US Patent 7710235 - Spiral nanocoil inductor

http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7710235.html

This patent from Northrop Grumman teaches the manufacture of inductive microstructures fabricated from silicon nitride/silicon nanocoils and applied to RF-MEMS. Claim 6 reads:

6. An inductor comprising:

a spiral nanocoil tube with a plurality of spiral coils adjacent to each other, in which the spiral coils have a substantially constant pitch, the spiral nanocoil tube defines an air core, and the spiral nanocoil tube is fabricated from material providing inductance when a current is applied to the spiral nanocoil tube;

wherein the nanocoil tube has a radius of approximately 7 microns.

US Patent 7561760 - Optical beam steering using nanowires

http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7561760.html

This patent from Northrop Grumman teaches electrically or magnetically steering optical signals transmitted in nanowires. Claim 1 reads:

1. A method for steering optical frequency beams using nanowire, comprising:

providing one or more nanowire waveguide arrays;

generating an optical frequency beam, wherein the optical frequency beam is incident on the one or more nanowire waveguide arrays;

controlling the one or more nanowire waveguide arrays to produce a phase delay in the optical frequency beam as it travels through nanowire waveguide array, wherein the phase delay causes the optical frequency beam to deflect upon exiting the one or more nanowire waveguide arrays; and

steering the optical frequency beam exiting the one or more nanowire waveguide arrays by increasing or decreasing the phase delay, wherein the angle of deflection of the exiting optical frequency beam is determined by the gradient of the phase delay.

US Patent 7498832 - Quantum logic gate with coupled resonator

http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7498832.html

This patent from Northrop Grumman teaches more accurate control of quantum logic using resonators. Claim 1 reads:

1. In a quantum circuit having a qubit coupled to a resonator, a method for creating a quantum logic gate, comprising:

adjusting quantum state in the qubit by transitioning a classical control parameter between control points at a selected one of slow and fast transition speeds;

whereby a slow transition speed exchanges energy states of the qubit and the resonator, and a fast transition speed preserves the energy states of the qubit and the resonator.