shorts—to round up research news we might otherwise miss during a busy week. Here’s a taste of several interesting studies gathered from top colleges and universities worldwide.
1. Purdue Leverages AI to Detect Counterfeit Chips
A team of researchers from Purdue University led by Professor Alexander Kildishev has developed a novel method for counterfeit chip detection using deep learning algorithms. Residual attention-based processing of tampered responses (RAPTOR) is a technique promising to solve the challenges of differentiating natural IC degradation from malicious adversarial tampering.
Members of Purdue’s RAPTOR team. Image used courtesy of Purdue University
This scheme involves analyzing gold nanoparticle patterns using dark-field microscopy and an attention mechanism that passes samples into a residual attention-based deep convolutional classifier. Manufacturers intentionally embed gold nanoparticles on chips as a type of security tag, which is typically difficult and costly to replicate.
The team tested RAPTOR by simulating natural changes and tampering behavior and performing random Gaussian translations of nanoparticles. From these tests, they reported an accuracy of 97.6%. Professor Kildishev aims to bring AI to the semiconductor packaging industry, advancing nanoparticle embedding procedures and streamlining their authentication scheme.
2. U-M Researchers Develop Low-Power Night Vision
Researchers from the University of Michigan have developed a new type of OLED mechanism promising lightweight and low-powered night vision. This technology notably features a memory behavior with possible applications in image processing systems.
Like traditional night vision goggles, the team’s novel device converts and amplifies near-infrared light into the visible spectrum, but without using vacuum tubes or high-voltage energy sources. Instead, it uses a photon-absorbing layer that transforms IR light into electrons, which are then passed onto a five-layer stack of OLEDs and turned into visible light photons. This is done using off-the-shelf materials and industry-standard semiconductor manufacturing methods.
Positioning the novel OLED mechanism. Image used courtesy of Michigan Engineering
According to the University of Michigan researchers, this technique is the first demonstration of high photon gain, claiming to generate around five output photons for each electron that passes through the OLED stack.
3. Caltech Studies Combustion With Ultrafast Imaging
Recently, a team of researchers from Caltech and the University of Erlangen–Nuremberg published a paper revealing new details about the combustion process using a novel ultrafast, real-time imaging technique that can capture 250 billion frames per second.
The team used femtosecond laser sheet-compressed ultrafast photography, or fsLS-CUP, to document the dynamics behind soot particle formation. The researchers shined a light at a flame for only a quadrillionth of a second, capturing it with compressed ultrafast photography—a process previously developed by Lihong Wang, one of the authors of this paper.
Yogeshwar Nath Mishra, co-author of the paper. Image used courtesy of Caltech
According to the researchers, this approach could help design more efficient engines and reveal how harmful gasses and particles are produced. fsLS-CUP could be useful beyond combustion science with broad applications ranging from microscopy to telescopy in fields such as physics, chemistry, biology, and medicine.
4. U of Wisconsin-Madison Creates Bio-Inspired Liquid Batteries
Inspired by the human circulatory system, a team of researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Madison led by professor James Pikul has developed a liquid energy storage and delivery system for soft robotics as a multifunctional, flexible power source.
Much like traditional electrochemical systems that use gasses in conjunction with liquid electrolytes, Professor Pikul’s method requires gas to be directly injected into an electrolyte via a silicone oil and water emulsion. This way, the oil can store six times more gas than water alone, exhibiting a similar behavior to that of hemoglobin in blood.
Diagram of Professor Pikul’s system. Image used courtesy of the University of Wisconsin-Madison
Compared to conventional electrolytes, this liquid produces a faster chemical reaction, delivering higher electrical currents. This allows it to serve both as an energy storage unit as well as a hydraulic actuator.
5. Berkeley Uses Simulation for Energy-Efficient Microelectronics
Scientists from the University of California Berkeley’s Lab are working on an open-source 3D simulation framework called FerroX to develop novel energy-efficient microelectronic materials. Based on a recently discovered physical phenomenon called negative capacitance, Berkeley researchers hope to revolutionize transistors with new materials that could enable the fabrication of more efficient logic and memory devices.
Researcher Prabhat Kumar and the FerroX framework. Image used courtesy of Berkeley Lab
Negative capacitance is the ability to store a greater electrical charge at lower voltages, typically exhibited by materials with ferroelectric properties. FerroX simulated this phenomenon on an atomic level, targeting specific parameters that could potentially enable easier and more cost-effective R&D of ultra-low-power ICs. Although the team has successfully simulated the origins of negative capacitance at the transistor gate, future plans include using this framework to do so for the entire transistor.
