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Worlds first elasticated USB cables invent bungee jumpering (video)
Recall those stretchy transistors and bendy silicon circuits? Now you can plumb them together with these Roboden elasticated cables. Asahi Kasei corporation came up with the idea while trying to create cords flexible enough to power up humanoid robots. Thanks to its work with Spandex, the company knew human skin can stretch by a factor of 1.5, and a cable with similar properties would be ideal for juicing up them 'droids. USB leads are planned, among other types, meaning you could make it all the way to the fridge in your heated slippers without unplugging. Check out the video below and you'll see why we're already designing next year's Tron costume for Halloween.
Korean researchers create stretchy transistors made of graphene
Graphene's greatness comes from its flexibility, both figurative -- you can make everything from transparent speakers to stain resistant pants with the stuff -- and literal. And now researchers in Korea have given us another pliable graphene product by creating a stretchy transistor from the carbon allotrope. The trick was accomplished by first layering sheets of graphene on copper foil and bonding it all to a rubber substrate. To complete the transistor channels were etched onto its surface, then electrodes and gate insulators made of ion gel were printed onto the device. What resulted was a transistor that could stretch up to five percent without losing any electrical efficiency, and the plan is to increase its elasticity through continued research. Keep up the good work, fellas, we can't wait for our flexible phone future.
