Light Activates Medications
Mar. 31, 2009
An emerging practice of drug delivery uses light to activate medications inside the body, a study reported.
Ocean Spins Off Films Div.
Mar. 31, 2009
Optical sensing systems supplier Ocean Optics created a separate company called Ocean Thin Films from its thin films division.
$150M NY Nanotech Expansion
Mar. 31, 2009
The College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering (CNSE) of the University of Albany officially opened a $150 million expansion at its nanotech complex.
SPIE CEO Urges Action
Mar. 30, 2009
SPIE CEO Eugene Arthurs urged a commission reviewing the US-China trade and economic relationship to take aggressive action to revive photonics innovation.
GI Eyes Damaged by Lasers
Mar. 30, 2009
Laser "friendly fire" incidents are on the rise in Iraq, with inflicted damage ranging from severe migraines to partial blindness, the military reported.
Tool Aims to Reduce Biopsies
Mar. 30, 2009
A handheld microscope that uses laser light to form an image of the skin's cellular structure could someday reduce the number of biopsies needed to diagnose skin cancer. Biopsies -- invasive, often painful procedures to remove skin samples for analysis -- are currently the best way to diagnose melanoma and other skin cancers. Millions are conducted each year in the US, and according to the American Cancer Society, most of them -- as many as 80 percent for some types of cancers -- come back negative. Montana State University (MSU) electrical engineering department researcher Chris Arrasmith worked with doctors at Vanderbilt Medical Center in Tennessee to build the handheld laser microscope, which could help doctors get a better idea of when biopsies are absolutely necessary.
OFC Day 3: Ready for Business
Mar. 27, 2009
The OFC/NFOEC 2009 exposition came to a close yesterday. Although overall attendance was down –...
Silicon Emits Visible Light
Mar. 27, 2009
Physicists at the University of Sydney discovered that silicon photonic crystals, which slow laser light, can convert IR wavelengths to green light.
Fairchild Closes Wafer Plant
Mar. 26, 2009
Fairchild Semiconductors will close its Mountaintop, Pa., site by June 2010, eliminating 200 jobs, and will streamline its manufacturing operations in South Korea.
Fuel Improves Medical Imaging
Mar. 26, 2009
A new technology that dramatically improves the sensitivity of magnetic resonance techniques also will have major implications for scientific research. Based on manipulating parahydrogen, the method also radically reduces the time taken to obtain results using MRI.
Agilent Restructuring EM
Mar. 26, 2009
Because of revenue losses as high as 50 percent, Agilent Technologies will cut 2700 jobs in the electronic measurement and semiconductor divisions, bringing its job loss total to 3800, or 20 percent of the work force.
Products, Tech Debut at OFC
Mar. 26, 2009
A number of new optical communication technologies and capabilities, particularly those for 40 Gb/s...
OFC Report: Day 1 'Dismal'
Mar. 25, 2009
At the end of Day One of the OFC/NFOEC 2009 exposition, exhibitors were left scratching their heads, wondering where all the attendees were.
Blind Fish Inspire New Sensor
Mar. 25, 2009
Blind fish that have evolved a unique technique for sensing motion may inspire a new generation of sensors that perform better than current active sonar, say researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology School of Materials Science and Engineering.
Security Takes Center Stage
Mar. 25, 2009
Although the world economy appears bleak, SPIE Defense, Security and Sensing 2009 will offer...
Thorlabs Acquires Covega
Mar. 24, 2009
Photonics equipment maker Thorlabs Inc. acquired Covega Corp., a provider of optoelectronic components and modules, for an undisclosed amount.
GigOptix Slashes Salaries
Mar. 24, 2009
Optoelectronics maker GigOptix Inc. reduced salaries from 10 to 18 percent in an effort to cut expenses during challenging economic times.
Students Awarded at Show
Mar. 24, 2009
At 2009 OFC/NFOEC conference in San Diego, awards will be announced for the Infinera Outstanding Student Recognition prize, for study related to optoelectronic devices and photonics integration, and for the Corning Outstanding Student Paper Competition.
$1.2B Allocated to Science
Mar. 24, 2009
$1.2 billion in new science funding, allocated under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, was announced by Department of Energy Secretary Steven Chu. The amount includes support for research in particle and plasma physics, solar energy, solid-state lighting and superconductivity.
Nanospheres ‘Cook’ Cancer
Mar. 23, 2009
By attaching a short peptide to hollow gold nanospheres, researchers at the University of California, Santa Cruz, developed a way for the particles to seek out and “cook” cancer cells.
Big Boost for Blue OLEDs
Mar. 23, 2009
Researchers at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory reported that they have designed, synthesized and tested new , more efficient host materials for blue phosphorescent organic LEDs that improve the power efficiency of such OLEDs by at least 25 percent. Lighting consumes one-fifth of the electricity generated in the US, making advancements in solid-state lighting crucial to reducing the nation's energy consumption. The findings were presented this week at the spring meeting of the American Chemical Society in Salt Lake City.
NASA Awards Solar Contracts
Mar. 23, 2009
NASA selected three teams to design and build science instruments for a proposed European-led solar mission. The instruments, with a total value of approximately $81 million, are part of NASA’s Living with a Star Program.
Signal Mixer Made from Laser
Mar. 20, 2009
Electrical engineers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have made a microwave signal mixer from a tunnel-junction transistor laser, an innovation that should lead to higher-speed electronics and higher-performance integrated circuits.
Landings Hard for Some Bats
Mar. 20, 2009
Brown University researchers have used motion-capture cameras to document that the impact with which a bat lands varies according to its species. Two cave-dwelling species landed with an impact one-third that of their body weight, whereas a tree-roosting species landed with an impact four times that of its body weight.
OneChip Photonics Nets $19M
Mar. 19, 2009
Optical tranceiver startup OneChip Photonics of Ottawa announced that it has secured $19.5 million in venture capital funding, enabling it to market integrated FTTH tranceiver technology.
Eco-Friendly Photoconductors
Mar. 19, 2009
Photoconductors, which are found in cell phones, digital cameras and other consumer gadgets, are...
Sound Waves Generate Light
Mar. 18, 2009
High frequency sounds have been converted into light for the first time by reversing a process that changes electrical signals into sounds. The new tool might be used to enhance the way computer chips, LEDs and transistors are built. Researchers at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory used piezoelectric low-frequency cell phone speakers to generate sound. To reverse the process, they used a very high frequency sound wave – about 100 million times higher than what humans can hear – to generate light.
Spray-On Solar Cells Pursued
Mar. 18, 2009
Creating solar cells you can wear, fold, and bend -- and even spray onto surfaces -- is the goal of a four-year research program set to begin next month under a consortium of eight UK universities.
AFM Images Breathing Bacteria
Mar. 17, 2009
A combination of atomic force and optical microscopes revealed that common soil bacteria can “inhale” toxic metals and “exhale” them in a nontoxic form, researchers at Ohio State University said. The process could be used to clean up toxic chemicals.
Cooper Buys LED Maker IMS
Mar. 17, 2009
Electrical equipment maker Cooper Industries acquired Irvine, Calif.-based Illumination Management Solutions Inc. (IMS), a provider of specialized optics and systems designs for LED fixtures, for an undisclosed amount.
UV Light Cuts TB Spread
Mar. 17, 2009
Installing simple ultraviolet C (UVC) lights in hospitals could help reduce the transmission of tuberculosis, including the drug-resistant strains, by 70 percent, according to a study led by Imperial College London.
Universal Display Loses $19M
Mar. 17, 2009
Phosphorescent organic LED (PHOLED) maker Universal Display Corp. reported a net loss for 2008 of $19.1 million, or 53 cents a share, an increase of 16.5 percent over 2007’s $16 million loss.
Laser Contract Awarded
Mar. 16, 2009
Schafer Corp. of Chelmsford, Mass., was awarded a $9.8-million contract from the US Navy for research and development into directed energy and electric weapon systems that could be used to detect and destroy weapons of mass destruction and the vehicles carrying them.
Early Bone Growth Imaged
Mar. 16, 2009
The earliest stages of bone formation have been imaged for the first time in high resolution. The...
National Cuts 1725 Jobs
Mar. 16, 2009
Chip maker National Semiconductor Corp. will cut 26 percent of its work force and close two plants...
Polarizers Spy Perilous Chems
Mar. 13, 2009
Remote chemical detection is typically done using a technique called laser-induced breakdown...
Provost Picked for Power Post
Mar. 13, 2009
Johns Hopkins University Provost and electrical engineer Kristina M. Johnson will be nominated to...
Nanowire-Enhanced Fuel Cells
Mar. 12, 2009
Platinum nanowires are improving the efficiency and longevity of fuel cells, which could lead to...
Wearable Electronics Advance
Mar. 12, 2009
Technologists in Belgium have slimmed down a chip package to less than 60 µm and integrated it onto...
Aixtron 2008 Revenue Up 28%
Mar. 12, 2009
Higher sales of compound semiconductor equipment led to a 28 percent increase in 2008 revenue over...
QD 'Doughnuts' Control Light
Mar. 11, 2009
Doughnut-shaped byproducts of quantum dots have been used to slow and even freeze light. While others have used varying exotic states of matter to dramatically slow the progress of light, this is the first time a technique has been devised to completely freeze and release individual photons at will. “This has significant implications for the development of light-based computing which would require an effective and reliable mechanism such as this to manipulate light," said Dr. Rudolf A. Roemer of the University of Warwick.
OSHA May Lower UR Lab Fines
Mar. 9, 2009
A tentative agreement between the University of Rochester and OSHA would lower fines imposed over safety violations at the university's laser lab that left a worker paralyzed.
Lasers Improve PV Efficiency
Mar. 9, 2009
The $7.5 million SOLASYS project, a consortium of European laser system developers, solar cell manufacturers and others, will use a laser-based materials processing tool to make solar cells more efficient and cost-effective.
Brighter Nanotubes Unveiled
Mar. 9, 2009
Chemists have found a way to increase the luminescence efficiency of single-walled carbon nanotubes, a discovery that could have significance in medical imaging, homeland security, and biological sensors, among other applications.
'Rogue' Light Waves Tamed
Mar. 6, 2009
Rare and explosive flare-ups known as "rogue" light waves have been tamed to produce brighter, more stable white light sources.
Method Images the Invisible
Mar. 5, 2009
Using a novel, nondestructive approach that combines scanning-probe microscopy with ultrasound and holography for the first time, researchers at Northwestern University viewed subsurface particles as small as 15-20 nm.
Nanocircuit Switch Found?
Mar. 4, 2009
Simply pushing or pulling a molecular junction turns the electrical resistance flowing through the...
The Art of Nano-origami
Mar. 3, 2009
As if the ancient art of origami isn’t difficult enough, now researchers are bending and folding...
FBI Probes NASA Theft
Mar. 3, 2009
The FBI searched the office of Samim Anghaie, a scientist at the University of Florida (UF), amid a...
Heat Tracked in Nanotubes
Mar. 2, 2009
In a landmark study in the field of nanoelectronics, IBM Research scientists have announced the...
Fotowatio Buys US Solar Biz
Mar. 2, 2009
Fotowatio, one of Spain’s largest independent solar power producers, has agreed to purchase the...