Editorials

Two Nobel Prizes, as well as a growing number of papers and potential applications, suggest that research into disorder and aperiodicity is an increasingly popular undertaking that could offer a wealth of important applications.

Obtaining new insights into yet unexplained phenomena and making the impossible possible are among the main motivations for any scientist. Going beyond limitations is the key challenge.

2012 was an eventful year for optics and photonics, pointing to an exciting yet challenging year ahead.

Fifty years ago, researchers at a handful of laboratories around the world were reporting lasing from the first semiconductor lasers. Our IT infrastructure today relies on their diligence and success.

The realization that coupling of photons to charges at metal interfaces allows subdiffraction-limit localization of light has revived the field of surface plasmons. How long will it last?

Assumptions, educated guesses and intuition are often unavoidably involved in the study of new phenomena, and scientists may therefore make mistakes at the outset. However, this is part of the research process and sometimes brilliant mistakes can lead to unexpected discoveries.

Closer collaboration between physicists, engineers and biologists is vital for the future success of biophotonics.

Should researchers be driven by pre-determined goals or by sheer curiosity? This historical topic is still actively debated among the research community.

Innovative mid-infrared laser technologies are anticipated to broaden the applications of existing mid-infrared laser sources and bring unexpected scientific discoveries.

Why do we need statements to define the contributions made by each author? Does this practice help or hinder scientists, and which demographic is most affected?

Could 2012 be the year that laser fusion becomes a reality? Progress at the National Ignition Facility in the USA certainly gives cause for optimism.

Being open and adaptable to change can help you succeed in your career of choice.

Using advanced technologies to improve photoinduced charge transfer and light harvesting is essential in the development of high-efficiency solar cells. Once the problem of energy storage has been overcome, solar energy is sure to become the world's major source of sustainable energy.

Nature Photonics celebrated its fifth birthday in January this year. Now is a good time to recap what we have done in the past, the current state of play and what we look forward to in the future.

The growing popularity of preprint servers is enriching the landscape of scientific communication.

The ability to communicate research results to a non-specialist audience in a clear and concise manner is a skill that should not be overlooked.

A recent salary survey conducted by SPIE indicates that optics professionals working in North America are likely to earn significantly more than those elsewhere.

Liquid waveguides, deformable lenses, microdroplet lasers and biosensors are all technologies based on optofluidics. Now the field may even be able to help with issues such as energy production.

Duplicate publication dilutes science and we strive to avoid it.