High-performance flexible metal-on-silicon thermocouple

Terahertz communication: detection and signal processing

The development of 6 G networks has promoted related research based on terahertz communication. As submillimeter radiation, signal transportation via terahertz waves has several superior properties, including non-ionizing and easy penetration of non-metallic materials. This paper provides an overview of different terahertz detectors based on various mechanisms. Additionally, the detailed fabrication process, structural design, and the improvement strategies are summarized. Following that, it is essential and necessary to prevent the practical signal from noise, and methods such as wavelet transform, UM-MIMO and decoding have been introduced. This paper highlights the detection process of the terahertz wave system and signal processing after the collection of signal data.

Flexible thin film thermocouples: From structure, material, fabrication to application

Flexible thin-film thermocouples (TFTCs) have been garnering interest as temperature sensors due to the advantages of being flexible, ultrathin, and ultralight. Additionally, they have fast response times and enable detection of temperature. These properties have made them suitable for applications such as wearable electronics, healthcare, portable personal devices, and smart detection systems. This review presents the progress in the development of flexible TFTCs. The mechanism, structural design, materials, fabrication methods, and related applications of flexible TFTCs are also elaborated. Finally, future development directions of flexible TFTCs are discussed such as wide-range temperature measurement, multiple sensor integration, and achieving reliable cold-end compensation systems.

Flexible Electronics and Devices as Human-Machine Interfaces for Medical Robotics

Medical robots are invaluable players in non-pharmaceutical treatment of disabilities. Particularly, using prosthetic and rehabilitation devices with human-machine interfaces can greatly improve the quality of life for impaired patients. In recent years, flexible electronic interfaces and soft robotics have attracted tremendous attention in this field due to their high biocompatibility, functionality, conformability, and low-cost. Flexible human-machine interfaces on soft robotics will make a promising alternative to conventional rigid devices, which can potentially revolutionize the paradigm and future direction of medical robotics in terms of rehabilitation feedback and user experience. In this review, the fundamental components of the materials, structures, and mechanisms in flexible human-machine interfaces are summarized by recent and renowned applications in five primary areas: physical and chemical sensing, physiological recording, information processing and communication, soft robotic actuation, and feedback stimulation. This review further concludes by discussing the outlook and current challenges of these technologies as a human-machine interface in medical robotics.

Sensitive Metal-Semiconductor Nanothermocouple Fabricated by FIB to Investigate Laser Beams with Nanometer Spatial Resolution

The focused ion beam (FIB) technique was used to fabricate a nanothermocouple (with a 90 nm wide nanojunction) based on a metal–semiconductor (Pt–Si) structure, which showed a sensitivity up to 10 times larger (with Seebeck coefficient up to 140 µV/K) than typical metal–metal nanothermocouples. In contrast to the fabrication of nanothermocouples which requires a high-tech semiconductor manufacturing line with sophisticated fabrication techniques, environment, and advanced equipment, FIB systems are available in many research laboratories without the need for a high-tech environment, and the described processing is performed relatively quickly by a single operator. The linear response of the manufactured nanothermocouple enabled sensitive measurements even with small changes of temperature when heated with a stream of hot air. A nonlinear response of the nanothermocouple (up to 83.85 mV) was observed during the exposition to an argon-laser beam with a high optical power density (up to 17.4 Wcm⁻²), which was also used for the laser annealing of metal–semiconductor interfaces. The analysis of the results implies the application of such nanothermocouples, especially for the characterization of laser beams with nanometer spatial resolution. Improvements of the FIB processing should lead to an even higher Seebeck coefficient of the nanothermocouples; e.g., in case of the availability of other suitable metal sources (e.g., Cr).