Constantly worried you’re running out of battery? Smartphones could one day ‘last a month’ before running out of juice.
Scientists at Cambridge University are working on a microchip that could run so efficiently devices could only need to be charged 12 times a year.
Vaire, the team’s commercial arm, is one of a dozen semiconductor startups the government is backing to put Britain at the forefront of the industry.
Tech minister Paul Scully said semiconductors were the ‘bedrock’ of the modern world, vital in everything from running electric cars to fighting against diseases.
Today, he has announced a £1.3m two-year programme that will mentor a select few start-ups to help them ‘revolutionise’ the lives of British people.
Constantly worried you’re running out of battery? Smartphones could one day ‘last a month’ before running out of juice (stock image)
Among them is MintNeuro, a company that has invented a tiny brain implant the size of a peppercorn that can help patients suffering from diseases such as Parkinson’s and epilepsy.
Vaire’s microchip that could improve battery life of smartphones is the brainchild of a team of mathematics researchers at Cambridge University.
The idea is based on designing a silicon chip processor that needs nearly zero energy to run – meaning there is less need for a better battery.
Though there is very little information about it in the public domain so far, Sean Redmond chief executive of SiliconCatalyst.UK, which is running the project, said: ‘If they can really deliver on that outrageous claim, it means that you will have a mobile phone that will last a month, not a day.
‘Nobody in the world today has been able to realise that in a semiconductor chip – if anybody can do it, this team out of Cambridge in the UK will be able to.
The chip by MintNeuro – developed by researchers at Imperia College London – is over 100 times smaller than current state-of-the-art devices.
Similar devices have been in use for decades, for example cochlear implants for deaf people and deep brain stimulators to help people with Parkinson’s deal with tremors.
But the technology behind it has also has not progressed much – requiring a long wire under the skin that connects to a circuit board and battery housed in bulky metal casing the size of a matchbox.
MintNeuro’s chip can communicate wirelessly and are a designed to remain safely in the brain for decades. While the process is currently considered a last resort, the new chips only require minimally invasive surgery
MintNeuro’s chip can communicate wirelessly and are a designed to remain safely in the brain for decades.
While the process is currently considered a last resort, the new chips only require minimally invasive surgery.
With fears over China’s dominance in the sector, the government earlier this year announced it was investing £1bn over the next decade into the UK’s own chip industry.
Mr Scully said: ‘Semiconductors are the bedrock of our modern economy and an increasingly integral part of our lives.
‘These firms are building on Britain’s research leadership to open doors to innovation and growth, while designing chips that could truly change the way we live our lives.
‘Whether they’re innovating how we support patients with Parkinsons or are on the cusp of supercharging how AI is used, these firms are the brightest sparks in the UK’s thriving semiconductor industry.
‘This incubator will make sure they have the skills they need to revolutionise the lives of people not only in the UK, but across the world.’
This post first appeared on Dailymail.co.uk
