An international team of astronomers, led by Professor Svetlana Berdyugina of ETH Zurich’s Institute of Astronomy, has for the first time ever been able to de-tect and monitor the visible light that is scattered in the atmosphere of an exoplanet. Employing techniques similar to how Polaroid sunglasses filter away reflected sunlight to reduce glare, the team of scientists were able to extract polarized light to enhance the faint reflected starlight ‘glare’ from an exoplanet. As a result, the scientists could infer the size of its swollen atmosphere.
An analysis by the international LIGO (Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory) Scientific Collaboration has excluded one previously leading explanation for the origin of an intense gamma-ray burst that occurred last winter. Gamma-ray bursts are among the most violent and energetic events in the universe, and scientists have only recently begun to understand their origins.
The ultra-high data speeds possible on optical fibre networks will only come into their own when the fibres reach the last mile into everyone’s home. But that will require miniaturisation and integration of optical components on a scale not yet seen. European researchers may have some of the answers. Broadband access has transformed the economic potential of the internet.
When lasers were developed in the 1960s, they were a solution looking for a problem to solve. Since then, they have become an essential tool in industries as diverse as nanotechnology and biomedicine. A new generation of ultra-fast fibre lasers being developed in Europe is creating even more uses for the beams of high-intensity light, while lowering production and maintenance costs and increasing efficiency.
Using ESO's Very Large Telescope, an international team of astronomers has discovered a stunning rare case of a triple merger of galaxies. This system, which astronomers have dubbed 'The Bird' - albeit it also bears resemblance with a cosmic Tinker Bell - is composed of two massive spiral galaxies and a third irregular galaxy.
A team of researchers at the University of St. Andrews has developed one of the smallest optical switches ever made.
Photonic Products, the UK optoelectronics device manufacturer and laser diode specialist, has announced the introduction of two new, high power, infrared wavelength GaAlaS laser diodes from Opnext, Inc. The HL8337MG and the HL8338MG are ideal as light sources for industrial and medical sensor applications and as a light source for various other types of optical equipment such as distance meters, barcode scanners and high resolution CTP.
At the stroke of midnight on January 1, 2008, New Yorkers - and people around the World - will ring in the New Year under the glow of a brighter and more energy-efficient Times Square ball illuminated by cutting edge Light Emitting Diode (LED) technology.
The space-borne telescope, COROT (Convection, Rotation and planetary Transits), has just completed its first year in orbit. The observatory has brought in surprises after over 300 days of scientific observations.
Complex three-dimensional (3D) integrated circuits involving both optical and electronic elements are now easier to make, thanks to a “wafer bonding” technique developed by a European research consortium. With the right commercial backing, the new technology will help Europe stay competitive in communications and sensor technology.
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