One of the newer Sci-Fi authors that has impressed me is Ted Chiang. In particular I enjoyed most of the short stories in this collection:
http://www.amazon.com.au/Stories-You.../dp/B0048EKOP0
And he also wrote the best story (IMO) in this collection (it's what made me go looking for anything else he'd published):
www.amazon.com/Best-Science-Fiction-Fantasy-Year/dp/1781082162
Many of his stories are not quite your typical Sci-Fi. They tend to emphasise the social/personal impacts of science rather than the technological - which is one of the things I really like about them. They are all very thought provoking and cleverly put together.
Regrettably Ted Chiang hasn't been all that prolific, and some of this work has turned out to be hard to get.