November 13, 2009

3 Min Read
Numerical simulations for shape-memory alloys

Originally Published MPMN November/December 2009

TOP TECHNOLOGIES

Top 20 Technologies of 2009 (Page 4)

 


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Finite-element modeling for brain implant design


Innovator: IMEC (Leuven, Belgium)

Why it's unique: Hoping to improve brain implants, researchers are developing much smaller electrodes than the millimeter-size ones that are currently used to stimulate the brain. The goal of this new research is to create deep brain stimulation devices that offer precise, targeted stimulation with fewer side effects than current-generation implants.

Read more about this technology.

 

Numerical simulations for shape-memory alloys


Innovator: Fraunhofer Institute for Mechanics of Materials IWM (Freiburg, Germany)

Why it's unique: Until now, the process of designing shape-memory products that conform to manufacturers' specs has been long and tedious, requiring the production of many prototypes before a fully operational component can be fabricated. But a breakthrough based on a numerical simulation technique answers many questions upfront, long before a prototype exists.

Read more about this technology.

 

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Artificial antimicrobial peptides for combating MRSA


Innovator: University of British Columbia (UBC; Vancouver)

Why it's unique: Researchers have made the exciting discovery that cationic antimicrobial peptides can kill bacteria that come into contact with them. Capable of mimicking the natural peptides located in cells and tissue that combat bacteria in humans and animals, these artificial antibiotics could be used to coat implants and help reverse the high rate of infection stemming from surgical implantation.

Read more about this technology.

 

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Optimized light-emitting diodes


Innovator: University of Illinois (Urbana-Champaign); Northwestern University (Chicago); Institute of High Performance Computing (Singapore); and Tsinghua University (Beijing)

Why it's unique: Inorganic light-emitting diodes (LEDs) are brighter, stronger, and longer-lasting than their organic counterparts; however, organic LEDs offer the ability to be formed on flexible substrates in interconnected arrays. A group of scientists has combined both of these LED advantages into a stretchable inorganic LED and even developed a technique for creating LEDs 100 times smaller than existing products. As a result of this optimization of LEDs, the researchers believe that the arrays could ultimately allow for the fabrication of novel wearable health monitors and biomedical imaging devices.

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Carbon nanotube x-ray technology


Innovator: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Why it's unique: Carbon nanotubes really are "the next big thing." Noted for their potential use in in vivo applications, they may also find use outside the body. Because they can generate x-ray flux, they can produce distinct images on par with those created by conventional x-ray equipment.

Read more about this technology.

 



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