A part of Earth’s atmosphere that is notoriously difficult to observe may have an unexpected new set of eyes. Researchers are tapping into an enormous source of orbital data, with potential benefits for satellite tracking and space safety.
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Industrial IoT Lead Times Hit 52 Weeks While Everyone Calls The Shortage Over
Industrial IoT lead times for advanced microcontrollers and sensor fusion chips are stretching to 24–52 weeks in 2026, even as the general narrative says the chip shortage ended. Foundries are prioritizing high-margin AI chips over the mature-node parts that IIoT sensors and gateways depend on, and procurement teams still budgeting on old lead-time assumptions are about to get caught out.
Industrial IoT lead times are quietly becoming a two-tier problem, and most procurement calendars haven’t caught up. Advanced 32-bit microcontrollers and high-current power management chips now carry lead times of up to 52 weeks, while industrial-grade IoT components broadly run 24 to 36 weeks, according to Utmel’s 2026 semiconductor availability forecast. Meanwhile, commodity 8-bit MCUs have fallen back to a manageable 9 to 10 weeks. The gap between those two numbers is the real story.
Many industry observers claim the chip shortage is completely over, which is a common misconception, per Utmel’s analysis. What actually happened is a split: mature 8-bit architectures stabilized while advanced-node, AI-capable, and high-performance industrial families stayed tight. IoT chips and sensor fusion processors specifically carry lead times of 18 to 30 weeks depending on foundry node and packaging complexity, and ruggedized, high-reliability components face even tighter supply. Industrial IoT lead times didn’t shrink alongside the broader semiconductor recovery narrative; they diverged from it.
The Aging Damage We Thought Was Permanent
https://youtu.be/_Vf9pdoU3tUSugar
Watch the full episode for the complete breakdown https://youtu.be/_Vf9pdoU3tUSugar slowly sticks to proteins throughout your body, creating AGEs that build…
Nonrepeating photonic crystal may enable more tunable, reliable semiconductor lasers
Over the past two decades, photonic-crystal surface-emitting lasers (PCSELs) have shown promise as a type of advanced semiconductor laser useful in defense- and aerospace-related applications. Typically, these devices are made with photonic crystal patterns that repeat across the area of the device. But new research from the lab of electrical and computer engineering professor Kent Choquette has demonstrated a quasi-periodic photonic-crystal surface-emitting laser (QPCSEL). Fabricated with their buried dielectric platform, the group’s device highlights a new avenue for creating tunable, more reliable semiconductor lasers. Their findings appear in Applied Physics Letters.
Akita eyes AI data center that could become Japan’s largest
A plan is underway to build an artificial intelligence data center in Akita Prefecture that could become Japan’s largest.
The plan is being led by S2, a server management firm based in the city of Akita, and U.S. startup Bitgrit, with the total construction cost estimated at ¥2 trillion ($12.5 billion).
The firms are cooperating with Akita Prefecture and the city of Akita with an aim to make the data center a hub to attract AI-related businesses and human resources.