Lasers, devices that emit intense beams of coherent light in specific directions, are widely used in research settings and are central components of various technologies, including optical clocks (i.e., systems that can keep time relying on light waves as opposed to the vibrations of quartz crystals) and gravitational wave detections.

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A team of physicists from the University of Ottawa have developed a new theoretical model that shines new light on how scientists understand the way lasers interact with dense matter, such as solids and liquids. This could unlock advances in ultrafast physics and next-generation technology.

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Imagine a “smart fluid” whose internal structure can be rearranged just by changing temperature. In a new study published in Matter, researchers report a way to overcome a long-standing limitation in a class of “smart fluids” called nematic liquid crystal microcolloids, allowing for reconfigurable self-assembly of micrometer-sized particles dispersed in a nematic liquid crystal host. […]

When an electron travels through a polar crystalline solid, its negative charge attracts the positively charged atomic cores, causing the surrounding crystal lattice to deform. The electron and lattice distortion then move together through the material—like a single object. Physicists call these quasiparticles polarons. A team led by Professor Jochen Feldmann from LMU has succeeded […]