DARPA’s THz Electronics Program

THz flow

In 2009, the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) began awarding contracts for innovative research proposals under its Terahertz (THz) Electronics Program. Readers will probably be asking the same question that crossed our mind: “when can I expect this in my laptop?”

Chip frequency has stalled out as a measure of computing power, but DARPA has a long history of helping to fund computing breakthroughs – from that minor nuisance we call the Internet to modern work on Gallium Nitride (GaN) semiconductors, non-thermionic transistors, research into graphene circuits, and more. Now, their Terahertz (THz) Electronics program is looking for technologies to enable revolutionary advances in electronic devices and integrated circuits, allowing them to reach THz frequencies of at least a trillion cycles per second…

Rapid Fire August 15, 2013: Russia Finds NATO Afghan Exit Too Hastily Decided

• The status of the 18 crewmen trapped in INS Sindhurakshak is still not confirmed for sure, but Indian authorities have little hope that there are any survivors following the submarine’s explosion yesterday. An unnamed Russian official told the Interfax news agency that the possibility of a terror plot could not be excluded, as the explosion of the Russian-manufactured sub happened just before India’s independence day. Speculation no doubt…