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Optics & Photonics news
Nanosecond light-by-light switching achieved in liquid crystal droplet
Controlling light with light is a long-sought goal for computing and communication technologies. Achieving this capability would allow optical signals to be processed without converting them into electrical signals, potentially ...
Optics & Photonics
11 hours ago
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Ultrafast light pulses make molecules rotate on quantum materials
Researchers from Germany, Japan and India, led by scientists from DESY and the Universities of Kiel and Hamburg, have found a way to collectively make molecules on a flat surface rotate by exposing them to light using ultrafast ...
Optics & Photonics
13 hours ago
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Quantum entanglement offers route to higher-resolution optical astronomy
Researchers in the US have demonstrated how quantum entanglement could be used to detect optical signals from astronomical sources at the single-photon level. Published in Nature, a team led by Pieter-Jan Stas at Harvard ...
Water-window X-rays without a synchrotron: How graphite flakes could shrink bioimaging tools
Researchers from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) have found a new way to produce X-rays with wavelengths in what is called the "water window." This new method holds promise in making bioimaging ...
Optics & Photonics
Mar 6, 2026
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A superradiant clock phase emerges when Rydberg atoms meet quantum light, simulations suggest
Rydberg atoms are atoms with one or more outer electrons excited to very high energy levels, which interact very strongly with each other. These atoms are widely used to run quantum simulations and develop quantum technologies, ...
Engineers improve infrared devices using century-old materials
After decades of intense research, surprises in the realm of semiconductors—materials used in microchips to control electrical currents—are few and far between. But with a pair of published papers, materials engineers ...
Condensed Matter
Mar 5, 2026
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AI-designed diffractive optical processors pave the way for low-power structural health monitoring
A team of researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) has introduced a novel framework for monitoring structural vibrations using diffractive optical processors. This new technology uses artificial intelligence ...
Optics & Photonics
Mar 5, 2026
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Trapping light on thermal photodetectors shatters speed records
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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Möbius-inspired surface controls light in two directions
Light is an unusually rich carrier of information. Its direction of travel, wavelength, and polarization can all be used to encode signals or images. Yet controlling these properties independently remains difficult, especially ...
Optics & Photonics
Mar 4, 2026
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Smart fluorescent molecules provide cheaper path to sharper microscopy images
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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3D-printed 'plug' links fiber optics to photonic chips with low loss
Physicists and chemists at Heidelberg University have realized a photonic microchip that is driven by light just as easily as electronic components via a "plug." Their development could serve as the basis for fast and cost-effective ...
Optics & Photonics
Mar 2, 2026
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Laser-within-a-laser delivers MeV X-ray radiography in picoseconds
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory's National Ignition Facility (NIF) is the hottest place on Earth for the briefest of moments during an experiment. Now, it can be one of the brightest places thanks to the Advanced Radiographic ...
Optics & Photonics
Mar 2, 2026
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Heavier hydrogen makes silicon T centers shine brighter for quantum networks
Quantum technologies, computers or other devices that operate leveraging quantum mechanical effects, rely on the precise control of light and matter. Over the past decades, quantum physicists and material scientists have ...
InN thin films show transient Pauli blocking for broadband ultrafast optical switching
Recent decades have witnessed rapid advancements in high-intensity laser technology. The combination of laser irradiation and novel materials is opening exciting avenues for the design of functional materials and devices. ...
Optics & Photonics
Feb 27, 2026
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Metasurface-based SLM could enhance AR, VR and LiDAR performance
Many cutting-edge technologies, ranging from augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) to LiDAR (light detection and ranging) systems, rely on components that enable the precise control of light. These components include ...
The screech of peeling sticky tape conceals a rapid train of tiny shockwaves, ultrafast imaging shows
A new experiment has uncovered the mechanism responsible for the screeching sound made by peeling sticky tape. Using a combination of ultrafast imaging and synchronized acoustic recordings, Sigurdur Thoroddsen and colleagues ...
When light 'thinks' like the brain: The connection between photons and artificial memory
An international study has revealed a surprising connection between quantum physics and the theoretical models underlying artificial intelligence. The study results from a collaboration between the Institute of Nanotechnology ...
Optics & Photonics
Feb 24, 2026
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Physicists watch light drift in quantized steps for the first time
In physics, the classical "Hall effect," discovered in the late 19th century, describes how a transverse voltage is generated when an electric current is exposed to a perpendicular magnetic field. Simply put, the magnetic ...
Optics & Photonics
Feb 24, 2026
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Clearing the path for turbulence-free quantum communication
A University of Ottawa team has developed a new way to protect free-space quantum key distribution (QKD) from atmospheric turbulence, one of the main causes of distortion and errors when sending quantum information through ...
Optics & Photonics
Feb 24, 2026
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Hair-width LEDs could eventually replace lasers
LEDs no wider than a human hair could soon take on work traditionally handled by lasers, from moving data inside server racks to powering next-generation displays. New research co-authored by UC Santa Barbara doctoral student ...
Optics & Photonics
Feb 23, 2026
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Quantum computers go high-dimensional with a four-state photon gate
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Is this glass square the long, long future of data storage?
Next-generation OLEDs rely on fine-tuned microcavities
Physicists observe polaron formation for the first time
Quantum sensor research advances the pursuit of dark matter
Off-the-shelf components enable deployment-ready quantum entanglement source
A smart fluid that can be reconfigured with temperature
Time crystals could become accurate and efficient timekeepers
Hologram processing method boosts 3D image depth of focus fivefold
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Five-minute test spots PFAS down to parts-per-trillion
Nanolaser on a chip could cut computer energy use in half
Physicists develop new protocol for building photonic graph states
Stable high-energy pulses achieved with low-stress electro-optic switch
