Light-based computer chips, also known as photonic or optical chips, are emerging as a revolutionary technology that uses photons instead of electrons to transmit and process information. By harnessing the power of light, these innovative chips have the potential to overcome the limitations of traditional electronic computing, offering advantages in speed, energy efficiency, and data bandwidth.

MIT engineers have developed a groundbreaking hair-thin battery designed to power microscopic robots, addressing a key challenge in miniaturization and potentially revolutionizing fields from medicine to environmental monitoring. As reported by MIT News, this tiny zinc-air battery, measuring just 0.1 millimeters long and 0.002 millimeters thick, can generate up to 1 volt of power, enough to operate small circuits, sensors, and actuators in cell-sized autonomous devices.

Researchers at Queensland University of Technology have developed an ultra-thin, flexible thermoelectric film that converts body heat into electricity, offering a groundbreaking solution for powering wearable devices. This innovation, which utilizes the Seebeck effect, promises applications ranging from healthcare monitoring and fitness devices to smart clothing, while advancing power density and paving the way for self-sustaining, environmentally friendly wearables.

According to MIT News, physicists have pioneered a method to magnetize materials using light, achieving ultrafast magnetization in as little as 50 picoseconds and enabling control over magnetic properties in both traditional and non-magnetic materials. This breakthrough holds transformative potential for energy-efficient memory devices, quantum computing, and advanced spintronic technologies.