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Combining concepts from Doppler-free spectroscopy, coherent quantum control and frequency comb spectroscopy leads to new opportunities for the precision excitation of atomic species with high resolution, both spectrally and spatially.
In three-dimensional disordered media, light localization can occur when the disorder is above a certain threshold. Researchers now report experimental evidence of this transition from light diffusion to trapping.
Light is an excellent tool for making precise measurements of objects, but can sometimes alter or damage a sensitive sample. Researchers have now shown that entanglement and quantum-correlated light can be used to help alleviate this problem.
Attosecond photonics has contributed to a wide range of important scientific and technological breakthroughs. The challenges now are to realize high-energy attosecond sources and to simplify attosecond technologies for widespread use.
Attracting objects with optical beams may seem like science fiction, but various schemes already do this, albeit with some caveats and limitations. The most recent progress in this emerging field is reviewed, with particular emphasis on manipulation of small objects by optically induced 'negative forces'.
This Review article summarizes the key advantages of using quantum dots (QDs) as luminophores in light-emitting devices (LEDs) and outlines the operating mechanisms of four types of QD-LED. The key scientific and technological challenges facing QD-LED commercialization are identified, together with on-going strategies to overcome these challenges.
Researchers at Osaka University in Japan have developed a hyperspectral stimulated Raman microscope that can image the chemical bonds in living tissues at video rates.
Researchers at Peking University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology propose the use of strain engineering to create a broadband solar 'funnel' in an atomically thin sheet of MoS2.
Tandem solar cells, inverted triple-junction solar cells and photonic-crystal-based solar cells were among the photovoltaic devices discussed at the 73rd Autumn Meeting of the Japan Society of Applied Physics.
Silicon photonics and devices based on group IV elements are overcoming the tough economic downturns that have rocked industry over the past 12 years. Cross fertilization between academia and industry may lead to new devices that are both innovative and profitable.
Increasing demand for raw materials means that alternatives to indium-tin oxide are desired for optically transparent electrode applications. Carbon nanotube, metal nanowire networks and regular metal grids have been investigated as possible options. In this review, these materials and recently rediscovered graphene are compared with the usual transparent conductive oxides.
The application of chirped pulse amplification may overcome existing drawbacks of X-ray lasers and could lead to intensities that rival large free-electron-laser facilities.
The use of a new measure of what it means for a system to be quantum has profound technological and philosophical ramifications for the field of quantum information processing.
Instead of using light to study mechanical motion, scientists have now demonstrated the use of mechanics to probe light, using an excitonic optomechanics coupling that paves the way to the implementation of cavity-free optomechanics.
An innovative quantum network design that uses light–matter interfaces to process individual light quanta may ultimately allow quantum communication at high rates and over long distances without the need for long-lived quantum memories.
From metamaterials to biophotonics, the scope and number of topics discussed at this year's Photon conference shows that UK photonics research is as active and diverse as ever.
Surface plasmon polaritons have become popular because of their sub-wavelength confinement and the possibility to perform ultrasensitive optical measurements. This article reviews the development of active plasmonic devices and new metrologies using hybrid multilayer structures combining with the magnetic, acoustic and ultrafast effects.
