Photonics
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May 21 | News
A team of engineers at Stanford University and the University of Pennsylvania has for the first time used plasmonic cloaking to create a device that can see without being seen—an invisible machine that detects light. It is the first example of what the researchers describe as a new class of devices that controls the flow of light at the nanoscale to produce both optical and electronic functions.
May 16 | News
By
combining the light of three powerful infrared telescopes, an
international research team has observed the active accretion phase of a
supermassive black hole in the center of a galaxy tens of millions of
light years away, a method that has yielded an unprecedented amount of
data for such observations.
May 15 | News
A
strong laser beam can remove an electron from an atom, a process that
occur almost instantaneously. Researchers in Austria have been able to
study this phenomenon with a time resolution of less than 10
attoseconds, allowing them to observe the atom being ionized and the
free electron being “born”.
May 15 | News
Camera
maker Canon Inc. is moving toward fully automating digital camera
production in an effort to cut costs—a key change being played out
across Japan, a world leader in robotics. According to the company
spokesman, counting on machines can help preserve the country's
technological power.
May 9 | News
A
detailed description of development of the first practical device that
mimics the process of photosynthesis has recently been published in an
American Chemical Society journal. Unlike earlier devices, which used
costly ingredients, the new device is made from inexpensive materials
and employs low-cost engineering and manufacturing processes.
May 9 | News
White-light
quantum dots made from cadmium selenide can convert blue light produced
by a light-emitting diode into a warm white light similar to that
generated by an incandescent bulb. But their performance has been poor
until recent development breakthroughs have improved efficiency from
just 3% originally to as high as 45%.
May 7 | News
As
valuable as X-ray mammography is, it has certain drawbacks, such as
exposure to ionizing radiation and the potential for false results. In
the first phase of clinical testing is a new imaging device built around
the principle of photoacoustics, or light-induced sound, that can
detect and visualize breast tumors with a high degree of targetting
accuracy.
May 3 | News
An
optical switch recently developed at the Joint Quantum Institute can
steer a beam of light from one direction to another in only 120
picosecs, requiring very little power and only about 90 attojoules. At
the wavelength used, in the near-infrared (921 nm), this amounts to only
about 140 photons.
Apr 30 | News
The
title of world’s most accurate clock has been transferred from devices
based on the steady oscillations of the cesium atom to clocks based on
optical transitions. Before this newfound precision can redefine the
second, or lead to new applications like ultra-precise navigation, the
system used to communicate time around the globe will need an upgrade.
Researchers have recently demonstrated how this could be accomplished.
Apr 27 | News
Taking
their cue from the humble leaf, researchers have used microscopic folds
on the surface of photovoltaic material to significantly increase the
power output of flexible, low-cost solar cells. Though the work by
Princeton University researchers involved plastic-based cells that are
not yet in widespread use, they reported a substantial increase in
electricity generation through channeling of light waves.
