Latest Research News
Research News RSS feedPhotonic textiles are a perfect fit Sep 5, 2008
A glove incorporating plastic optical fibre is ideal for autonomously monitoring vital health statistics such as blood oxygenation.
VECSEL premiers in microscopy system Sep 4, 2008
A compact and reliable frequency doubled VECSEL could be an ideal replacement for the gas lasers used in confocal microscopy systems.
Laser emits tunable blue light Sep 3, 2008
A solid-state laser that offers practical output powers and a tuning range of 425 to 489 nm is unveiled by researchers in Spain.
Concave microlens offers shortest focal length Sep 2, 2008
A microlens that uses negative refraction to achieve a record focal length of 12 µm could benefit high-density imaging and optoelectronics systems.
Nanolaser tunes in excess of 100 nm Aug 29, 2008
Charles Lieber tells optics.org how new levels of control have led to nanowire lasers capable of emitting between 365 and 494 nm.
SLM boosts microscope resolution Aug 28, 2008
Researchers have extended the resolution of a wide-field microscope beyond the diffraction limit to image cells in finer detail.
VCSEL extends its reach to detect CO Aug 27, 2008
Carbon monoxide can now be detected by vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers, thanks to a design that pushes emission out to 2.3 microns.
Nanosphere-coated LEDs emit white light Aug 26, 2008
Chinese researchers have found that adding an opal-like layer of fluorescent nanospheres to blue LEDs gives uniform white-light emission.
Nano-gold doesn't reflect THz radiation Aug 22, 2008
Nanostructured gold films can be used as effective broadband terahertz antireflection coatings, say scientists in Germany.
Intraoperative images improve surgical precision Aug 21, 2008
A NIR fluorescence imaging system could offer real-time image guidance during cancer surgery.
Latest Research Analysis
Research Analysis RSS feedPlasmonics propagates into new optical fields Sep 5, 2008
This month's topic is the promising field of plasmonics. Marie Freebody speaks to Niek van Hulst about the potential wealth of applications that are on the horizon.
Attosecond insight tracks electron motion Jul 25, 2008
Attosecond pulses could allow us to explore the ultimate limits of many modern technologies including semiconductor electronics and optoelectronics. Marie Freebody speaks to Reinhard Kienberger about the progress so far and what to expect in the future.
Ultrafast technology shifts to wafer scale Jul 11, 2008
Combining a saturable absorber and a gain section in a single semiconductor structure could lead to a new generation of compact ultrafast lasers. Jacqueline Hewett talks to ultrafast pioneer Ursula Keller of ETH Zurich, Switzerland, to find out about her latest idea.
Optical frequency combs span new wavelengths Jun 20, 2008
Optical frequency combs are breaking new ground in applications ranging from precision timing to breath analysis. Marie Freebody speaks to Jun Ye from JILA to find out more.
'Multidisciplinarians' are the future of photonics May 30, 2008 1 comment
Photonic enabling technologies are undergoing a second renaissance, argues Tom Baer, executive director of the Stanford Photonics Research Center in California, US. Joe McEntee asked him how industry and academia can take maximum advantage of the growth opportunities.
New growth for optical coherence tomography May 16, 2008
Optical coherence tomography is an emerging medical imaging technology with an ever growing list of applications. Marie Freebody speaks to James Fujimoto to find out more.
Metamaterials move beyond nature's limits May 9, 2008
Metamaterials are poised to impact every area of optics with their unusual and often surprising properties. Natasha Litchinitser and Vladimir Shalaev review recent progress and look at some of the potential applications of these fascinating materials
Optical clocks move towards miniaturization Apr 18, 2008
Optical atomic clocks have the potential to measure time with unprecedented precision. Marie Freebody speaks to experts John Kitching and Leo Hollberg to find out more.
Novel thin films target device applications Apr 4, 2008 1 comment
A new class of optical thin-film materials enables the refractive index to be tuned to extremely low values. E Fred Schubert and colleagues believe that this capability could have important applications in real-world devices, including solar cells and LEDs.
Optical trapping moves towards microfluidics Mar 20, 2008
Optical trapping is a rapidly advancing and versatile field. Kishan Dholakia speaks to Marie Freebody about the breakthroughs so far and his expectations for the future.