Most folks up in Madison are readying their face paint and stocking up on tailgating supplies, but the geeks among us (bless 'em!) are focusing their attention on something much more relevant to your future RAID array. A team from UW-Madison (along with partners from Hitachi) is getting set to publish a report that details a patterning technology that could offer performance gains over current methods while reducing time and cost of manufacturing. The process builds on existing approaches by "combining the lithography techniques traditionally used to pattern microelectronics with novel self-assembling materials called block copolymers." So, what does all this technobabble mean for you? Huge gains in density on patterned media, or if that's still not straightforward enough, ginormous HDDs in the near future.

[Via Protein OS]

Those fond of how quickly flash memory reads and writes their data are sure to adore the research that a few University of Pennsylvania scientists have been working on, as Ritesh Agarwal (pictured) and colleagues have crafted "nanowires capable of storing computer data for 100,000 years and retrieving that data a thousand times faster" than existing micro-drives. Moreover, the "self-assembling nanowire of germanium antimony telluride" consumes less energy and space than current memory technologies, and even Agarwal stated that the "new form of memory has the potential to revolutionize the way we share information, transfer data and even download entertainment." Unfortunately, there seems to be no word on if (or when) this creation could be headed to the commercial realm.

Someone should seriously tell IBM's research and development team to take a much-deserved vacation, as these folks have been cranking out the goods at an alarming rate of late. Most recently, the company has announced the "world's first application of self assembly used to create a vacuum around nanowires for next-generation microprocessors," which just so happens to mimic the natural pattern-creating process that forms seashells, snowflakes, and enamel on teeth. Essentially, the process forms "trillions of holes to create insulating vacuums around the miles of nano-scale wires packed next to each other inside each computer chip," which should aid electrical current in flowing around 35-percent faster while it eats up about 15-percent less energy. This newfangled approach to insulation, dubbed airgaps, creates vacuums that enable the substantial boost in speed, and the self assembling process is reportedly "already integrated" into IBM's manufacturing line in New York. The chips will initially be used in the firm's server lineup sometime near 2009, and shortly thereafter, we can expect IBM to start cranking these out for other companies that rely on its CPUs.

[Via BBC, thanks Josh]

When you've already got self-assembling robots and Li-ion batteries, you might as well tackle 3D printouts next, right? Apparently that's the mantra being used by physicists in Israel who have purportedly invented a monomer solution that, when heated over 33 degrees Celsius, would bend and form into the object depicted, theoretically turning a flat, 2D photo into a three-dimensional rendition. Eran Sharon and colleagues from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem applied N-isopropylacrylamide to the surface of a prototype "disc," and "created a range of structures varying in complexity, from slightly wavy crisp-like objects to those that look like a sombrero." Interestingly, a scientist not directly involved with the study commented that the discovery could actually be used to craft printers that could pop out 3D printouts when heat was added, which would surely keep kids occupied (and your ink cartridges bone dry) for weeks on end. As expected, there weren't many details hinting that this novel idea would be headed for the commercial realm anytime soon, but considering all the other 3D paraphernalia already out, we can't imagine this taking too long to follow suit.

[Via Slashdot]

It's fairly reassuring that if those rollable, water-powered, paper, and ultracapacitor-based battery ideas don't exactly pan out, we've got yet another idea coming out of MIT that just might gain traction. Apparently, scientists at the university are working on self-assembling Li-ion cells when not thinking about what witty remark they'll plaster on their own spacecraft, and it seems that Yet-Ming Chiang and his colleagues have selected electrode and electrolyte materials that, when combined, "organize themselves into the structure of a working battery." By measuring various forces with "ultraprecise atomic-force microscope probes," the researchers were able to choose materials with just the right combination of attractive and repulsive forces, essentially creating a perfect environment for batteries that could build themselves. Additionally, a current prototype has displayed the ability to be discharged and recharged "multiple times," and while commercial uses aren't nailed down just yet, the backers are already envisioning how the technology could be used in minuscule devices where standard cells won't exactly fit in. Let's just hope this stuff doesn't cause too much friction whilst building itself up, eh?

[Via TheRawFeed]