Fraunhofer IAF and the Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy have provided 145 high-performance low-noise amplifiers for the ALMA radio telescope array in Chile’s Atacama Desert. The amplifiers are based on InGaAs mHEMT MMICs and are essential components of the high-frequency receivers for the wavelength range between 2.6 and 4.5 mm (frequency range: 67–116 GHz, known as Band 2). They will enable ALMA to perform more precise measurements of objects and galaxies in the universe in order to gain new information about the formation of stars, planets and life. The amplifiers delivered complete ALMA, which began scientific operations in 2011 and has been gradually expanded since then.

Because of the long-standing cracking issues in lithium-ion batteries that use polycrystalline Ni-rich materials (PC-NMC) in their cathodes, researchers over the last few years have turned toward single-crystal Ni-rich layered oxides (SC-NMC). But they have not always shown similar or better performance than the older model. New research from the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering and Argonne National Laboratory revealed the underlying issue: assumptions drawn from polycrystalline cathodes were being incorrectly applied to single-crystal materials. The researchers showed that cracking in single-crystal cathode materials was primarily driven by reaction heterogeneity, not volume change, the primary driver of cracking in polycrystal cathode materials. The study not only challenged conventional design, but also the materials used, redefining the roles of cobalt and manganese in batteries’ mechanical failure.