Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain
the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in
Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles
and JavaScript.
Optical technology is becoming smaller and smaller, and it doesn't get much smaller than nanophotonic devices and metamaterials. NANOMETA-2007 gave researchers the opportunity to gather together in the cold to discuss these hot topics.
Controlling light in optical systems quickly and easily is crucial for all-optical switching. An approach that does this by exploiting the condensation of gases in a porous structure could open up new avenues in the switching field.
Slow light has captured the imagination of physicists for over a decade. Although single light pulses have been slowed down in a variety of settings, a group at Rochester University has now managed to delay an entire image for the first time.
Despite two decades of work geared towards improving the nonlinear optical properties of organic molecules, practical organic light modulators have not yet reached the market in large numbers. New organic-inorganic hybrid approaches may revolutionize the field.
A Cambridge start-up company is opening a large manufacturing facility for organic electronic circuits. The news is expected to accelerate the deployment of electronic-paper displays.
Using quantum optics to process data could herald a new era of information technology. With the latest semiconductor source of photons, researchers are paving the way towards this enticing goal.
Lasers are a triumph of modern optics, and mirrors play a crucial role in the coherent light produced. A hi-tech reflector could make lasers a lot smaller and lead to their inclusion in an even wider range of optical devices.
Advances in laser-based fabrication technology have resulted in the construction of the first three-dimensional silicon photonic quasicrystals that operate in the infrared.
A new method for slowing down light pulses while minimizing pulse distortion could help create practical photonic devices that route bits of information in optical-telecommunication systems.
By adding a tiny hole into the solid-core of a photonic-crystal fibre, scientists have been able to beat the diffraction limit and confine and guide light in the subwavelength regime.
For optical devices to be truly useful, they must be able to control light of any polarization. A group at MIT has now made this possible, bringing us a step closer to unlocking the potential of on-chip optics.
Most optical probes measure the size of the electromagnetic field, but not its direction. A new development in near-field imaging now makes it possible to map vector fields on the nanoscale as never before.
Controlling light with light using devices small enough to fit on a chip is tricky, but it is crucial for any integrated all-optical logic scheme. Scientists have now produced modulators that control light at breakneck speeds, bringing the vision of all-optical chips closer to reality.
The promising field of terahertz imaging has long been limited by poor resolution. Researchers now believe that the intriguing properties of surface-plasmon polaritons on corrugated wires could help beat the diffraction limit and inspire a new generation of terahertz photonic devices.
The ability to rapidly tune the properties of a photonic crystal nanocavity and 'program' it to store light for more than a nanosecond brings optical memory a step closer.
