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Nextreme coolers get closer to the source

Manufacturing innovation improves the heat-pumping capacity of thin-film thermoelectric coolers while also reducing their size

Free-space optics bridges the gap

Researchers pursue variations on the theme in free-space optical communications

Thinking big in projection technology

Laser projectors loom large at Photonics West

Sofradir reaches for the sky

Vendor to supply additional IR detectors for the European Earth observation mission GMES Sentinel-2

Nemotek passes the test

Morocco's wafer-level camera supplier has added test and certification capabilities to its manufacturing operation

Germany focuses on OLED opportunity

Eleven of Germany's leading OLED vendors and research teams have formed an alliance to keep them at the forefront of the signage and specialized lighting sectors

OCT vendors target growth, diversification

Despite economic crisis, OCT market grows to $315 million in 2009

Laser sintering: control matters

Concept Laser's LaserCUSING process enables manufacturers to selectively fuse a wide variety of advanced alloys employed in rapid prototyping

Visibility remains elusive

Photonics vendors continue to hope for a favourable combination of external factors to lift the economic gloom

Get connected with Connector Optics

VI Systems is major partner in $38m Russian-German joint venture in optical data communications

Latest Industry Analysis

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Thin-disk lasers on the march

Trumpf engineers showcase advances in both infrared and visible disk lasers at the Photonics West meeting in San Francisco

Laser vendors seeking the 'next big thing'

Although the laser micromaterials processing market has taken a clobbering this year, growth is set to return in the medium term, opening up opportunities for laser vendors who are prepared to invest in R&D and new products. Tom Hausken of Strategies Unlimited predicts far-reaching changes across the laser supply chain.

Intel turns to photonics to extend Moore's law

Intel's Photonics Technology Laboratory in California is showing how optics may one day enable computer-chip designers to overcome the fundamental limitations of electronics. Breck Hitz talks to the lab's director, Mario Paniccia.

Start-ups: is it time for something new?

With the global economy in the dumps, this looks like no time to be starting a new photonics business. But even now, argues David Nugent of Elucidare, determined innovators can still connect with capital.

China's LED production on a growth trajectory

As recently as 2002, China imported all of its LED chips. The country now meets half of this demand with domestic production and is making the transition from incandescent bulbs to solid-state lighting. Richard Stevenson catches up with the progress.

Picosecond lasers: the power of cold ablation

Picosecond lasers are a universal tool for ablating almost any material without the downsides of unwanted thermal side-effects. Bernhard Klimt and colleagues at LUMERA LASER explain how cold ablation has changed the face of micromachining.

LaserFest 2010: it's time to take the laser to the people

Marking the laser's 50-year journey from the first flash of coherent light, Thomas Baer tells OLE why it's time to celebrate one of the great inventions of the modern age.

In optics, the whole is greater than the sum of the parts

Networking between universities, start-ups and established industry vendors is a key driver of growth within the optics industry.

Direct-diode lasers: they've got the power

High-power direct-diode lasers have emerged as a competitive option for applications like cladding, welding and heat treating. Stuart Woods of Coherent explains why the basic construction and operation of direct-diode systems translate into low cost-of-ownership.

Twisted optical fibres: it's time to think chiral

Taking inspiration from the helical-shaped designs found in nature, Chiral Photonics is adding a new twist to optical technologies. Dan Neugroschl, the company's president, tells Marie Freebody about the unique ways in which light interacts with chiral structures.