Laser systems, as physical systems, comprise an optical gain medium, an energy pump source, and an optical resonator configured to produce coherent, monochromatic, and highly directional electromagnetic radiation via stimulated emission. The gain medium (solid-state, gas, liquid, or semiconductor) is excited by optical, electrical, or chemical pumping, creating a population inversion between quantized energy levels. The resonator, typically a pair of mirrors or integrated waveguide structures, provides optical feedback and mode selection, defining spatial and spectral properties. System performance is characterized by thresholds, efficiency, beam quality (M²), temporal regime (CW or pulsed), and stability against thermal, mechanical, and nonlinear optical effects.
A laser-based system that can create mesh-like structures in a dish that resemble the cytoskeletons of cells has been developed by two RIKEN researchers. They demonstrated its usefulness for research by exploring how two ...
Cell & Microbiology
Mar 21, 2026
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22
A new laser range-finding technique, inspired by quantum physics, that can measure distances under strong solar background has been demonstrated by researchers at the University of Bristol. The team has proved their hypothesis ...
Optics & Photonics
Mar 17, 2026
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95
Ultrashort mid-infrared (mid-IR) laser pulses are essential for applications such as molecular spectroscopy, nonlinear microscopy, and biomedical imaging, but their generation often relies on complex and power-intensive systems ...
Optics & Photonics
Mar 11, 2026
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38
Physicists at the University of Colorado Boulder have demonstrated a new kind of vacuum ultraviolet laser that is 100 to 1,000 times more efficient than existing technologies of its kind. The researchers say the device could ...
Nanophysics
Mar 11, 2026
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123
Photonic chips use light to process data instead of electricity, enabling faster communication speeds and greater bandwidth. Most of that light typically stays on the chip, trapped in optical wires, and is difficult to transmit ...
Optics & Photonics
Mar 11, 2026
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The future for our computers will literally be at the speed of light. Extremely short light pulses can perform ultrafast logical operations: these are the findings of a study recently published in the journal Nature Photonics. ...
Optics & Photonics
Mar 10, 2026
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146
Researchers have developed a microscopic 3D-printed optical device that can efficiently combine light from dozens of small semiconductor lasers into a single multimode optical fiber with very low loss. The team demonstrated ...
Optics & Photonics
Mar 10, 2026
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120
A research team at Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden, has developed new laser technology that could lead to tiny, cost-effective biosensors. The sensors integrate lasers and optics together on a centimeter-sized chip, ...
Optics & Photonics
Mar 10, 2026
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136
Electrical engineers at Duke University have demonstrated the fastest pyroelectric photodetector to date, which works by absorbing heat generated by incoming light. Capable of capturing light from the entire electromagnetic ...
Optics & Photonics
Mar 4, 2026
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51
Multiphoton microscopy is used in biomedical research to study cells and tissues. Today, so-called two-photon microscopy is used to study processes within cells, but the technique has limitations in terms of image resolution. ...
Optics & Photonics
Mar 2, 2026
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