Holding a supercomputer in the palm of your hand will one day be possible - and we are going to make sure all the wires are in the right place. - This is not just a statement. Its going to be the reality in the future. The first step in this direction has already been taken.

Experts at a Scottish university claimed that they have paved the way for the creation of tiny supercomputers which could fit in the palm of the hand. To create a powerful computer the size of a mobile phone, much smaller microchips with thinner wires are needed.

This is where the team’s manipulation of tiny wires comes into play. Through its study of how nano-scale wires react and respond in comparison to larger, more conventional wire technology. The experts have created a computer programme which allows engineers to predict when these problems might arise with the wires - and how to avoid them.

Engineers at the University of Edinburgh studied the behaviour of wires which were 1,000 times thinner than human hair. The discovery should help ensure that wiring in electronic devices remains effective, even in a supercomputer the size of a matchbox.With the help of computers, they found that wires on a nanoscale, measured in millionths of a millimetre, behave quite differently from bigger wires. They then created a tool which could help develop tiny microchips.

It is hoped that the discovery will eventually lead to medical advances, as well as hand-held PCs and mobile phones as powerful as laptops becoming available on the high street.

Written by Mahesh Chawla in News