Abstract: The present invention relates to a semiconductor device for production of a gas from a material comprising the gas using light as the sole power source. In an embodiment, the semiconductor comprises a substrate; a solid-state semiconductor layer disposed on the substrate; a photoactive semiconductor top layer further comprising a photoelectrochemical electrode junction; and an interface layer disposed between the solid-state semiconductor layer and the photoactive semiconductor top layer. A surface of the photoactive semiconductor top layer is exposed to both a source of light such as the sun and to the material, e.g. a liquid electrolyte. The gas is liberated from the material, e.g. hydrogen liberated from a liquid electrolyte. It is emphasized that this abstract is provided to comply with the rules requiring an abstract which will allow a searcher or other reader to quickly ascertain the subject matter of the technical disclosure.

Abstract: The present invention is a novel electronic technique that detects stress/strain in any conductive or semiconductive material. The technique is based on passing a current through the material of interest and analyzing the low frequency voltage fluctuation. The voltage fluctuation is very sensitive to the amount of stress present in the sample. The voltage fluctuation is a result of interactions between the imposed current and material itself. The technique is many orders of magnitude more sensitive than any present method. The technique is suitable for sensitive measurements without a strain gauge. The technique is not limited by sample size, and provides a simple, fast, nondestructive and on-site evaluation of stress/strain in a material.