December 2005

Including news from Lumics, Optical Surfaces, 3M and Corning and more.

A festive pick of this year's patent applications including a light scattering bauble and a telescopic Christmas tree.

A look at the innovations reported this month including a promising candidate for an electrically-pumped silicon laser.

Including news from Boeing, Toshiba, Cynosure, AIXTRON and Lumileds and more.

European laser cleaning specialist has received its first orders for a ready-to-wear fiber laser system.

Scientists validate key models predicting plasma flow and ignition temperature.

Photonics 21 was launched this month in Brussels as the latest in a series of European technology platforms.

The first three-dimensional structures to be fabricated by three-photon polymerization are unveiled.

Including news from Agilent Technologies, Cree, OmniVision Technologies, GSI Group and more.

Three separate teams report advances in using single photons for quantum communication in this week's Nature.

Optical parametric oscillators offer a convenient source of coherent light that can be tuned across the ultraviolet, visible and infrared. Günter Warmbier describes the principle of operation and key characteristics of these useful devices.

Printed information labels in shops could be about to be replaced by bistable LCDs and wireless receivers. Oliver Graydon speaks to ZBD Displays, a pioneer of the technology.

OLE looks back at the scientific breakthroughs, emerging applications and business deals that have hit the headlines in 2005. Enjoy reading and reminiscing!

XenICs of Belgium is developing a new breed of compact and uncooled infrared cameras based on compound semiconductor detectors. Jacqueline Hewett spoke to the firm's founder Bob Grietens to find out what applications are adopting the technology.

Italian scientists demonstrate a non-contact technique for analyzing heartbeats.

Heritage applications look set to benefit from a remote imaging and ablation system based on LIBS.

More than 100 companies are now selling high-brightness LEDs at different levels of the supply chain, says a new report.

Including news from Novaled, Philips, Oxford Instruments and Sony.

A look at the scientific innovations reported in journals in November including measurements of femtoforces.

Silicon riddled with tiny holes shows lasing action in the infrared.

Marine-based DNA gives a low-loss biopolymer with attractive optical properties.

The Canadian government has invested C$43 million in building a compound semiconductor fabrication facility that it hopes will drive the growth of start-ups and small businesses. Richard Stevenson talks to the facility's director, Sylvain Charbonneau.