Scientists Seize Golden Business Opportunity By Solving 20-Year Old Problem

TECH SPACE

Dr Lidija Siller in her material science lab at Newcastle University

Newcastle - Oct 23, 2003
Scientists have created a new material which could save the electronics industry millions of pounds each year and could also be more effective. Several attempts have been made over the last twenty years to make gold nitride but now a researcher at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne has solved the puzzle.

Gold is used extensively in the electronics industry, as a conductor of electricity in products such as computers, mobile phones and smart cards. This is because it is relatively stable when exposed to the atmosphere.

However, gold is also one of the most expensive metals on the market, and is therefore combined with other, cheaper substances such as nickel, iron and colbalt salt before it is used in order to improve hardness.

Newcastle University's Dr Lidija Siller, who has created the gold nitride, believes it could be harder and more durable than current gold alloys - which could mean a much thinner gold plating layer could be applied to products, thus reducing manufacturing costs.

Further tests need to be carried out, however, to fully assess its potential.

Dr Siller, of the School of Chemical Engineering and Advanced Materials, used a technique called ion implantation to create the material.

She placed the gold in an experimental chamber under ultra high vacuum, cleaned it with argon and then heated up the gold crystal. This was then irradiated with nitrogen ions using a spattering gun. As it is invisible to the naked eye she then checked whether gold nitride had been formed by looking at it using X-ray techniques.

Dr Siller, who began her experiments with gold nitride in 2001, said: "I am starting to investigate its properties and to see how it performs in terms of conductivity and durabililty.

"Early indications suggest that it will certainly be cheaper to manufacture, as nitrogen makes up 80 per cent of the atmosphere around us.

"It is harmless and does not provide a pollution risk unlike some of the metals which are usually mixed with gold, such as arsenic, lead or colbalt."

Previous attempts to make gold nitride failed because they were based on scientists' misunderstanding of the kinetic reaction between gold and nitrogen, Dr Siller said.

The University has filed a patent for the gold nitride process whilst Dr Siller is attempting to make further modifications to the substance to test whether it will have widespread use in industry.

TECH SPACE

New Software Can Increase Fiber Optics Capacity Four-Fold

Melbourne Fl - Oct 22, 2003
Dr. Syed Murshid's eyes light up as he flips the switches, one, two, three, and four. As the Florida Tech associate professor of electrical engineering uses his optics projector, pulses of red light project onto a wall. With each click, a new concentric circle appears. The circles represent a sea change in information technology. When he's finished, a red glowing bull's eye shines brightly, and Murshid laughs. "The future of fiber optics is right on target," he said.

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only

The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2016 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. Privacy Statement All images and articles appearing on Space Media Network have been edited or digitally altered in some way. Any requests to remove copyright material will be acted upon in a timely and appropriate manner. Any attempt to extort money from Space Media Network will be ignored and reported to Australian Law Enforcement Agencies as a potential case of financial fraud involving the use of a telephonic carriage device or postal service.