Bluesky Facebook Reddit Email

A simple way of sculpting matter into complex shapes

Researchers at the University of Strathclyde have developed a new technique for sculpting matter into complex shapes using 'twisted' light. When this light is shone on ultracold atoms, it breaks into clusters of BEC droplets that move following the light's features.

Simple silicon coating solves long-standing optical challenge

Researchers at Harvard SEAS developed a new silicon coating that counters chromatic dispersion in transparent materials like glass. The ultra-thin coating uses precisely designed silicon pillars to capture and re-emitting red light, allowing slower-moving blue light to catch up.

Garmin GPSMAP 67i with inReach

Garmin GPSMAP 67i with inReach provides rugged GNSS navigation, satellite messaging, and SOS for backcountry geology and climate field teams.

Slow light to speed up LiDAR sensors development

Researchers from Yokohama National University have developed a new method using slow light to create a compact and non-mechanical LiDAR sensor. This technology has the potential to improve the performance of LiDAR sensors in various fields, including autonomous vehicles, robots, and drones.

Tuning optical resonators gives researchers control over transparency

Scientists at Washington University in St. Louis have created an optical resonator system that can turn transparency on and off, allowing for control over a process called electromagnetically induced transparency. This technology has far-reaching implications for applications such as quantum computing, communications, and more.

Researchers slow light to a crawl in liquid crystal matrix

Scientists have developed a new technique to slow down light by embedding dye molecules in a liquid crystal matrix, allowing for more efficient sensing and interferometry applications. The method uses little power, operates at room temperature, and can measure extremely low speeds in just one second of measurement time.

Forget about leprechauns, engineers are catching rainbows

Researchers developed a hyperbolic metamaterial waveguide to catch a 'rainbow' of wavelengths, halting and absorbing each frequency of light. This advancement could lead to new technologies in electronics, solar panels, and stealth coating materials.

Meta Quest 3 512GB

Meta Quest 3 512GB enables immersive mission planning, terrain rehearsal, and interactive STEM demos with high-resolution mixed-reality experiences.

Rainbow-trapping scientist now strives to slow light waves even further

Qiaoqiang Gan and his team have developed nanoplasmonic structures that can slow broadband light waves, allowing them to trap multiple wavelengths of light on a single chip. This breakthrough could lead to significant increases in processing and transmission capacity for optical data storage and communications.

'Slow light' on a chip holds promise for optical communications

Scientists at UC Santa Cruz and Brigham Young University have created an optical device that slows down light by a factor of 1,200, enabling potential vast improvements in ultra-low-power performance. The breakthrough holds promise for all-optical quantum communication networks.

GQ GMC-500Plus Geiger Counter

GQ GMC-500Plus Geiger Counter logs beta, gamma, and X-ray levels for environmental monitoring, training labs, and safety demonstrations.

USC/Duke team lets there be leisurely light

The USC/Duke team has made significant improvements in controlling light pulses, achieving a slowdown of up to 20-fold increase over previous methods. By using a simple optical fiber and exploiting the Brillouin effect, they can potentially accommodate higher data rates and enable more efficient processing with photonics.

Light that travels... faster than light!

Researchers at EPFL successfully demonstrate controlling the speed of light in an optical fiber, slowing it down by a factor of 3.6 and speeding it up to exceed the speed of light without violating relativity. This breakthrough has significant implications for optical computing and telecommunications.

Optical computer made from frozen light

Researchers calculate that ultra-cold atoms can be used to perform controlled coherent processing with light, preserving information content. This technology has the potential to revolutionize optical computing and create faster-than-electron computers.

Super slow light may help speed optical communications

Physicists at NIST propose new way to slow light down to almost one-millionth its usual speed using a stable pulsed laser in cryogenic gas. This method could help simplify and reduce the cost of high-speed optical communications, enabling faster signal routing and data synchronization.

Apple AirPods Pro (2nd Generation, USB-C)

Apple AirPods Pro (2nd Generation, USB-C) provide clear calls and strong noise reduction for interviews, conferences, and noisy field environments.