News

LRC and Linc team up to create Lighting Technology Greenhouse Troy, N.Y. — The Lighting Research Center (LRC) at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute has launched an initiative to support the growth of new and existing lighting companies in and around New York state. Called the Lighting Technology Greenhouse, the program will help facilitate the commercialization of new lighting products and services that enhance sustainability.

New study paves way for using nanofluids in cameras, microdevices, and displays Troy, N.Y. — Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have demonstrated that liquids embedded with nanoparticles show enhanced performance and stability when exposed to electric fields. The finding could lead to new types of miniature camera lenses, cell phone displays, and other microscale fluidic devices.

Signs on to Science Debate 2008 Troy, N.Y. — Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute President Shirley Ann Jackson has joined the call for a Presidential debate on science, technology, and innovation in advance of the November 2008 general election, and urged others to sign on.

Facility will allow approximately 300 students to engage in downtown community Troy, N.Y. – Beginning in August 2009, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute students will have a new campus housing option in the heart of downtown Troy.

Troy, N.Y. — More than 900 area students and their families came to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute today to participate in the 10th annual Black Family Technology Awareness Day. The workshops, designed to spur young people’s interest in pursuing careers in science and engineering, were hosted by Rensselaer’s Office of Institute Diversity. Rensselaer’s Black Family Technology Awareness Day is part of a nationally celebrated week of the same name. The theme for 2008 is “A Decade of Discovery.”

Troy, N.Y. — Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute invites members of the community to the Hirsch Observatory to view planets, stars, and galaxies with the observatory’s 16-inch telescope. The observatory will be open to the public every Friday evening through November from 8-10 p.m. Anyone from the community is invited to come learn about our universe from Rensselaer students and faculty. Children are welcome.

Research will focus on renewable energy, future electronics, and nano science Troy, N.Y. — Shengbai Zhang, a quantum physicist renowned for his computational modeling and research in semiconductor defects, has been named senior chair of Rensselaer’s Gail and Jeffrey L. Kodosky ’70 Constellation in Physics, Information Technology, and Entrepreneurship.

Student and fraternity recognized with Community Service Award during ceremony tonight Troy, N.Y. — In a tribute to outstanding commitments to community service, the Rensselaer Alumni Association (RAA) will recognize both an individual student and a Greek life organization with its Community Service Award. Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity and Tamer Khattab ’08 will be presented with the award tonight — Friday, Feb. 1 — during the first intermission of the Rensselaer vs. Quinnipiac hockey game.

Researchers in Rensselaer’s Department of Physics and Center for Integrated Electronics have developed a new inexpensive, quick-drying polymer that could lead to dramatic cost savings and efficiency gains in semiconductor manufacturing and computer chip packaging.

Carbon nanotube array absorbs light, could boost solar energy conversion  The vertically aligned carbon nanotube samples were mounted in the center of a integrating sphere, which measured the material's reflectivity.