http://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. For the first time, scientists working at the National Institute of Standards and Technology have demonstrated a new type of lens that bends and focuses ultraviolet (UV) light in such an unusual way that it can create ghostly, 3D images of objects that float in free space. The easy-to-build lens could lead to improved photolithography, nanoscale manipulation and manufacturing, and even high-resolution three-dimensional imaging, as well as a number of as-yet-unimagined applications in a diverse range of fields. http://phys.org/news288632618.html Physics Fri, 24 May 2013 16:46:14 EST news288632618 (Phys.org) —Researchers at the University of Rochester have applied a sophisticated imaging technique to obtain the first 3D, high-resolution pictures of a recently developed type of optical lenses. They say that using Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) during the manufacturing process allows them to significantly improve the quality of these new and promising lenses. http://phys.org/news286013205.html Physics Wed, 24 Apr 2013 09:11:07 EST news286013205 Drawing heavily upon nature for inspiration, a team of researchers has created a new artificial lens that is nearly identical to the natural lens of the human eye. This innovative lens, which is made up of thousands of nanoscale polymer layers, may one day provide a more natural performance in implantable lenses to replace damaged or diseased human eye lenses, as well as consumer vision products; it also may lead to superior ground and aerial surveillance technology. http://phys.org/news272028656.html Physics Tue, 13 Nov 2012 11:31:05 EST news272028656 Scientists discover that certain materials like silicon or gold exhibit a surprisingly large refractive index for extremely high energetic gamma-rays. http://phys.org/news256206413.html Physics Mon, 14 May 2012 09:27:21 EST news256206413 (PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers from the NIST Center for Nanoscale Science and Technology and the University of British Columbia have shown that the interaction between a light pulse and a light-absorbing object, including the momentum transfer and resulting movement of the object, can be calculated for any positive index of refraction using a few, well-established physical principles combined with a new model for mass transfer from light to matter. http://phys.org/news244361173.html Physics Thu, 29 Dec 2011 06:06:59 EST news244361173 Carbon nanotubes, tiny cylinders composed of one-atom-thick carbon lattices, have gained fame as one of the strongest materials known to science. Now a group of researchers from the University of Michigan is taking advantage of another one of carbon nanotubes' unique properties, the low refractive index of low-density aligned nanotubes, to demonstrate a new application: making 3-D objects appear as nothing more than a flat, black sheet. http://phys.org/news241095099.html Nanotechnology Mon, 21 Nov 2011 10:53:01 EST news241095099 A new type of active metamaterial that incorporates semiconductor devices into conventional metamaterial structures is demonstrating an ability to have power gain while retaining its negative refraction property, a first in the world of metamaterials research. http://phys.org/news240055910.html Physics Wed, 09 Nov 2011 10:11:59 EST news240055910 Researchers at Columbia Engineering School have built optical nanostructures that enable them to engineer the index of refraction and fully control light dispersion. They have shown that it is possible for light (electromagnetic waves) to propagate from point A to point B without accumulating any phase, spreading through the artificial medium as if the medium is completely missing in space. This is the first time simultaneous phase and zero-index observations have been made on the chip-scale and at the infrared wavelength. http://phys.org/news229515836.html Physics Sun, 10 Jul 2011 13:01:11 EST news229515836 In one University of Illinois lab, invisibility is a matter of now you hear it, now you don't. http://phys.org/news213461504.html Physics Wed, 05 Jan 2011 14:52:14 EST news213461504 Researchers have overcome a fundamental obstacle in using new "metamaterials" for radical advances in optical technologies, including ultra-powerful microscopes and computers and a possible invisibility cloak. http://phys.org/news200049904.html Physics Wed, 04 Aug 2010 13:00:04 EST news200049904 (PhysOrg.com) -- In 2008, researchers from the University of Arizona created a holographic 3D display that could write and erase images, making it the first updatable (or rewritable) holographic 3D display ever demonstrated. The key to the display was a photorefractive polymer material, which enabled the researchers to take advantage of the potential of holography to a greater extent than previously allowed. Now, in a follow-up study, the researchers have reported the results of their analysis on the performance of the display, including how the polymer enables display enhancements and what more needs to be done before such displays can be widely used. http://phys.org/news194082035.html Physics Wed, 26 May 2010 09:30:01 EST news194082035 (PhysOrg.com) -- Although the speed of light is constant in a vacuum, light slows down a small amount when traveling through other materials. While it's relatively easy to measure the speed of light in mediums made of one material, it's much more difficult to track light's speed through composite materials. Now, a new technique can determine the speed of light in composite materials by varying the pressure of light. http://phys.org/news168281326.html Physics Sun, 02 Aug 2009 13:49:24 EST news168281326