Virtuous Circle
Looks aren’t everything. But in the world of computing, as elsewhere, they mean a lot. Your laptop spends much of its power on its pretty graphic screen display. One reason: The light produced to illuminate a conventional flat-panel display has to be polarized, which means stripping away more than half of the light-the part that’s polarized in the wrong direction-and throwing it away. University of Rochester researchers are developing a new class of materials called liquid crystal glass that, when hit by ultraviolet light, emit circularly polarized light with 99 percent efficiency. Circularly polarized light (in which the direction of polarization constantly rotates) makes for brighter screens with better contrast than current displays. Avoiding the need to discard half the light generated would cut power consumption and thus extend battery life; this efficiency might also enable such technologies as 3-D displays. Kaiser Electronics in San Jose, Calif., is exploring display and eyewear applications of the materials.
Keep Reading
Most Popular
Large language models can do jaw-dropping things. But nobody knows exactly why.
And that's a problem. Figuring it out is one of the biggest scientific puzzles of our time and a crucial step towards controlling more powerful future models.
The problem with plug-in hybrids? Their drivers.
Plug-in hybrids are often sold as a transition to EVs, but new data from Europe shows we’re still underestimating the emissions they produce.
Google DeepMind’s new generative model makes Super Mario–like games from scratch
Genie learns how to control games by watching hours and hours of video. It could help train next-gen robots too.
How scientists traced a mysterious covid case back to six toilets
When wastewater surveillance turns into a hunt for a single infected individual, the ethics get tricky.
Stay connected
Get the latest updates from
MIT Technology Review
Discover special offers, top stories, upcoming events, and more.