Freeform optical components can offer optical design flexibility not possible with traditional optics, but presenting unique challenges for designers and manufacturers. Understanding manufacturing limitations early in the design process is crucial to ensure well-behaved surfaces.
Researchers developed a method to characterize nanomaterials using sequential infiltration synthesis in nanostructured polymers. This technique allows for the creation of extremely small structures on semiconductor surfaces, enabling further miniaturization of next-generation microelectronic components.
Researchers develop unique method for applying angular momentum holography for information multiplexing, enabling unprecedented capacity for optical information processing. The new paradigm allows for spatially modulating waveforms and offers additional security locks, revolutionizing existing optical encryption schemes.
Scientists have created a method to detect phase in objects using quantum light and a single pixel detector, revealing internal structure and thickness information. This technique has potential applications in biological imaging, quantum metrology, and LIGO-like detection of gravitational waves.
Researchers developed a new encryption method that encodes secret messages using brilliant colors created by silver nanostructures reacting to polarized light. The method's unique chiral response makes it more secure than traditional binary codes.
Researchers report the discovery of photonic hopfions, a new family of 3D topological solitons with freely tunable textures and numbers. These structures exhibit robust topological protection, making them suitable for applications in optical communications, quantum technologies, and metrology.
Scientists successfully created a light source that produced two entangled light beams using rubidium atoms. The entanglement was achieved by adding new detection steps to measure the quantum correlations in the amplitudes and phases of the fields generated, enabling applications in quantum computing, encryption, and metrology.
Researchers demonstrated high-visibility quantum interference between two independent semiconductor quantum dots, an important step toward scalable quantum networks. The observed interference visibility is up to 93%, paving the way for solid-state quantum networks with distances over 300 km.
Scientists have successfully filmed the impulsive response of bound electrons to intense XUV pulses using a new photoelectron spectroscopy. The technique provides a novel method for time-resolved imaging of ultrafast bound-state electron processes in intense laser fields.
A new method for preparing microwave squeezed vacuum states has been developed using a cavity magnomechanical system, overcoming limitations of existing Josephson parametric amplifiers. The work enables the production of high-quality squeezed states at room temperature with reduced cost and complexity.
Scientists have demonstrated mechanical bound states in the continuum (BICs) in an individual optomechanical microresonator, reducing energy dissipation and enhancing performance. BICs exist for a wide range of supporting structure geometries, enabling versatile applications in micro/nanoelectromechanical systems.
Researchers develop new technique to observe plasmons inside gold nanoparticles, revealing relaxation process with implications for energy conversion and development of light-harvesting materials. The ultrafast electron microscope enables analysis of ultrafast light-matter interactions at the nanoscale.
Researchers have developed a unique anapole probe to measure photonic spin structures, enabling advancements in spin photonics. The probe can characterize topological spin properties associated with magnetic fields, opening doors for applications like data storage and metrology.
A new common path interferometer combining Fizeau and Twyman-Green principles has been developed to measure complex precision optics with improved accuracy. The Tilted Wave Interferometer overcomes reference wave problems, enhancing flexibility and reducing measurement time.
Researchers have successfully demonstrated large numbers of interacting qubits maintaining coherence for an unprecedentedly long time, in a programmable solid state superconducting processor. This breakthrough could accelerate computing processes and enable applications such as quantum sensing and metrology.
Scientists developed a software platform to analyze surfaces, creating digital twins that predict material properties like adhesion and durability. The contact.engineering platform standardizes procedure and facilitates open science, allowing users to share measurements and collaborate.
Researchers from Purdue University have proposed a method to generate entangled photons at extreme-ultraviolet wavelengths, enabling the tracking of electron dynamics on attosecond timescales. This could push the limits of measurement down to zeptoseconds, improving our understanding of atomic and molecular behavior.
A team from Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences has developed an electro-optic frequency comb that is 100-times more efficient and has more than twice the bandwidth of previous state-of-the-art versions.
The study reveals that noise sources in the micro resonator can cause the lines to be narrower than previously thought, enabling more precise measurements. By understanding this phenomenon, researchers can develop even more accurate devices, such as instruments measuring signals at light-years distances.
The researchers achieved ultranarrow linewidths and wavelength tunability in the lithium niobate microlaser, enabling applications like lidar and metrology. The single-mode lasing is realized through simultaneous excitation of high-Q polygon modes at both pump and laser wavelengths.
Freeform optics have revolutionized the way we approach precision optical systems, enabling superior imaging in compact packages. Researchers have summarized the present state of art in advances, design methods, manufacturing, metrology, and applications. Key challenges include standard definitions, optimization complexities, and measu...
A team of researchers at the University of Tsukuba has developed a new method for measuring tiny changes in magnetic fields using nitrogen-vacancy defects in diamonds. This breakthrough could lead to more accurate quantum sensors and spintronic computers, enabling precise monitoring of temperature, magnetic, and electric fields.
Researchers successfully integrated an erbium-doped waveguide amplifier into a compact silicon nitride photonic chip, achieving high-power output of 145 megawatts with low noise. This breakthrough addresses the limitation of insufficient output power in optical integrated circuits.
Researchers at EPFL have developed a photonic integrated circuit based erbium-doped amplifier that generates record output power and provides high gain, matching commercial EDFAs. This breakthrough enables new applications in optical communications, LiDAR, quantum sensing, and memories.
Harvard researchers have created a compact and tunable electro-optic modulator for free space applications, capable of modulating light at gigahertz speeds. The modulator uses metasurface resonators with high-performance organic electro-optical materials and high-frequency electronics.
Researchers have developed a new type of optical fiber that generates high-power supercontinuum light in the mid-infrared spectrum, expanding its applications for environmental monitoring and cancer diagnostics. The non-silica graded-index fiber provides a self-cleaning mechanism, enabling efficient generation of broadband sources.
Deep learning is being adopted in optical metrology to solve ill-posed inverse problems, such as model mismatch and error accumulation. This approach leverages large datasets and active control strategies to produce accurate reconstruction results.
Researchers at Samsung have developed a novel approach to inspect critical dimensions of semiconductor devices, improving speed and resolution. The new 'line-scan hyperspectral imaging' (LHSI) technique offers faster measurements with high spatial resolution, outperforming existing methods.
Physicists at the University of Innsbruck have developed a programmable quantum sensor that can measure with even greater precision, using tailored entanglement to optimize performance. The sensor autonomously finds its optimal settings through free parameters, promising a significant advantage over classical computers.
Researchers have developed a lead-free ultra-broadband LED using lanthanide-doped double perovskites, offering improved stability and cost-effectiveness. The device shows promising applications in spectroscopic analysis and multifunctional lighting, outperforming previously reported ultrabroadband light sources.
A research team at POSTECH has developed a weak-value amplification method to achieve quantum metrology precision without using entangled resources. This breakthrough enables the practical use of quantum metrology by verifying that entanglement is not an absolute requirement for reaching the Heisenberg limit.
Researchers at UMass Amherst developed a gear-shaped photonic crystal microring that increases light-matter interactions without sacrificing optical quality. The device boasts an optical quality factor 50 times better than previous records.
Researchers at INRIM demonstrate a novel method for enhancing long-distance quantum key distribution by leveraging coherent laser interferometry, single-photon technologies, and quantum metrology. This breakthrough enables lower error rates and increased message length, paving the way for more efficient QKD protocols.
Scientists from Tampere University and National Research Council of Canada develop a technique using two-photon N00N states to create entangled photon pairs with improved measurement precision. This allows for spatially structured quantum states of light that can go beyond classical limits in rotation estimation.
A new technique using thin-film neural networks (TFNNs) improves processing times for all-optical neural networks and enables fast optimization of photonic devices. The approach accelerates the design and fabrication of multilayer thin films, mimicking human retina cells.
Researchers at the University of Rochester have generated an incredibly large bandwidth using a thin-film nanophotonic device, overcoming limitations of existing devices. The breakthrough could advance metrology, sensing, and quantum networks.
Researchers have developed a tiny chip-based device that uses two-mode squeezing to create unconditional entanglement between continuous optical fields. The new microcomb has been tested and found to exhibit raw squeezing of 1.6 dB, with potential for further improvement by reducing system losses.
A team at HZB and PTB developed a method to measure the lateral expansion of the electron beam in laser plasma accelerators, achieving resolutions in the micrometre range. This technique uses coherent radiation of electron pulses via interference patterns to determine the beam cross-section.
A new UK-wide facility will analyze innovative nanotechnologies for healthcare applications, enabling improved understanding of their performance and safety. The Multiscale Metrology Suite will provide access to world-leading technology for scientists across the UK.
A new metrology instrument and techniques have been developed to characterize strongly curved high-quality X-ray mirrors, enabling unprecedented accuracy. The technique, known as speckle angular measurement (SAM), can push the precision of slope error measurements down to 20nrad rms.
Researchers developed a high-throughput Fourier-optics-based angle-resolved imaging spectroscopy system with robust neural network-based algorithms to solve inverse scattering problems. The system achieved a strong linear correlation between the reconstructed geometric parameters and atomic force microscopy measurements.
A team from the Institute for Basic Science used entangled photons to test wave-particle duality and complementarity. They confirmed that source purity is tightly bounded by entanglement with remaining degrees of freedom, and analyzed visibility and predictability in a double-path interferometer.
Researchers at ETH Zurich and partners have demonstrated a method to send precise reference frequencies via conventional telecommunications infrastructure, enabling chemical spectroscopy analyses that are 100 times more accurate than before. The approach uses the L band frequency, which is less congested by data traffic, allowing for h...
The University of Huddersfield's Centre for Precision Technologies will receive £3m funding to drive advancements in machinery design and performance. The project aims to grow the UK's advanced machinery capability to a £2 billion export capacity within ten years, creating over 30,000 high-value manufacturing sector jobs.
Researchers at EPFL and UCSB successfully integrate ultralow-loss Si3N4 photonic integrated circuits with semiconductor lasers, enabling chip-scale frequency combs for high-capacity transceivers, data centers, and sensing applications. This breakthrough paves the way for large-volume, low-cost manufacturing of soliton microcombs.
Scientists have successfully transferred and recovered quantum coherence from photons scattered in free-space for the first time, paving the way for new applications in quantum communication, imaging, and sensing. The novel technique uses custom hardware to maintain coherence even after scattering from a diffuse surface.
A Perspective counters the DOJ's claim that forensic analysis of visual patterns is not metrology by highlighting biological sensory systems' ability to quantify patterns. This clarifies processes underlying human sensation and perception, potentially improving forensic accuracy.
Katie's research focuses on harnessing advances in digital information and data to enhance the identification of bullets and weapons. She aims to move away from subjective visual evidence and instead use quantifiable measurements and techniques.
The study demonstrates a stable time-frequency transfer via a high-orbit satellite-ground link, enabling potential performance of optical atomic clocks and intercontinental comparisons. The researchers achieved an instability of 4E-18 at 3,000 s with their dual-comb linear optical sampling method.
Prof. Dr. Piet O. Schmidt receives EU funding to explore fundamental questions of modern physics, aiming to improve limits for new forces and changes in natural constants. His team plans to develop novel measurement methods using highly charged ions.
Scientists have developed a new method to directly observe the filling and emptying of tiny pores in materials, revealing complex mechanisms behind guest-atom interactions. This breakthrough uses combined X-ray methods to provide empirical insights into confined matter in battery electrodes, catalysts, and hydrogen storage materials.
Researchers have developed a new class of versatile, high-performance quantum dots that emit single photons in the near-infrared range at room temperature. These breakthroughs open up practical applications in quantum communication, medical imaging, and diagnostics.
Researchers have developed a method to create arbitrary dimensional quantum-like classical light directly from a laser, enabling the control of high-dimensional classically entangled states. This breakthrough opens up new possibilities for applications in quantum metrology, error correction, and optical communication.
CPS&C'2021 brings together researchers and practitioners from around the world to discuss cyber-physical systems and control. The conference features keynote and plenary talks, sessions, and discussions, with accepted full papers published in a Scopus-indexed book of Conference Proceedings.
Scientists at Empa and ETH Zurich create piezoelectric wood by dissolving lignin using a biological process, resulting in an elastic material that generates a voltage when deformed. The technology has potential applications as a sensor or electricity-generating floor, and researchers are exploring its industrial feasibility.
Researchers at Columbia University School of Engineering and Applied Science have developed a new technique to control optical nonlinearity in 2D materials. The twistoptics approach enables giant nonlinear optical responses in small volumes, leading to compact laser systems and potential applications in quantum computing, spectroscopy,...
An international team has shown that a pattern of pulses can be generated in a synchrotron radiation source that combines the advantages of both systems, producing laser-like radiation with high repetition rates. This novel approach could facilitate advances in fields such as materials research and quantum physics.
Researchers from PTB and the University of Latvia have developed a statistical testing methodology for single-electron circuits, enabling the investigation of fundamental uncertainties. The new 'random-walk benchmark' provides a robust measure of assessing errors in quantum metrology.
Scientists have achieved a record-breaking transmission of a laser signal through the atmosphere, eliminating turbulence. This breakthrough enables precise time comparisons and has exciting applications in fundamental physics research, including testing Einstein's theory of general relativity.
Researchers have developed a new method to accurately characterize the thickness of hundreds-layer semiconductor devices using optical spectral measurements and machine learning. The technique can determine layer thickness with an average error of 1.6 Å, helping control etching and deposition processes.