More Light Than Heat
If you’re in the market for a new television, you’ve seen the letters QLED popping up everywhere. They stand for quantum-dot light-emitting diode. Quantum dots are about the diameter of four DNA strands but emit extremely pure light which can be adjusted by changing the dots’ size, shape, composition and surface chemistry.
One of the issues with QLED was that as the intensity of dots were increased, the result generated more heat than light. As a Machine Design article noted, researchers at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (SLAC) found that the incoming laser light kicks electrons from the dot’s atoms and left “holes,” which were empty spots with positive charges that were free to move. The holes ended up becoming trapped at the dot’s surface and generating unwanted heat.
The researchers are working to understand the limits of photonic processes, at the limits of what thermodynamics allows. This could pave the way for not just sharper images, but could lead to light-powered refrigeration, heating, cooling, energy storage and propulsion for spacecraft.
CAD Design Research
Researchers at Tech-Clarity are conducting a research study on the challenges, capabilities and future plans manufacturers have for collaborating on CAD designs and new product development. Machine Design readers are invited to fill out the questionnaire to offer their views on this topic. All respondents will receive a copy of the final report. The survey should take less than 15 minutes to complete, and individual responses will be kept confidential.
Screw Design Using Sizing Software
What role does selection and sizing software play in choosing the right servomotor for ball screw design? Software features enable engineers to optimally select individual components that comprise their servo systems.
A new Machine Design Top Tips download discusses the most pertinent data needed in the servomotor selection process, as well as steps on choosing the proper servomotor, and why downloadable reports are important.