Science and Research Articles

Reducing substitutional carbon in AlN LED substrates boosts deep-UV LED efficiency

Tue, 15 May 2012 19:57:00 GMT

Raleigh, NC--Researchers from North Carolina and Japan have developed a more-efficient UV LED potentially useful in sterilization of bacteria and viruses.

Gold- and silver-free metamaterial shows negative refraction in the near-IR

Mon, 14 May 2012 22:46:00 GMT

West Lafayette, IN--To create an alternative to the use of silver and gold in metamaterials, researchers at Purdue University, the Russian Quantum Center (Moscow, Russia), and DTU Fotonik, Technical University of Denmark (Lyngby, Denmark) have replaced the noble metals with aluminum-doped zinc oxide (AZO), resulting in a metamaterial that experimentally demonstrates negative refraction in the near-IR.

Photoacoustics screen for breast cancer without X-rays

Wed, 09 May 2012 02:58:00 GMT

Twente, The Netherlands--Researchers from Netherlands' University of Twente and Medisch Spectrum Twente Hospital in Oldenzaal are now using photoacoustics rather than ionizing radiation to detect and visualize breast tumors.

Northrop Grumman demonstrates anti-cruise missile laser weapon

Mon, 07 May 2012 02:15:00 GMT

Redondo Beach, CA--Northrop Grumman tested fired the first of its Firstrike family of high-energy, solid-state lasers, demonstrating that it could burn through the skin and critical components of a target drone used to simulate anti-ship cruise missile threats to U.S. Navy ships.

M Squared Lasers secures investment for growth in remote sensing

Fri, 04 May 2012 21:30:00 GMT

Glasgow, Scotland--The UK-based Business Growth Fund has invested £3.85 million of capital in M Squared Lasers, taking a minority stake in the company and joining the board of directors.

Refraction of gamma rays in silicon opens the way for gamma-ray optics

Fri, 04 May 2012 19:37:00 GMT

Garching, Germany and Grenoble, France--A team of European researchers has discovered "significant" refraction of gamma rays by silicon.

NOVEL PHOTONIC MATERIALS: Artificial material transforms itself from dielectric to metal

Fri, 04 May 2012 17:54:00 GMT

Experimental work led by physicists at Queens College, City University of New York (CUNY) in collaboration with City College of CUNY combined with theoretical work from Purdue University and the University of Alberta has uncovered a new method to manipulate light by borrowing an idea from the field of mathematical topology.

Isolated attosecond pulses produced via "lighthouse effect" take snapshots of electron motion

Fri, 04 May 2012 01:00:00 GMT

Essonne, France--Physicists from France and Canada are using isolated, precisely timed attosecond pulses of light to study the fleeting motions of electrons.

STRONG-FIELD PHYSICS: Ultrafast pulses, gold nanotips renew classical view of the photoelectric effect

Thu, 03 May 2012 21:20:00 GMT

Scientists at the University of Göttingen have demonstrated that in the so-called strong-field regime—the interaction of extremely high-intensity laser light with atoms and surfaces—classical dynamics may indeed prevail in photoemission from metal nanostructures.

CLEO/Laser Focus World 2012 Innovation Awards

Tue, 01 May 2012 05:00:00 GMT

The 2012 CLEO/Laser Focus World Innovation Awards program is designed to honor the most timely, groundbreaking products in the field of photonics and laser science. The awards are sponsored by Laser Focus World and the Conference on Lasers and Electro Optics (CLEO).

Quantum-dot VCSELs can emit anywhere in the visible spectrum

Mon, 30 Apr 2012 21:36:00 GMT

Providence, RI and Watertown, MA--Researchers at Brown University and QD Vision are engineering a better form of colloidal quantum dots for use in quantum-dot lasers, which can be made to emit light anywhere in the visible spectrum.

MIT researchers create nanostructured surface for glass that is antireflection, hydrophobic, and antifogging

Fri, 27 Apr 2012 19:39:00 GMT

Cambridge, MA--A surface nanostructure that is photolithographically etched onto glass by scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of technology (MIT) gives the glass both water repellancy and antireflection qualities.

Cree sets new R&D white-light LED luminous-efficacy record of 254 lumens per watt

Thu, 26 Apr 2012 20:36:00 GMT

Durham, NC--LED maker Cree, Inc. (Nasdaq: CREE) has created an experimental white-light LED that has a luminous efficacy of 254 lumens per watt.

Compressed sensing allows super-resolution single-molecule microscopy imaging of live cell structures

Thu, 26 Apr 2012 15:49:00 GMT

Atlanta, GA--Researchers from the Georgia Institute of Technology and the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) have pushed the limits of super-resolution microscopy, using single-molecule identification at higher speeds to track live cells in action.

CLEO show to move to June in 2013

Thu, 26 Apr 2012 15:16:00 GMT

Washington, DC--Next year's Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics (CLEO), held annually in San Jose, CA, will take place in June rather than its usual May, moving to June 9–14, 2013.

Rydberg technique from Georgia Tech rapidly and efficiently creates single photons

Wed, 25 Apr 2012 13:00:00 GMT

Atlanta, GA--Georgia Tech physicists developed a new way to rapidly and efficiently create single photons for optical quantum information processing and other applications.

3.2 billion pixel LSST camera project gets DOE "Critical Decision 1" approval

Tue, 24 Apr 2012 18:27:00 GMT

Menlo Park, CA--The Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST) camera received "Critical Decision 1" approval by the DOE to move into the next stage of the project.

Laser treatment of burn scars helps military and civilian patients

Fri, 20 Apr 2012 19:16:00 GMT

Kissimmee, FL--Physicians, scientists and engineers at the 32nd Annual Conference of the American Society for Laser Medicine and Surgery (ASLMS) this week are reviewing innovative new laser treatments that can reduce disfigurement and improve functionality of scarred tissue that results from severe burns.

U. of Cambridge process may greatly reduce cost of solar-grade silicon

Thu, 19 Apr 2012 20:00:00 GMT

Cambridge, England--A new process developed by scientists at the University of Cambridge has the potential to drive down the cost of manufacturing solar-grade silicon by a factor of five or more.

X-ray diffraction reveals 3D mechanics of germanium-crystal arrays

Wed, 18 Apr 2012 22:11:00 GMT

Grenoble, France--Scientists at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF) are using X-ray diffraction to thoroughly understand a new type of nanostructure -- square arrays of germanium (Ge) pillars that have very complex geometries and physical attributes.