A few years ago, researchers in Michal Lipson’s lab noticed something remarkable. They were working on a project to improve LiDAR, a technology that uses lightwaves to measure distance. The lab was designing high-power chips that could produce brighter beams of light.

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A math theory powering computer image compression, an “invisibility cloak” or the science behind the James Webb Space Telescope are some achievements that could be honored when the Nobel physics prize is awarded Tuesday.

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Ultrathin structures that can bend, focus, or filter light, metasurfaces are reshaping how scientists think about optics. These engineered materials offer precise control over lights behavior, but many conventional designs are held back by inefficiencies. Typically, they rely on local resonances within individual nanostructures, which often leak energy or perform poorly at wide angles. These […]

A clever mathematical tool known as virtual particles unlocks the strange and mysterious inner workings of subatomic particles. What happens to these particles within atoms would stay unexplained without this tool. The calculations using virtual particles predict the bizarre behavior of subatomic particles with such uncanny accuracy that some scientists think “they must really exist.” […]

Inside nearly every cell of your body, the tiny F1 motor works non-stop to create adenosine triphosphate (ATP), the universal energy source that powers almost every action you take—from breathing to running. While scientists have understood the structure of this molecular machine for years, a key mystery remained: how does its partner, the F0 motor, […]

Atoms in crystalline solids sometimes vibrate in unison, giving rise to emergent phenomena known as phonons. Because these collective vibrations set the pace for how heat and energy move through materials, they play a central role in devices that capture or emit light, like solar cells and LEDs.

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Programmable photonics devices, which use light to perform complex computations, are emerging as a key area in integrated photonics research. Unlike conventional electronics that transmit signals with electrons, these systems use photons, offering faster processing speeds, higher bandwidths, and greater energy efficiency. These advantages make programmable photonics well-suited for demanding tasks like real-time deep learning […]

Quantum metals are metals where quantum effects—behaviors that normally only matter at atomic scales—become powerful enough to control the metal’s macroscopic electrical properties.

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