Improving quantum dot interactions, one layer at a time

Osaka City University scientists and colleagues in Japan have found a way to control an interaction between quantum dots that could greatly improve charge transport, leading to more efficient solar cells. Their findings were published in the journal Nature Communications. …

A One Hundred Thousand-Fold Enhancement In the Nonlinearity of Silicon

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Phys.Org: A team of researchers led by Osaka University and National Taiwan University created a system of nanoscale silicon resonators that can act as logic gates for light pulses. … [The scientists] have increased the nonlinearity of silicon 100,000 times by creating a nano-optical resonator, so that all-optical switches can be operated using a…

Spin clean-up method brings practical quantum computers closer to reality

Quantum computers are the new frontier in advanced research technology, with potential applications such as performing critical calculations, protecting financial assets, or predicting molecular behavior in pharmaceuticals. Researchers from Osaka City University have now solved a major problem hindering large-scale quantum computers from practical use: precise and accurate predictions of atomic and molecular behavior. …

Will Japan Have Flying Taxis by 2023?

Slashdot reader damitr shared IEEE Spectrum’s look at Japan’s push for flying taxi services: Last year, Spectrum reported on Japan’s public-private initiative to create a new industry around electric vertical takeoff and landing vehicles and flying cars. Last Friday [August 28th], start-up company SkyDrive Inc. demonstrated the progress made since then when it held a press conference to spotlight its prototype…

A nice day for a quantum walk

Researchers at the Center for Quantum Information and Quantum Biology at Osaka University used trapped ions to demonstrate the spreading of vibrational quanta as part of a quantum random walk. This work relies on their exquisite control of individual ions using lasers, and can lead to new quantum simulations of biological systems. …

Glass transition of spins and orbitals of electrons in a pure crystal

A joint research group from Osaka University and the University of Tokyo uncovered the mechanism of the glass transition that electrons can experience in pyrochlore oxide crystals. The researchers show that distortions in the atomic lattice cause two types of rotational degrees of freedom of spins to become coupled and form a glassy state at the exact same temperature. This work…

Lab-Grown Heart Muscles Have Been Transplanted Into a Human For the First Time

An anonymous reader quotes a report from ScienceAlert: On Monday, researchers from Japan’s Osaka University announced the successful completion of a first-of-its-kind heart transplant. Rather than replacing their patient’s entire heart with a new organ, these researchers placed degradable sheets containing heart muscle cells onto the heart’s damaged areas — and if the procedure has the desired effect, it could eventually…

(Noise)less is more

A group of researchers from Osaka University led by Prof. Masayuki Abe and Prof. Hiroshi Toki of the Graduate School of Engineering Science developed a high precision 3-D circuit simulator in the time-domain for quantifying electromagnetic (EM) noise and elucidated its origin, allowing for electronic and electrical circuit layout to reduce EM noise. …

Google Maps Tests a Social Networking Feature

Google Maps will soon begin testing a new feature that’s more common to social networks like Facebook, rather than a maps app: the ability to find and follow other users. From a report: In Google Maps’ case, it’s specifically rolling out the ability to follow top “Local Guides” — its community members who actively review business and share to Google Maps…

New OpenLibra Cryptocurrency: Like Libra, But Not Run By Facebook

“While Facebook’s upcoming cryptocurrency Libra struggles to keep partners on board and regulators happy, an alternative called OpenLibra is here to address some of Libra’s potential shortcomings,” reports Mashable: Announced at Ethereum Foundation’s Devcon 5 conference in Osaka, Japan, OpenLibra is described as an “open platform for financial inclusion,” with a telling tagline: “Not run by Facebook.” OpenLibra aims to be…