The electron source of choice is another new piece of microtechnology, the carbon nanotube.

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As such, it possesses the novel mechanical properties of carbon nanotube-like tensile strength--in addition to high electrical conductivity.

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In essence, Quasam can be thought of as a carbon nanotube that has been sliced open and laid flat.

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The third technique, being developed by Prashant Kamat of the University of Notre Dame, Indiana, and his colleagues, uses that fashionable scientific tool, the carbon nanotube.

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Military satellites and other electronic devices using carbon nanotube semiconductors will be able to withstand solar flare-ups and nuclear radiation from attacks that often corrupt data in standard chips.

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Dr Zettl and his colleagues constructed their memory cell by taking a particle of iron just a few billionths of a metre (nanometres) across and placing it inside a hollow carbon nanotube.

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For instance, Motorola 's (nyse: MOT - news - people ) carbon nanotube TVs are ready to leave the lab and hit the market, outperforming today's flat panel displays and IBM (nyse: IBM - news - people ) is leading the way to nanoscale computing.

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While this technology still has a long way to go, challenges such as NASA's October 21 First Annual Space Elevator Competition at the Ames Research Center in Silicon Valley are spurring design teams to push the limits of both their robots and the super-strong, carbon nanotube-based ribbons that are key to supporting them.

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