This Tiny Microchip is the World’s Smallest Flying Device
This Tiny Microchip is the World's Smallest Flying Device
A team of engineers at Northwestern University in Illinois (USA) has created a flying microchip the size of a grain of sand. The prototype was a maple seed.
The device is a tiny chip integrated into microfiber wings that rotate under the influence of air flow, similar to helicopter blades, allowing the device to glide.
Such microchips, thanks to the latest technology, can become full-fledged electronic devices with sensors, power supplies, wireless communication antennas, and built-in memory for storing information.
The goal of the development team is to create a flying device capable of continuing planning flight for as long as possible in order to effectively engage in the collection of the necessary information.
According to project manager John A. Rogers, large masses of such devices, once dumped, could be used to monitor the environment – for example, after large-scale environmental disasters.
To ensure that the many dropped flying microchips do not themselves become sources of pollution, the laboratory headed by D. Rogers is developing microelectronic devices that can be used to monitor the environment, for example, after large-scale environmental disasters. Rogers, is developing microelectronic devices that will dissolve safely into water after use.