Research News

A Magnetic Switch for Plasmonic Lasers

Patricia Daukantas | 05 January 2022

A nanolaser that can effectively be turned on and off by switching the direction of an external magnetic field could offer a new platform for studying topological photonics. read more  

Research News

How Bird Feathers Get That Iridescent Shimmer

Patricia Daukantas | 29 December 2021

A survey across 15 avian orders and more than 300 species seeks to uncover “general design principles” about how feather nanostructures give rise to brilliant colors. read more  

Research News

Toward Next-Gen Photo-Rechargeable Batteries

Stewart Wills | 28 December 2021

Using a novel semiconductor heterostructure, a research team in India prototypes a compact lithium-ion battery that can be directly recharged by the sun—without external solar cells. read more  

Industry News

Signify Picks Up “Light Recipes” from Fluence

Sarah Michaud | 27 December 2021

Philips Lighting spinoff to buy ams Osram horticultural lighting operation in strategic expansion into agricultural lighting market. read more  

Research News

Bon Voyage, Webb Telescope

Stewart Wills | 26 December 2021

A successful 25 December launch commences a nail-biting month of deployment en route to the spacecraft’s final positioning 1.5 million km from Earth. read more  

Research News

How to Block the Cosmic Chill in Wintertime

Edwin Cartlidge | 24 December 2021

New coatings for windows and roofing automatically switch off longwave infrared emission when temperatures drop. read more  

Research News

Quantum Optics of Frequency Microcombs

Patricia Daukantas | 23 December 2021

Solitons in silicon carbide microcombs showed surprising hints of entanglement, in work offering a first look at the quantum properties of these specialized light sources. read more  

Research News

New Metalenses Promise Faster Low-Light Cameras

Mara Johnson-Groh | 22 December 2021

By dispensing with color filters, sensors using metalenses could offer enhanced sensitivity. read more  

Research News

Dual-Axis OCT Goes Deeper

Karen Kwon | 21 December 2021

Tilting of light source and detector helps engineers improve imaging depth. read more  

Research News

Illuminating DNA’s Solar Shield

Stewart Wills | 18 December 2021

Ultrafast laser spectroscopy enables a “real-time movie” of how the molecules that carry life’s genetic signature protect themselves from UV damage. read more