“Spaser”: The future of nanolaser technology
BioPhotonics staff
Lasers have been
used to zap tumors and send digital TV signals and telephone communications around
the world. Now, creating a buzz in the field of nanotechnology, the “Spaser”
has extended the range of what’s possible in modern electronics and optical
devices.
Developed and patented in 2003 by researchers at Tel Aviv and
Georgia State Universities, the Spaser (surface plasmon amplification by stimulated
emission of radiation) device is being developed into a practical tool by research
teams in the US and around the world. In 2009, a team from Norfolk State, Purdue
and Cornell universities created a practical prototype of the device.
Like a laser, but much, much smaller, the Spaser uses surface
plasma waves – electromagnetic waves that are combined with an electron fluid
wave in a metal. It can be less than 100 nm in length, significantly less than the
wavelength of visible light. Using plasmons instead of photons, the device can overcome
any physical limitations that other current materials face, making it suitable for
future nanodevices in operating photonic circuitry on the surface of metals.
A critical component for future technologies based on nanophotonics,
the Spaser could lead to innovations in medicine, science, computers and electronics.
It may soon be possible to see genetic base pairs in DNA or operate computers at
speeds 100 times greater than current devices. A promising renewable energy application
could enable creation of more efficient solar energy collectors.
The researchers are working on commercializing their invention,
and they are hopeful that it will open many doors in the development of nano-size
devices.
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