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Oxford PV, a pioneer in the field of next-generation solar cells, has set a new world record for the efficiency of a commercial-sized solar cell, marking a significant breakthrough in the drive towards a low-carbon global economy.

Nuclear Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) aim to disrupt the nuclear industry, slashing the cost of nuclear energy to competitiveness with renewables + storage and making new decarbonization-enabling uses of nuclear power possible.

Wednesday 21 June 2023 - IDTechEx's Key Semiconductor Trends in Edge AI, Automotive, and Advanced Semiconductor Packaging. AI-crucial technologies, such as autonomous driving, and the current state of the technology landscape; AI as enablers of new functionalities at the edge, such as for the smartphone market; Requirements for AI hardware at the edge; Semiconductor technologies used in autonomous vehicles; Capabilities of automotive semiconductor suppliers and the role of foundries; Key technology trend in semiconductor packaging; Growth drivers in main application areas for advanced semiconductor packaging: high performance computing (HPC) applications/data centers, communication networks, autonomous cars, and consumer electronics

Thursday 1 June 2023 - Discuss the key applications for a solid oxide fuel cell, including the argument for utilising SOFC technology against competing solutions, and an overview of combined heat and power (CHP) operation; Highlight innovations in materials, manufacturing processes, and fuel choices for solid oxide fuel cells; Outline movement of major players in the SOFC market, including the driving forces behind the market today; Overview the solid oxide fuel cell market within the context of the broader fuel cell market, with consideration given to electrolysers

The desire for zero-emission power generation has seen solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) touted as a possible solution. SOFC's capability to run on hydrogen and at a higher efficiency than alternative fuel cells when providing combined heat and power (CHP) is an enticing prospect, while fuel flexibility allows for a transition from hydrocarbons towards zero emission power generation as part of the hydrogen economy.

Like many industries, the construction vehicle and machine industry is on the path to electrification. It has been one of the latecomers to the electrification game, with little happening from OEMs until after 2020. But this is changing, with more electric product announcements covering a wider selection of vehicle types under the construction banner.

Wednesday 7 June 2023 - AI capabilities and why these matter; The link between AI and semiconductor manufacture; Reasons for government funding initiatives into shoring up domestic semiconductor supply chain capabilities; Outlook, both with regards to the effectiveness of these campaigns, as well as the global semiconductor supply chain and AI chips until 2033.

As autonomous vehicles (AV) become increasingly attractive, one technology that is playing a crucial role in their development is lidar. Lidar, short for Light Detection and Ranging, is a remote sensing method that uses lasers to measure distances and create detailed 3D maps of the environment.

What is packaging for? From its initial purpose of simply protecting the product to driving sales via consumer engagement, the role of packaging has substantially evolved. Smart/intelligent packaging continues this trend towards greater functionality, employing sensors, printed electronics, and wireless communication to add value in novel ways.

With the high inflation, increasing labor costs, labor shortage, energy crisis, and hybrid working, the manufacturing industry experienced significant turmoil in 2022. Although some of these have started to get eased, 2023 is still expected to be a challenging year for the manufacturing industry.

RAPID + TCT is one of North America's biggest trade shows and conferences for the additive manufacturing (AM) industry. This year, IDTechEx attended and spoke at the show; they interviewed prominent players and observed industry trends.

Thursday 8 June 2023 - The Future of Cell Chemistry and Pack Structure. An overview of materials used in battery cells and battery packs; Trends in cathode chemistry and anode materials; Battery pack designs: cell-to-pack and cell-to-body; The impact on thermal management and materials; Trends in other materials: composite/polymer enclosures, interconnects and insulation

Advanced semiconductor packaging technologies are crucial due to the slowing of Moore's law and rising costs of monolithic Si IC development and manufacturing. Initially, components were individually packaged and integrated at the PCB board level, but as devices become smaller and require higher processing capabilities, component integration needs to be pushed beyond board level.

Thermal runaway and the associated battery fires have proven to be a critical concern for customers, battery designers, and electric vehicle manufacturers. Many vehicles have experienced battery fires and hundreds of thousands have been recalled.

Microcontrollers (also known as controllers, MCUs and other name variations) are the backbone on which modern vehicles are built. Regardless of whether a car is powered by petrol, diesel, electric, hydrogen, PDG, or anything else, its functionalities will be heavily dependent on controllers.

Artificial Intelligence has come a long way since the success of DeepMind over Go world champion Lee Sedol in 2016; the world is beginning to change according to the new possibilities afforded by AI. From the robust predictive abilities of OpenAI's ChatGPT - where the AI chatbot can be used for all sorts of purposes, from creating scripts (including malware) to writing academic essays - to AI image generators that are so good that they can win Sony world photography awards, the complexity and capabilities of AI algorithms are growing at a startlingly fast pace.