Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

SPIE @spie.org · 11h

Researchers from the Univ. of Shanghai for Science and Technology and City Univ. of Hong Kong have developed an electrically tunable metasurface that enables real-time terahertz (THz) holographs.

Read the full SPIE News article and findings: https://bit.ly/4n37nUS

#AdvancedPhotonics

Electrically tunable metasurface unlocks real-time THz holography

Researchers demonstrate a stable, low-power platform for fast THz optical encryption

spie.org

1

SPIE @spie.org · 1d

Synthetic magnetic fields are now steering light on a chip. No magnets required! ❌🧲

Researchers from Shanghai Jiao Tong University & Sun Yat-Sen University say this could speed up optical communications. 💡

Read the full SPIE News article here: https://bit.ly/3VYabHN

#AdvancedPhotonics

Synthetic magnetic fields steer light on a chip for faster communications

Designed to flexibly route and split light on a chip, synthetic magnetic fields in silicon photonic crystals demonstrate high-speed data transmission, opening new possibilities for optical communicati

spie.org

1 4

SPIE @spie.org · 1d

Teams from Johns Hopkins University & @bostonu.bsky.social demonstrate a retina imaging technique that digitally refocuses scans after capture. It removes the need for precise alignment, delivering sharper images & faster diagnosis. 👁️ #BiophotonicsDiscovery #Optics

Read more: https://bit.ly/4mZ34Kq

Diagram illustrating the process of capturing and reconstructing images using a diffuser fundus camera, starting from a schematic of the human eye through to a sensor capturing a raw image.

2 4

SPIE @spie.org · 2d

New research published in #SPIE_JBO!

UK researchers develop a portable, light-based brain monitor for early dementia diagnosis. It’s low-cost, noninvasive, and works outside clinics, which means potentially expanding access to cognitive screening. 🧠

Read the article summary: https://bit.ly/42txkWn

Portable light-based brain monitor shows promise for dementia diagnosis

Broadband near-infrared spectroscopy, a portable brain-monitoring tool, can detect metabolic changes linked to dementia by measuring cytochrome c oxidase activity

spie.org

Reposted by SPIE

ESO @eso.org · 13d

Not even our mirrors stay clean forever! 🧽

Optical engineer Jaime González is checking for large particles on a VLT mirror.

This is part of a periodic cleaning process that keeps the mirrors ultra-precise & super-reflective.

More: https://www.eso.org/public/images/potw2539a

🔭 🧪
#instrumentation

A silvery, reflective surface of an enormous mirror is visible. A person in all-white, transparent plastic hat covering their head reaches out over the mirror surface, with a slightly distorted reflection appearing to reach back towards them, showing a near-perfect mirror image on its pristine metal.

3 19 74

Reposted by SPIE

Physics World @physicsworld.bsky.social · 3d

In this podcast the physicist and entrepreneur Ilana Wisby explains how this year's physics Nobel laureates laid the foundations for some of today's most promising quantum technologies. 🧪⚛️ ow.ly/IXJO50X9cvW

From quantum curiosity to quantum computers: the 2025 Nobel Prize for Physics – Physics World

Quantum physicist and entrepreneur Ilana Wisby on the legacy of this year’s laureates

ow.ly

2 10

SPIE @spie.org · 5d

We have exciting news! We’re pleased to announce the new SPIE Optical Systems Lab at Monroe Community College, to be built with a $150,000 investment from #SPIE. ✨

This will serve as a hub for hands-on training and workforce development in #optics and #photonics. Read more in the press release. ⤵️

SPIE Optical Systems Lab named at Monroe Community College

The new laboratory, to be built with a $150,000 investment from SPIE, will support optical technician-training programs at the Rochester-based college

spie.org

2 4

SPIE @spie.org · 6d

Join us on 14 October for an AR | VR | MR Fireside Chat with Joris Biskop, CEO of AddOptics.

Hear insights on the latest in immersive tech, hosted by Bernard Kress, Christophe Peroz, & Grace Lee. Register: https://spie-org.zoom.us/webinar/register/3017570026416/WN_-3_LtYnqQSiI3ccq3lL53w #SPIEXR

Promotional graphic for SPIE Online AR VR MR Webinar Series featuring a Fireside Chat with Joris Biskop from AddOptics, scheduled for 14 October 2025 at 9:00 AM PT. Includes a portrait of Joris Biskop smiling, wearing glasses.

Reposted by SPIE

Physics World @physicsworld.bsky.social · 6d

A perovskite-based detector could create next-generation nuclear medicine scanners that image faster and provide clearer results. The perovskite is also easier to grow and cheaper than existing detector materials. 🧪⚛️ physicsworld.com/a/perovskite...

Perovskite detector could improve nuclear medicine imaging – Physics World

A lead halide material can detect and image single gamma-ray photons with both high-spatial and high-energy resolution

physicsworld.com

4 13

SPIE @spie.org · 9d

Don’t miss NCI’s Outreach Webinar on Optical Imaging Products for Cancer, Oct 20 from 11:00 AM–12:30 PM PT. Discover funding opportunities + commercialization resources available to cancer imaging researchers.

Register: https://cbiit.webex.com/weblink/register/r2551cda01a54581e9628114d718edfc1

Meet virtually with Cisco Webex. Anytime, anywhere, on any device.

Simple, modern video meetings for everyone on the world's most popular and trusted collaboration platform.

cbiit.webex.com

SPIE @spie.org · 10d

Like many rivers, Montana’s Gallatin River faces algal blooms that threaten its ecosystem. Researchers at MSU are building low-cost optical sensors to track river health in real time, turning #photonics into a tool for conservation.

Read more in the Sept/Oct issue of #PhotonicsFocus! #optics

Sensing troubled waters under the big sky

Networks of smart multi-spectral sensors may help monitor pollution like algal blooms in bodies of water.

spie.org

SPIE @spie.org · 12d

Registration is open for #PhotonicsWest 2026!

Join us in San Francisco from January 17 to 22 for six days of research, exhibitions, and networking.

New this year: Vision Tech, showcasing the future of imaging and AI.

We can't wait to see everyone!

SPIE Photonics West 2026 opens for registration

Six action-packed days full of networking, technical presentations, exhibitions, and industry-focused talks mark the most important week in optics and photonics

bit.ly

1

Reposted by SPIE

Physics World @physicsworld.bsky.social · 19d

Researchers determine that a photon can spend a negative amount of time in an excited atomic state while passing through a cloud of atoms - a finding with potential applications in studies of light-matter interactions and quantum sensing. 🧪⚛️ physicsworld.com/a/negative-t...

Negative time observed in photon-atom interaction – Physics World

Researchers find that a photon can spend a negative amount of time in an excited atomic state while passing through a cloud of atoms

physicsworld.com

2 4 14

SPIE @spie.org · 12d

The optics industry can’t run without skilled technicians, and there aren’t enough of them.

MCC’s revived training program + the new SPIE Technicians Series aims to bridge the gap & keep innovation moving forward. 💡📕

Read more about the technician shortage in the Sept/Oct issue of #PhotonicsFocus!

Solving the optics technician shortage starts with education

A new Technician Training series published by SPIE Press addresses optics technician training in light of technician shortages.

spie.org

1 1

Reposted by SPIE

Ivan Amato @ivanamato.bsky.social · 13d

ICYMI. Here I take color away from your world and then give it back to you.

SPIE @spie.org · 13d

Color doesn’t exist outside the brain. 🧠

From fruit flies to humans, perception transforms raw light into hues, even nonspectral ones like purple. New work is mapping the neural circuits that make color possible. 🎨

Learn more about color perception in the Sept/Oct issue of #PhotonicsFocus!

A most curious absence of color outside your head

Neuroscientists are still working to unravel how humans perceive color.

spie.org

1 2

SPIE @spie.org · 13d

Color doesn’t exist outside the brain. 🧠

From fruit flies to humans, perception transforms raw light into hues, even nonspectral ones like purple. New work is mapping the neural circuits that make color possible. 🎨

Learn more about color perception in the Sept/Oct issue of #PhotonicsFocus!

A most curious absence of color outside your head

Neuroscientists are still working to unravel how humans perceive color.

spie.org

2 8

SPIE @spie.org · 16d

Join us on October 6 for the next #SPIE_JBO Hot Topics Webinar: Optical Elastography.

Hear from global experts on how this tech is reshaping cancer imaging, ophthalmology, dermatology, and more.

Free registration: https://spie-org.zoom.us/webinar/register/6217570032227/WN_kFcZ6b8lTduLiRPp87R1Fw

Promotional image for JBO Hot Topics Webinar on Optical Elastography, scheduled for 6 October 2025 at 9:00 AM PT. The background shows colorful, abstract biomedical imagery with central red light beam. Text invites to register for free, emphasized by the logos of Journal of Biomedical Optics and SPIE at the bottom.

1

SPIE @spie.org · 16d

Before Silicon Valley, there was Edwin H. Land. The Polaroid founder pioneered instant photography, polarized lenses, & even advised on US spy satellites, shaping imaging tech long before the digital era.

Read more about Land's life & career in the #PhotonicsFocus Sept/Oct issue! #optics #photonics

Image of innovation: Edwin H. Land, developer of instant photography

Edwin H. Land, founder of the Polaroid Corporation, has been an inspiration for some of today's top technology founders.

spie.org

1

SPIE @spie.org · 17d

Space images from Hubble, Webb, Rubin, and Chandra don’t show “true” colors; they translate invisible wavelengths into visible ones. Colorization reveals hidden details and helps us understand the universe. 🔭 🛰️

Read more in the Sept/Oct issue of #PhotonicsFocus!

Astro-color alchemists

Astronomers have a method for colorizing grayscale images from various space- and groundbased observatories.

spie.org

10 26

SPIE @spie.org · 18d

Far-UVC light (222 nm) can kill viruses and bacteria without harming skin, making it a potential pandemic fighter. Now, researchers are trying to develop efficient, low-cost light sources so the technology can move from labs to everyday use.

Read more in the Sept/Oct issue of #PhotonicsFocus!

Far-UVC fix: The wavelength that harms viruses, not humans

Safe for skin but deadly to pathogens, far-ultraviolet C light could help fight the next pandemic—but only if engineers can build a cheap and efficient light source first.

spie.org

SPIE @spie.org · 19d

A new light-based chip developed by researchers at @ufresearch.bsky.social boosts AI power efficiency by 100x! Optical computing could be the key to greener, faster machine learning. 💡

Read the #AdvancedPhotonics article summary here: https://bit.ly/41JPYJ6

New light-based chip boosts power efficiency of AI tasks 100 fold

Researchers have developed a silicon chip that uses light with electricity to perform convolution operations for AI, dramatically reducing energy use and increasing speed

bit.ly

1 3

SPIE @spie.org · 24d

“It’s easy to stop [innovation]. It’s much harder to restart it.” – Rep. Joe Morelle

The SPIE Photonics Industry Summit kicked off in DC this morning, where speakers from Congress, ARPA-E, and the US Army Space & Missile Defense stressed investment, workforce, and leadership in #photonics.

Group of professionals, posing for a photo at a conference.

2

Reposted by SPIE

Joe Morelle @morelle.house.gov · 24d

Photonics began with a simple idea: letting light itself do the drawing. Nearly 200 years later, the photonics field is still fueling innovations that are reshaping our world.

Proud to join @spie.org today to discuss our ongoing work to ensure the U.S. leads in this vital field of discovery.

1 1 7

SPIE @spie.org · 24d

Your brain’s tiniest vessels do more than carry blood! They also pulse to regulate flow. 🧠

A new imaging study reveals vasomotion flares from arterial walls could be key to understanding stroke and Alzheimer’s - https://bit.ly/42fdnSQ

#Neurophotonics

Imaging study reveals how tiny brain vessels pulse to regulate blood flow

Research shows that vasomotion in the mouse brain originates in arterial walls and spreads through the vascular network in short bursts, offering insights into how the brain regulates its blood supply

bit.ly

1

SPIE @spie.org · 25d

Join us on 30 Sept for the latest edition of the Poincaré Webinar Series with Morten Kildemo. He will present on Spectroscopic Mueller Matrix Ellipsometry and its applications in plasmonics and metasurfaces. Sign-up: https://spie-org.zoom.us/webinar/register/4316766662115/WN_zIicx5O2RM2viKsdrD7rMQ

Promotional image for an SPIE online Poincaré Webinar Series featuring Morten Kildemo. The person is smiling, wearing glasses. Text describes the webinar about plasmonic and dielectric metasurfaces, scheduled for September 30, 2025, at 2:00 PM.

1