Tag: optics

1000x Bandwidth

Stealthy radar systems and the ability to transmit large amounts of data over long distances are a step closer thanks to a technique that could improve the efficiency of modern optics by 1000x. Traditional methods of transmitting data, such as fiber optics or laser-based radar, require 100 photons to transmit 1 bit of data. Now a team can transmit 10 bits on 1 photon – a 1000x improvement. The researchers exploit a phenomenon known as entanglement, in which the quantum state of one photon is linked to that of another, regardless of how far apart they are. Once created, each entangled pair of photons is separated by passing a laser beam made up of them through a filter made from a nonlinear crystal. This splits the beam in 2 so that each exiting beam contains 1 photon of an entangled pair.

97nm Optical Imaging

Not sure about being first, but metamaterials also go beyond the diffraction limit.

The smallest structures that conventional lenses are able to optically resolve are of the order of 200 nm. We introduce a new type of lens that exploits multiple scattering of light to generate a scanning nano-sized optical focus. With an experimental realization of this lens in gallium phosphide we have succeeded to image gold nanoparticles at 97 nm optical resolution. Our work is the first lens that provides a resolution in the nanometer regime at visible wavelengths.

2013-11-13: making microscopic images with visible light is limited by the diffraction limit, around 250nm. If you want to go smaller you have to use (often destructive) techniques like X-rays. This new technique can get to 30nm plus it makes beautiful pictures as a side effect.


2021-08-28: A 100x improvement in 10 years

Scientists have improved the spatial resolution from 8nm to 0.8nm of photoluminescence imaging. This has realized sub-molecular resolution with single molecule photofluorescence imaging for the first time.