Optical techniques are experimental and analytical methods that exploit the generation, manipulation, and detection of electromagnetic radiation in the ultraviolet, visible, and infrared ranges to probe material properties, structures, and dynamics. They encompass approaches such as absorption, fluorescence, Raman and elastic scattering measurements, interferometry, and imaging modalities that rely on well-defined light–matter interactions. These techniques enable quantitative characterization of refractive indices, absorption coefficients, energy level structures, molecular conformations, and nanoscale morphology, often with high spatial and temporal resolution. Optical techniques are widely integrated with spectroscopy, microscopy, and metrology platforms and can be implemented in both far-field and near-field configurations.
In a study published in Nature Methods on December 2, a research team led by Profs. Xu Tao and Ji Wei from the Institute of Biophysics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences has developed a three-dimensional interferometric localization ...
Biotechnology
Dec 16, 2025
0
41
A new study from a research team at the Center for Wireless Communications Network and Systems (CWC-NS) at the University of Oulu has introduced an approach using near-infrared (NIR) light beyond light therapy to facilitate ...
Optics & Photonics
Dec 15, 2025
0
27
Scientists at the University of Oxford demonstrate an approach to interpreting how materials interact with polarized light, which could help advance biomedical imaging and material design.
Optics & Photonics
Dec 15, 2025
0
14
The microscopic processes taking place in superconductors are difficult to observe directly. Researchers at the RPTU University of Kaiserslautern-Landau have therefore implemented a quantum simulation of the Josephson effect: ...
Superconductivity
Dec 12, 2025
1
211
Researchers have developed a precision magnetometer based on a special material that changes optical properties in response to a magnetic field. The device, which is integrated onto a chip, could benefit space missions, navigation ...
Condensed Matter
Dec 11, 2025
0
90
Over the past decades, engineers have introduced numerous technologies that rely on light and its underlying characteristics. These include photonic and quantum systems that could advance imaging, communication and information ...
In 2008, a team of UCLA-led scientists proposed a scheme to use a laser to excite the nucleus of thorium atoms to realize extremely accurate, portable clocks. Last year, they realized this longstanding goal by bombarding ...
General Physics
Dec 10, 2025
0
44
Conventional telescopes are limited in detecting low-surface-brightness (LSB) structures, which are essential for studying galaxy evolution. Now, researchers have developed a new telescope system featuring a confocal off-axis ...
Astronomy
Dec 9, 2025
0
54
Researchers from the Physical Chemistry and Theory departments at the Fritz Haber Institute have found a new way to image layers of boron nitride that are only a single atom thick. This material is usually nearly invisible ...
Nanophysics
Dec 8, 2025
0
58
A research team at VTT MIKES has set a new record in optical-clock absolute frequency measurements using a strontium single-ion clock with exceptionally low uncertainty and high uptime.
General Physics
Dec 2, 2025
0
54
