R&D

Tufts University biomedical engineers are using low-energy, ultrafast laser technology to make high-resolution, 3D structures in silk protein hydrogels. The laser-based micropatterning represents a new approach to customized engineering of tissue and biomedical implants.

The ability to integrate disparate materials and properties within printed objects is the next frontier in 3D printing. Harvard University researchers have designed new multimaterial printheads that mix and print concentrated viscoelastic inks, enabling simultaneous control of composition and...

Children with under-formed or missing ears can undergo surgeries to fashion a new ear from rib cartilage. Aspiring surgeons, however, lack lifelike practice models. A University of Washington otolaryngology resident and bioengineering student 3D-printed a low-cost pediatric rib cartilage model that more closely...

Most materials swell when they warm, and shrink when they cool. A University of Connecticut physicist, however, has been investigating a substance that responds in reverse. Scandium trifluoride, a material with negative thermal expansion, may be used to create more durable electronics.

Researchers at The University of Alabama created a material that manipulates and reduces the speed of light in a new, more effective way. The resulting "slow light" will lead to the development of optical buffers and delay lines used in next-generation sensors.

Engineers at the University of Texas at Arlington Research Institute (Fort Worth, TX) and The University of Washington (Seattle, WA) have developed a healing glove that delivers needed medicine to an injured hand. The device, known as the Bioengineered Smart-Glove for Regenerative Healing of...

An improved blood cleansing device from Harvard University's Wyss Institute mimics the actions of the spleen. The sepsis treatment technology cleanses pathogens and toxins from blood circulating through a dialysis-like circuit.

Engineers and physicians at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine have designed a hand-held, battery-powered, 3D-printed device that quickly picks up vital signs from a patient’s lips and fingertip. The human "check-engine light," called MouthLab, could replace the bulky monitors now used...

A laparoscopic imaging system from researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison features retractable camera arrays affixed to the lower end of each port inserted into a patient’s abdomen. The technology provides laparoscopic surgeons with a 3D view of the procedure site and allows insertion...

Engineers at the University of California, San Diego, have developed a mouth guard that monitors health markers, such as lactate, cortisol, and uric acid, in saliva. The information can then be wirelessly transmitted to a smartphone, laptop, or tablet.

A device created by a collaborative team of engineers and scientists at the University of Arizona may significantly reduce the amount of time necessary to diagnose tissue infections. The technology’s novel approach to molecular diagnostics, called DOTS qPCR, is faster, more efficient, and less...

A new assembly method based on an ancient Japanese paper art instantly transforms 2D structures into complex 3D shapes. The results, reported by a Northwestern University and University of Illinois research team, could be useful in tissue engineering and microelectromechanical systems.

A tiny mechanical wrist from a team of engineers and doctors at Vanderbilt University’s Medical Engineering and Discovery Laboratory will be used on needle-sized surgical robots. The wrist is less than 1/16th of an inch (2 mm) thick.

University of Texas at Dallas researchers have made electrically conducting fibers that can be reversibly stretched to over 14 times their initial length. Electrical conductivity of the fibers increases 200-fold when stretched.

Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology designed a low-cost prosthetic knee that mimics normal walking motion. The MIT team's prototype generates a torque profile similar to that of able-bodied knees, using only simple mechanical elements like springs and dampers. The team is testing...

A strong, lightweight metal foam created by a North Carolina State University researcher absorbs the energy of high-impact collisions and effectively blocks X-rays, gamma rays, and neutron radiation. The device offers new shielding possibilities for use in CT scanners.

A new technology developed at Duke University uses metamaterials and compressive sensing to determine the direction of a sound and extract it from the surrounding background noise. Once miniaturized, the device could have applications in hearing aids, cochlear implants, and ultrasound medical sensors.

An implant built by Stanford University engineers produces light to stimulate nerves of the brain, spinal cord, or limbs in mice. The technology is powered wirelessly, using the mouse's own body to transfer energy. Scientists will use the new optogenetic nerve stimulation methods to investigate a...

Engineers from Iowa State University developed micro-tentacles that enable robots to handle delicate objects. “Most robots use two fingers. To pick things up, they have to squeeze,” said Jaeyoun (Jay) Kim, an Iowa State University associate professor of electrical and computer engineering and...

A “smart insulin patch” created by researchers at the University of North Carolina and North Carolina State University detects increases in blood sugar levels and secretes doses of insulin into the bloodstream whenever needed.

To produce electricity, thermoelectric materials capture waste heat from sources such as automobile exhausts or industrial processes. Improving the materials' efficiency will require further reduction of thermal conductivity. A new article from a Georgia Institute of Technology professor clarifies...

Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology discovered that yarn made of niobium nanowires enables more efficient supercapacitors. The new approach uses the yarns as the electrodes in tiny supercapacitors. Adding a coating of a conductive polymer to the yarn further increases the...

A mold developed by Cornell University researchers can shape liquid silicon out of organic polymer materials. The self-assembling organic polymers create a template dotted with precisely sized and shaped nanopores. The development could lead to exact single-crystal silicon nanostructures.

Researchers from Penn State University have worked with University of Texas at Dallas engineers to induce different two-dimensional materials to form directly on top of one another. The stacking approach achieves clean interfaces between layers — an important factor for novel nanoelectronic circuits.

Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have produced samples of strong, resilient spider silk. The spun samples could lead to a variety of biomedical materials, including sutures and scaffolding for organ replacements.