Black Silicon Discovery Could Change Digital Photography, Night Vision Forever

THORHAMMER · Oct 13, 2008

interesting from gizmondo

http://gizmodo.com/5062412/black-si...ange-digital-photography-night-vision-forever

Bifurcator · Oct 14, 2008

Wow... Some people are just charmed!

abraxas · Oct 14, 2008

THORHAMMER said:
interesting from gizmondo

http://gizmodo.com/5062412/black-si...ange-digital-photography-night-vision-forever

I saw these guys on the news a week or so ago. They were talking about creating an economical tape that could be used to power vehicles, coatings for tiles for solar roofs, and the endless other possibilities that could be of benefit in man's demand for energy and helping to bring undeveloped and needy countries up to par. My first thoughts were, "I wonder how the usual greedy bloodsuckers will squelch or control this one?"

We'll see.

ksmattfish · Oct 14, 2008

Sweet! I knew it was just right around the corner. 6 digit ISOs that is.

Bifurcator · Oct 14, 2008

abraxas said:
I saw these guys on the news a week or so ago. They were talking about creating an economical tape that could be used to power vehicles, coatings for tiles for solar roofs, and the endless other possibilities that could be of benefit in man's demand for energy and helping to bring undeveloped and needy countries up to par. My first thoughts were, "I wonder how the usual greedy bloodsuckers will squelch or control this one?"

We'll see.

I thought the same thing before I even got to that sentence. As soon as anyone develops a tech that can equalize the cultures (energy or transportation wize) it gets sucked into a black hole.

The only way to make it happen is to develop it so that the device or material can be made from household materials and then release it into the grass root home brewers out there and let it build on it's own. Kinda like the HHO fuel cells for cars are doing. This was first invented in the Philippines actually - back in the 50's and surfaced 3 more times independently since - resulting all total in 2 murders and two patent buy-outs.

Now that it's grass-roots and being home brewed it's actually happening with results from 150% to 400% efficiency over the same engine running on gasoline alone.

Hillbilly power! Yeah baby, yeah!

Garbz · Oct 18, 2008

errr... Looks just like every other silicon wafer.

Alex_B · Oct 18, 2008

i am not too impressed.

i start to really hate this technology is simple and easy culture propagated by the media ...

as for the hydrogen fuel cells, we are still quite far away from getting them work properly. the technological problems still to be overcome are huge. really huge.
I have been involved in this briefly.

The way from having a good idea, maybe even demonstration device to having a working invention feasible for practical application, which will not degrade in weeks and is affordable and has dimensions smaller than an elephant ... is a hell long and expensive way.

Technology became more complicated in the last 40 years, most easy and simple things have been done already decades ago.

CanGumby · Oct 18, 2008

Alex_B said:
Technology became more complicated in the last 40 years, most easy and simple things have been done already decades ago.

Just because we haven't discovered something that is simple and easy to produce, doesn't mean it's not scientifically and economically huge. Many times I find the easiest solutions for lifes problems are the simplest solutions and complicating the answer usually makes for more problems later down the road.

We'll have to sit and see, maybe we're all a little cynical at heart but I can see big things come of this advancement.

abraxas · Oct 18, 2008

10 things I wish I would have invented;

in no particular order

1) Toothpick
2) The Cork
3) Big Stick
4) Ball
5) Wheel
6) Better Mousetrap
7) Candle
8) Lute
9) Dynamite
10) French Kiss

abraxas · Oct 18, 2008

And on a bit of reflection;

11) The hole
12) The pile

icassell · Oct 18, 2008

abraxas said:
10 things I wish I would have invented;

in no particular order

1) Toothpick
2) The Cork
3) Big Stick
4) Ball
5) Wheel
6) Better Mousetrap
7) Candle
8) Lute
9) Dynamite
10) French Kiss

When I was much younger, I thought I invented #10

notelliot · Oct 18, 2008

from the comments:

This almost certainly damages the surface of the silicon, which for image sensors is really bad news. There's something called "dark current" which causes a bogus signal to be picked up, even in the dark. Dark current is primarily caused by surface defects, something this process will probably increase massively. The higher the dark current, the noisier the image becomes.
This process is almost certainly useless for image sensors

Also, they claim the manufacturing process to be the same, except for the laser that produces roughly the same amount of energy we get from the sun. Seems like a pretty big change in manufacturing process. They claim it doesn't cost any more to manufacture. But I bet they're the only lab in the states with that sun-ray laser, and I'm willing to bet that it wasn't very cheap to build.