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Laser noise and chaos are unwanted elements in most circumstances. However, scientists have now learnt how to put them to good use to generate high-quality random bit sequences. Atsushi Uchida from Saitama University in Japan tells Nature Photonics how.
A visit to a dental clinic could cease to be a fearsome experience. Duncan Graham-Rowe finds out how lasers can help dentists to provide patients with more comfortable and convenient dental treatments.
The use of deformable mirrors to correct unwanted optical aberrations in real time is helping applications ranging from astronomy to biophotonics and data storage, reports Neil Savage.
Climate change is going to force mankind to change the way it behaves, especially when it comes to energy consumption. Photonics could have a significant role to play.
The development of the pixelated polarization camera is enabling dynamic interferometry, a new metrology technique that is insensitive to vibration and suits use in an industrial environment.
Nadya Anscombe talks to Wolfgang Osten, director of the Institute for Applied Optics, about the challenges that optical metrology faces in keeping pace with demands from industry.
The demonstration that Airy beams can transport small particles along curved paths of light may lead to a wealth of new applications in optical micromanipulation. Nature Photonics spoke to Kishan Dholakia from the University of St Andrews in Scotland about the idea.
Improvements in interferometry have made it a powerful and attractive technique for characterizing tiny devices based on microelectromechanical systems.
The advent of three-dimensional optical metrology has brought many benefits to industrial quality control of aircraft engines, according to the turbine-blade manufacturer GE.
The Nobel Prize in Chemistry has been awarded for research inspired by jellyfish. This is a reminder that the natural world continues to hint at solutions to modern technological dilemmas, and that when it comes to simple and effective solutions, nature is usually well ahead of man.