https://phys.org/physics-news/optics-photonics en-us The latest news on Optics and Photonics At particle accelerator facilities around the world, scientists rely on powerful X-rays to reveal the structure and behavior of atoms and molecules. Now, researchers from the Department of Energy's SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory have calculated how to make X-ray pulses at X-ray free-electron lasers (XFEL) even brighter and more reliable by building a special cavity chamber and diamond mirrors around an XFEL. https://phys.org/news/2023-08-x-ray-laser-brightness-power-crystal.html Optics & Photonics Wed, 02 Aug 2023 13:10:10 EDT news610200606 A University of Minnesota-led team has, for the first time, engineered an atomically thin material that can absorb nearly 100% of light at room temperature, a discovery that could improve a wide range of applications from optical communications to stealth technology. Their paper has been published in Nature Communications. https://phys.org/news/2023-08-team-near-perfect-absorption-atomic-scale-material.html Optics & Photonics Wed, 02 Aug 2023 08:05:27 EDT news610182324 Optical phase retrieval and imaging appear in a wide variety of science fields, such as imaging of quasi-transparent biological samples or nanostructures metrological characterization, for example, in the semiconductor industry. At a fundamental level, the limit to imaging accuracy in classical systems comes from the intrinsic fluctuation of the illuminating light, since the photons that form it are emitted randomly by conventional sources and behave independently of one another. https://phys.org/news/2023-08-quantum-enhanced-non-interferometric-quantitative-phase-imaging.html Optics & Photonics Quantum Physics Tue, 01 Aug 2023 17:10:01 EDT news610128022 The laser is so small you need a microscope to see it properly. But it's not just the size that scientists at Sandia National Laboratories are excited about. https://phys.org/news/2023-08-shrunken-laser.html Optics & Photonics Tue, 01 Aug 2023 16:19:04 EDT news610125541 Acquiring real-time spectral information in point-of-care diagnosis, internet-of-things, and other lab-on-chip applications requires spectrometers with hetero-integration capability and miniaturized features. Compared to conventional semiconductors integrated by heteroepitaxy, solution-processable semiconductors provide a much-flexible integration platform due to their solution-processability, and therefore, are more suitable for the multi-material integrated system. However, solution-processable semiconductors are usually incompatible with micro-fabrication processes, making them far from practical use in various lab-on-chip applications. https://phys.org/news/2023-08-platform-spectrometers-based-solution-processable-semiconductors.html Optics & Photonics Tue, 01 Aug 2023 15:04:03 EDT news610121042 A new variable selection method for use in chemometrics applications has recently been proposed by a team of researchers from the Hefei Institutes of Physical Science of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. They call the algorithm multi-weight optimal-bootstrap soft shrinkage (MWO-BOSS). The work is published in Infrared Physics & Technology. https://phys.org/news/2023-08-algorithm-efficient-variables-chemometrics-applications.html Optics & Photonics Tue, 01 Aug 2023 13:28:46 EDT news610115324 Researchers at Purdue University are advancing the world of robotics and autonomy with their patent-pending method that improves on traditional machine vision and perception. https://phys.org/news/2023-08-thermal-imaging-ai-pitch-darkness.html Optics & Photonics Tue, 01 Aug 2023 13:14:18 EDT news610114453 Can one see through a scattering medium like ground glass? Conventionally, such a feat would be deemed impossible. As light travels through an opaque medium, the information contained in the light becomes "jumbled up," almost as if undergoes complex encryption. Recently, Professor Choi Wonshik's team from the IBS Center for Molecular Spectroscopy and Dynamics (IBS CMSD) has discovered a way to utilize this phenomenon in optical computing and machine learning. https://phys.org/news/2023-08-exploiting-nonlinear-medium-optical-encryption.html Optics & Photonics Tue, 01 Aug 2023 10:03:04 EDT news610102981 Technological advancements like autonomous driving and computer vision are driving a surge in demand for computational power. Optical computing, with its high throughput, energy efficiency, and low latency, has garnered considerable attention from academia and industry. However, current optical computing chips face limitations in power consumption and size, which hinders the scalability of optical computing networks. https://phys.org/news/2023-07-harnessing-power-advancements-photonic-memory.html Optics & Photonics Mon, 31 Jul 2023 16:29:02 EDT news610039741 Quantum memory that depends on quantum-band integration is a key building block used to develop quantum networks that are compatible with fiber communication infrastructures. Quantum engineers and IT specialists have yet to create such a network with large capacity to form an integrated multimode photonic quantum memory at telecom band. https://phys.org/news/2023-07-telecom-band-integrated-multimode-photonic-quantum-memory.html Optics & Photonics Quantum Physics Mon, 31 Jul 2023 13:10:54 EDT news610027848 Bringing protons up to speed with strong laser pulses—this still young concept promises many advantages over conventional accelerators. For instance, it seems possible to build much more compact facilities. Prototypes to date, however, in which laser pulses are fired at ultra-thin metal foils, show weaknesses—especially in the frequency with which they can accelerate protons. https://phys.org/news/2023-07-method-proton-high-power-laser.html Optics & Photonics Mon, 31 Jul 2023 11:34:04 EDT news610022042 Topology plays an enormous role in modern condensed matter physics and beyond. It describes how solid materials can combine two very different and somewhat contradictory properties—for example, topological insulators are materials whose bulk acts as an insulator, but whose surfaces and edges can conduct electricity nonetheless. https://phys.org/news/2023-07-evidence-universal-topological-signatures-high.html Condensed Matter Optics & Photonics Mon, 31 Jul 2023 10:57:03 EDT news610019821 A research team led by Prof. Wu Yuntao from the Shanghai Institute of Ceramics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, together with collaborators from Huazhong University of Science and Technology, has developed a new type of inorganic scintillator for high-resolution, fast X-ray imaging. The study was published in Science Advances. https://phys.org/news/2023-07-scintillator-benign-grain-boundaries-high-resolution.html Optics & Photonics Mon, 31 Jul 2023 09:59:31 EDT news610016367 A long-standing challenge in the field of quantum physics is the efficient synchronization of individual and independently generated photons (i.e., light particles). Realizing this would have crucial implications for quantum information processing that relies on interactions between multiple photons. https://phys.org/news/2023-07-team-synchronizes-photons-atomic-quantum.html Optics & Photonics Quantum Physics Sun, 30 Jul 2023 09:10:01 EDT news609674506 The interactions between light and matter are a central research focus in the field of photonics. Resonant cavities with high quality factors (Q) are capable to confine light effectively and exhibit ultra-long radiation lifetimes, making them essential for applications such as lasers, modulators, nonlinear optics, and quantum computing. https://phys.org/news/2023-07-advances-perspectives-photonic-bound-states.html Optics & Photonics Fri, 28 Jul 2023 14:01:03 EDT news609771662 Acoustic emission (AE) monitoring is used to reveal the interaction mechanisms in pulsed laser processing of float glass. Circular ablated pits and irregular shaped cracks are formed on the float glass's upper surface by the pulsed laser dotting. By analyzing the AE signals, the intensity of laser ablation can be assessed, and the formation of large crack can be extracted. https://phys.org/news/2023-07-acoustic-emission-technique-essential-pulsed.html Optics & Photonics Fri, 28 Jul 2023 13:43:02 EDT news609770581 Computational imaging has the potential to revolutionize optical imaging by providing wide field-of-view and high-resolution capabilities. Joint reconstruction of amplitude and phase—known as "coherent imaging or holographic imaging"—expands the throughput of an optical system to billions of optically resolvable spots. This breakthrough enables researchers to gain crucial insights into cellular and molecular structures for biomedical research. https://phys.org/news/2023-07-complex-domain-neural-network-advances-large-scale.html Optics & Photonics Thu, 27 Jul 2023 16:36:03 EDT news609694562 Electron-phonon scattering is often the primary mechanism limiting electron mobility in semiconductors. Thus, changing phonon properties can provide a way to control conductivity. Recently, there has been a growing interest in exploring the use of the quantum nature of light as an alternative approach. In this method, the material properties are modulated by tuning its interaction with the vacuum state of the electromagnetic field. https://phys.org/news/2023-07-electro-optic-response-perovskite-coupled-phonon-resonant.html Condensed Matter Optics & Photonics Thu, 27 Jul 2023 16:05:02 EDT news609692701 Since the conception of the laser frequency comb in the late 1990s, it has revolutionized the precise measurement of frequency and time. Beyond their initial use in optical clocks and precision spectroscopy, optical frequency combs (OFCs) have exhibited strong potential for various applications, including ultraviolet and infrared (IR) spectroscopy, remote sensing, optical frequency synthesis, and high-speed optical communications. https://phys.org/news/2023-07-scientist-broadband-quantum-dot-frequency-modulated-laser.html Optics & Photonics Thu, 27 Jul 2023 13:01:04 EDT news609681662 Photonic systems are quickly gaining traction in many emerging applications, including optical communications, lidar sensing, and medical imaging. However, the widespread adoption of photonics in future engineering solutions hinges on the cost of manufacturing photodetectors, which, in turn, largely depends on the kind of semiconductor utilized for the purpose. https://phys.org/news/2023-07-absorption-thin-silicon-photodetectors-photon-trapping.html Optics & Photonics Wed, 26 Jul 2023 16:44:33 EDT news609608670 Ultrafast extreme ultraviolet (XUV) spectroscopy is a powerful technique for probing the dynamics of atoms and molecules with attosecond time resolution. However, conventional XUV absorption measurements only provide information about the imaginary part of the complex refractive index, which is related to the absorption coefficient. The real part of the refractive index, which describes the chromatic dispersion of the material, is usually inaccessible. https://phys.org/news/2023-07-refractive-index-line-ultrafast-xuv.html Optics & Photonics Wed, 26 Jul 2023 15:33:03 EDT news609604382 Researchers have developed a new method for capturing the complex behavior of turbulent flames produced during combustion. Insights provided by this high-speed 3D imaging approach could be used to develop more efficient and cleaner combustion systems for cars, airplanes, factories and power plants. https://phys.org/news/2023-07-high-speed-imaging-method-captures-3d.html Optics & Photonics Wed, 26 Jul 2023 13:35:03 EDT news609597301 An optical phased array (OPA) is a nonmechanical beam-steering control device with high directivity and deflection efficiency. Due to its high resolution, fast response, and absence of inertia, the OPA is widely applied in LiDAR, free-space optical communication, multi-beamforming and many other fields. https://phys.org/news/2023-07-scientists-optical-phased-array-calibration.html Optics & Photonics Wed, 26 Jul 2023 11:12:52 EDT news609588769 Raman spectroscopy—a chemical analysis method that shines monochromatic light onto a sample and records the scattered light that emerges—has caused frustration among biomedical researchers for more than half a century. Due to the heat generated by the light, live proteins are nearly destroyed during the optical measurements, leading to diminishing and non-reproducible results. As of recently, however, those frustrations may now be a thing of the past. https://phys.org/news/2023-07-raman-technique-years-frustration.html Optics & Photonics Wed, 26 Jul 2023 10:25:46 EDT news609585942 New theoretical and experimental physics research shows the first ever creation of a diverse range of fine-sized, special polarization structures known as solitons in a multiferroic material. While solitons have been previously identified in pure ferroelectrics—or materials with polarization—this range of solitons had not been shown to exist in multiferroic materials, in which magnetic spin exists in addition to polarization. https://phys.org/news/2023-07-class-tiny-polarization-solitons.html Condensed Matter Optics & Photonics Wed, 26 Jul 2023 10:16:03 EDT news609585361 If you take an object and set it out in the sun, it will begin to warm up. This is because it is absorbing energy from the sun's rays and converting that energy to heat. If you leave that object outside, it will continue getting warmer, but only to a point. A sunbather lying on a beach won't catch fire, after all. https://phys.org/news/2023-07-energy-harvesting-law-breaking-device.html General Physics Optics & Photonics Tue, 25 Jul 2023 16:42:33 EDT news609522149 Recently, an artificial visual device with integrated visual adaptation functions was proposed by Professor Xu Haiyang's group from Key Laboratory of UV-Emitting Materials and Technology of Ministry of Education, Northeast Normal University, China. https://phys.org/news/2023-07-self-powered-broadband-opto-sensor-bionic-visual.html Optics & Photonics Tue, 25 Jul 2023 16:11:02 EDT news609520261 Precise control of light is a crucial requirement in optical imaging, sensing, and communication. Traditional lenses employed for the purpose have limitations, necessitating more precise and compact solutions. To address this need, researchers have developed metalenses, ultrathin lenses constructed from nanomaterials that are smaller in size than the wavelength of light. These sub-wavelength elements provide the means to manipulate light waves with exceptional precision, facilitating a precise control of the amplitude, phase, polarization, and direction of light waves. https://phys.org/news/2023-07-image-quality-broadband-achromatic-polarization-insensitive.html Optics & Photonics Tue, 25 Jul 2023 15:44:03 EDT news609518641 Computational imaging techniques are growing more popular, but the large number of measurements they require often lead to slow speeds or damage to biological samples. A newly developed physics-informed variational autoencoder (P-VAE) framework could help speed up computational imaging by using supervised learning to jointly reconstruct many light sources, each with sparse measurements. https://phys.org/news/2023-07-physics-framework-imaging-faster.html Optics & Photonics Tue, 25 Jul 2023 11:30:50 EDT news609503447 Managing and classifying waste accurately for reuse is a growing challenge in environmental protection. Addressing this issue, researchers at Hefei University of Technology in China have embarked on a quest to innovate in the realm of waste management, seeking effective methods that can simplify and improve the identification and classification of recyclable waste. https://phys.org/news/2023-07-recyclable-classification-laser-induced-breakdown-spectroscopy.html Optics & Photonics Tue, 25 Jul 2023 11:00:01 EDT news609494367