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Microscopic algae and low-cost forms of solar cell could have more in common than meets the eye. Both could prove important in the quest to produce cleaner, greener fuels.
An electro–optic scheme for sampling the electric field of laser pulses without the need for any synchronization could become a valuable tool for characterizing sources that emit in the infrared and terahertz regions.
Chinese investment in high-intensity ultrashort-pulse generation seems to be paying off with several groups reporting their latest breakthroughs at CLEO/Pacific Rim 2007.
A group at Caltech have used an optical microcavity to perform label-free detection of single molecules for the first time. The work represents a milestone in the application of optical cavities in sensing, and could lead to the realization of ultrasensitive lab-on-a-chip systems.
Coating a semiconductor heterostructure post with a layer of gold enables electrical pumping of nano-sized lasers. This experimental result could dispel the common belief that metallic coatings are too lossy to make good reflectors for tiny emitters.
Optical methods to probe electric fields in organic transistors in situ during operation provide a deeper understanding of factors that limit carrier mobility in these devices.
Surface plasmons undergo ultrafast dynamics on the attosecond timescale. Probing these ultrabrief effects is notoriously difficult, but a new microscope could pave the way towards an understanding of these fields and, ultimately, control of them.
The first OSA topical meeting in China was dedicated to optics on the nanoscale. Experts from all over the world gathered in Hangzhou and heard how this emerging technology could help healthcare, communications and energy generation.
An elegant approach to imaging the interior organs of small animals with improved visibility and accuracy looks set to help drug development and disease research.
Lasers that are powered by sunlight alone could have a promising future thanks to an efficient and compact design that can scale to high output powers.
The continuing rapid progress of quantum information technology was evident from the latest research presented at the CLEO/Europe–IQEC conference in Munich.
The first experimental demonstration of a mirrorless optical parametric oscillator could lead to compact sources of tunable light that require fewer parts and are alignment free.
Peidong Yang, of the University of California, Berkeley, recently added another prestigious prize to his collection — the National Science Foundation's Waterman award. Nature Photonics spoke to Yang about his latest accolade.
