The Engineering and Physical Science Research Council of the United Kingdom has awarded a four-year, $600,000 grant to the Opto-electronics Group of the University of Wales, Bangor, to support its continued research in nanoscale and nonlinear optical design and measurement, and its expansion into biophotonics and microsystem optics.

The group's work on semiconductor lasers may lead to the development of devices that can be used in environmental and medical sensing, while its study of intersubband quantum cascade lasers may enable telecommunications companies to increase the capacity of optical fiber networks without adding fibers.

The researchers also will focus on creating smaller and faster computers using quantum technology. Other areas of exploration include the use of light to power next-generation micromachines for automobiles, and the development of optical sensing technology within biochips. The latter may improve bioparticle identification, possibly leading to enhanced medical diagnostics and antiterrorism measures.