Cellphone converts into powerful chemical detector

With only $50 worth of components, an ordinary cellphone transforms into a sophisticated scientific instrument, capable of identifying chemicals, drugs, and pathogens

07-May-2021 - Scientists from Texas A&M have developed an extension to an ordinary cellphone that turns it into an instrument capable of detecting chemicals, drugs, biological molecules, and pathogens. The advance is reported in Reviews of Scientific Instruments, by AIP Publishing. Modern cellphones include ...

Long-Sought Workaround to Helium Shortage?

Neutron Detection Method

12-Jun-2018 - Doctors use X-rays to see inside people, and scientists use neutrons to peer inside advanced materials and devices such as fuel cells to better understand and improve them. But a critical shortage of a rare form of helium used for detecting neutrons—which are difficult to spot directly—threatens ...

Method improves accuracy of imaging systems

09-Feb-2017 - New research provides scientists looking at single molecules or into deep space a more accurate way to analyze imaging data captured by microscopes, telescopes and other devices. The improved method for determining the position of objects captured by imaging systems is the result of new research ...

Sniffing like a dog can improve trace detection of explosives

05-Dec-2016 - By mimicking how dogs get their whiffs, a team of government and university researchers have demonstrated that "active sniffing" can improve by more than 10 times the performance of current technologies that rely on continuous suction to detect trace amounts of explosives and other ...

New technique could improve detection of concealed nuclear materials

19-Apr-2016 - Researchers have demonstrated proof of concept for a novel low-energy nuclear reaction imaging technique designed to detect the presence of "special nuclear materials" -- weapons-grade uranium and plutonium -- in cargo containers arriving at U.S. ports. The method relies on a combination of ...

New tabletop detector 'sees' single electrons

Magnet-based setup may help detect the elusive mass of neutrinos

23-Apr-2015 - MIT physicists have developed a new tabletop particle detector that is able to identify single electrons in a radioactive gas.As the gas decays and gives off electrons, the detector uses a magnet to trap them in a magnetic bottle. A radio antenna then picks up very weak signals emitted by the ...

Standoff sensing enters new realm with dual-laser technique

26-Mar-2012 - Identifying chemicals from a distance could take a step forward with the introduction of a two-laser system being developed at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory. In a paper published in the Journal of Physics D: Applied Physics, Ali Passian and colleagues present a ...

Nuclear detector: New materials hold promise for better detection of nuclear weapons

19-Sep-2011 - Northwestern University scientists have developed new materials that can detect hard radiation, a very difficult thing to do. The method could lead to a handheld device for detecting nuclear weapons and materials, such as a "nuclear bomb in a suitcase" scenario. "The terrorist attacks of 9/11 ...

Piece of cake: Arrays of long nanotubes may help measure terahertz laser power

21-Jul-2011 - Terahertz radiation can penetrate numerous materials—plastic, clothing, paper and some biological tissues—making it an attractive candidate for applications such as concealed weapons detection, package inspection and imaging skin tumors. However, to date there is no standard method for measuring ...

Researchers pursue plasmonics and photonics technology for optical improvements

07-Jun-2010 - Air Force Office of Scientific Research-funded Professors Mark L. Brongersma of Stanford University and Stefan A. Maier of Imperial College London are investigating new applications for terahertz sensors. Based on their research, these sensors could be used for improving optical sources, ...