The classic double-slit experiment leads to characteristic interference patterns. Credit: Russell Knightly/SPL Topics: Modern Physics, Optics, Quantum Mechanics A celebrated experiment in 1801 showed that light passing through two thin slits interferes with itself, forming a characteristic striped pattern on the wall behind. Now, physicists have shown that a similar effect can arise with twoContinue reading “Slits in Time…”
Category Archives: Optics
Flashing Droplets, Optical Tweezers…
Atomic analog: when a beam of light is shone into a water droplet, the light is trapped inside. (Courtesy: Javier Tello Marmolejo) Topics: Modern Physics, Optics, Quantum Mechanics, Quantum Optics, Research Light waves confined in an evaporating water droplet provide a useful model of the quantum behavior of atoms, researchers in Sweden and Mexico haveContinue reading “Flashing Droplets, Optical Tweezers…”
Mirror, Mirror…
Topics: Applied Physics, Atomic-Scale Microscopy, Materials Science, Optics (Nanowerk News) When it goes online, the MAGIS-100 experiment at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory and its successors will explore the nature of gravitational waves and search for certain kinds of wavelike dark matter. But first, researchers need to figure out something pretty basic: how to get good photographsContinue reading “Mirror, Mirror…”
Scrofulous Signaling…
Topics: Applied Physics, Electrical Engineering, Materials Science, Optics ABSTRACT We present results of near-field radio-frequency (RF) imaging at micrometer resolution using an ensemble of nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers in diamond. The spatial resolution of RF imaging is set by the resolution of an optical microscope, which is markedly higher than the existing RF imaging methods. HighContinue reading “Scrofulous Signaling…”
Transparency…
Topics: Applied Physics, Nanotechnology, Optics At the focus of a laser, a 100-nm-wide gold nanoparticle can block more than half the light. If additional particles are added, the amount of blocked light increases exponentially, as modeled by the Beer–Lambert law. But theorists predict that in the right set of circumstances, the addition of a moleculeContinue reading “Transparency…”
Plasma Guides and Lasers…
Topics: Lasers, Optics, Plasma, Research, Star Trek, Star Wars In science fiction, firing powerful lasers looks easy — the Death Star can just send destructive power hurtling through space as a tight beam. But in reality, once a powerful laser has been fired, care must be taken to ensure it doesn’t get spread too thin.Continue reading “Plasma Guides and Lasers…”
APS…
Topics: COVID-19, Materials Science, Optics, Photonics, Research From chemistry to materials science to COVID-19 research, the APS is one of the most productive X-ray light sources in the world. An upgrade will make it a global leader among the next generation of light sources, opening new frontiers in science. In the almost 25 years since the Advanced Photon Source (APS), aContinue reading “APS…”
Photography of the Invisible…
Topics: Applied Physics, Optics, Women in Science, X-rays In February 1896 Sarah Frances Whiting, founder of the physics and astronomy departments at Wellesley College, conducted a series of x-ray experiments. She was working only a few weeks after the public announcement of Wilhelm Röntgen’s discovery of the rays, and she was not alone; amateur andContinue reading “Photography of the Invisible…”
Holographic Microscopy…
Topics: Holography, Microscopy, Optical Physics, Modern Physics ABSTRACT In the past few years, the venerable field of holographic microscopy has been revitalized by computational data analysis. It is now possible to fit a generative (forward) model of scattering directly to experimentally obtained holograms of complex microscopic objects. This approach enables precision measurements: it allows theContinue reading “Holographic Microscopy…”
Physics and Nano 