NIST Scientists Create 'Any Wavelength' Lasers on Chips
Original: NIST scientists create 'any wavelength' lasers
Why This Matters
Breakthrough could revolutionize photonics like silicon chips transformed electronics
NIST researchers developed integrated photonics chips that can generate any wavelength of laser light by stacking specialized materials on silicon wafers. The fingernail-sized chips could miniaturize bulky laser systems for quantum computers and atomic clocks.
National Institute of Standards and Technology scientists created integrated photonics chips that process photons like traditional chips process electrons. The technology stacks specialized materials onto silicon wafers to create circuits that can generate a rainbow of colors on fingernail-sized chips. This represents a major step toward miniaturizing today's bulky and expensive laser systems. The breakthrough could enable emerging technologies like quantum computers and optical atomic clocks to move beyond laboratory settings into practical applications in biomedicine, navigation, and communications. The chips work by depositing complex patterns of specialized materials onto standard silicon wafers, similar to how electronic circuits are manufactured.