Photonics/​Optics

Optics

Advanced optics technologies are essential to design engineers developing systems in manufacturing. Here are the latest technical briefs, products, and applications for design engineers working with optics technology.

Articles: Photonics/Optics
Products of Tomorrow
subscribe to newsletter
Each week get the latest tech briefs & key industry topics… delivered to your inbox!

Latest Briefs & News

35
66
0
0
30
Special Reports: Test & Measurement
Document cover
Optics & Photonics Innovations - November 2025
Photonic processor enables ultrafast AI computations…how new polishing technique could revolutionize optical manufacturing…facial mapping technology is a leap forward in augmented reality. Read...

Application Briefs: Photonics/Optics
The launch of Elbit Systems' JUPITER space camera marks an important advancement in spaceborne imaging technology.
Feature Image
INSIDER: AR/AI
A few years ago, researchers in Michal Lipson’s Columbia Engineering lab noticed something remarkable. They were working on a project to design high-power chips that could...
Feature Image
Products: Connectivity
See what's new on the market, including Boker’s stamped metal components custom manufactured to fit into developed mold designs; the CRH03 tactical-grade gyroscope from Silicon Sensing Systems; Keysight Technologies' enhanced physical layer compliance test solution for high-definition multimedia interface; and more.
Feature Image
Products: Sensors/Data Acquisition
See the product of the month: Optical Gaging Products' addition to their SmartScope® 3D Multisensor Metrology systems: SmartScope M130.
Feature Image
Special Reports: Photonics/Optics
Document cover
Unmanned Aerial Vehicles & Systems - October 2025
Lasers vs. drones: military demonstrates new tech…high-‐flying uncrewed solar aircraft aces key test…the next frontier for autonomous UAVs. Read about these and other developments in this...

Special Reports: RF & Microwave Electronics
Document cover
RF & Microwave Electronics - October 2025
Critical advantages and challenges of using laser communications in space…the future of EMI protection for military aircraft…new "micro comb" chips promise to improve GPS accuracy. Read about these...

Blog: Photonics/Optics
Researchers have used the centuries-old idea of pinhole imaging to create a high-performance mid-infrared imaging system without lenses. The new camera can capture extremely clear pictures over a large range of distances and in low light, making it useful for situations that are challenging for traditional cameras.
Feature Image
White Papers: Photonics/Optics
Document cover
ATEX-Certified QCL Sensor Advances Petrochemical Safety and Efficiency with Ultra-Sensitive Sulfur Detection
Triple-QCL design, powered by Wavelength Electronics QCL drivers, delivers reliable, real-time, and simultaneous monitoring of multiple...

On-Demand Webinars: Aerospace
Feature Image
As NASA embarks on the next era of human space exploration — returning to the Moon and venturing beyond — reliable, fast, and secure space-based communication systems will...
Products: Photonics/Optics
See the new products, including the VITA 93 QMC Mezzanine Modules from Acromag; fiber-optic sensors of the optoCONTROL CLS1000 series from Micro-Epsilon; AW-Lake's TG Series Gas Turbine Flow Meter; NewTek Sensors' advanced Linear Variable Differential Transformer specifically designed to withstand the extreme environments found in next-gen molten salt reactors; and more.
Feature Image
Briefs: Photonics/Optics
Known as FOSS (for fiber optic sensing system), NASA’s technology portfolio combines advanced sensors and innovative algorithms into a robust package that accurately and cost-effectively monitors a host of critical parameters in real time. Read on to learn more.
Feature Image
Articles: Materials
See the products of tomorrow, including a new type of 3D-printed titanium that’s about a third cheaper than commonly used titanium alloys; specially designed metasurfaces — flat devices etched with nanoscale light-manipulating patterns — to act as ultra-thin upgrades for quantum-optical chips and setups; and a handheld slide staining system designed to support medical, research, or environmental monitoring.
Feature Image
Quiz: Communications
Television was king during the second half of the 20th century — what do you know about the history of the technology?
Feature Image
5 Ws: Photonics/Optics
North Carolina State University engineers have built a tiny spectrometer that is orders of magnitude smaller than current technologies and can accurately measure wavelengths of light from ultraviolet to the near infrared.
Feature Image
Products: Electronics & Computers
See the new products, including Corning Incorporated's Corning® Gorilla® Glass Ceramic; Epoxy Technology's EPO-TEK®353NDP, a high-performance, humidity-resistant epoxy; Edmund Optics' off-the-shelf HOLO/OR Diffractive Diffusers and Beamsplitters; Teledyne Technologies subsidiary FLIR's advanced multispectral imaging solution; and much more.
Feature Image
Articles: Electronics & Computers
DPSS lasers are a critical enabling technology for meeting the precision materials processing demands of advanced packaging. Both nanosecond and USP lasers can achieve excellent results, but the right choice depends on specific requirements. Read on to learn more.
Feature Image
Articles: Photonics/Optics
Patent-pending imaging technologies created in Purdue University’s College of Engineering could be developed and commercialized for applications as diverse as medical imaging, autonomous navigation, surveillance, microscopy, and advanced manufacturing. Read on to learn more about it.
Feature Image
Briefs: Imaging
Metabolic imaging is a noninvasive method that enables clinicians and scientists to study living cells using laser light, which can help them assess disease progression and treatment responses. But light scatters when it shines into biological tissue, limiting how deeply it can penetrate and hampering the resolution of captured images. Now, MIT researchers have developed a new technique that more than doubles the usual depth limit of metabolic imaging. Read on to learn more.
Feature Image
Briefs: Photonics/Optics
AI systems like ChatGPT are notorious for being power-hungry. To tackle this challenge, a team from the Centre for Optics, Photonics and Lasers has come up with an optical chip that can transfer massive amounts of data at ultra-high speed. As thin as a strand of hair, this technology offers unrivaled energy efficiency. Read on to learn more.
Feature Image
Briefs: Lighting
As fast as modern electronics have become, they could be much faster if their operations were based on light, rather than electricity. Fiber optic cables already transport information at the speed of light, but to do computations on that information without translating it back to electric signals will require a host of new optical components. Researchers have now developed such a device. Read on to learn more.
Feature Image
Briefs: Materials
Engineers at the University of California San Diego have achieved a long-sought milestone in photonics: creating tiny optical devices that are both highly sensitive and durable — two qualities that have long been considered fundamentally incompatible. Read on to learn more.
Feature Image
Briefs: Semiconductors & ICs
Researchers have invented a new type of tunable semiconductor laser that combines the best attributes of today’s most advanced laser products, demonstrating smooth, reliable, wide-range wavelength tuning in a simple, chip-sized design. Read on to learn more about it.
Feature Image
Briefs: Photonics/Optics
Researchers have developed an on-chip twisted moiré photonic crystal sensor that uses MEMS technology to control the gap and angle between the crystal layers in real time. The sensor can detect and collect detailed polarization and wavelength information simultaneously. Read on to learn more.
Feature Image
Articles: Medical
See the products of tomorrow, including a new tunable laser that uses a series of rings to smoothly emit many light wavelengths from a single chip; a smart capsule called PillTrek, which can measure pH, temperature, and a variety of different biomarkers; and more.
Feature Image
Special Reports: Sensors/Data Acquisition
Document cover
Military & Maritime Unmanned/Autonomous Systems - August 2025
AI automates drone defense with high‐energy lasers…3D printing a game‐changer for ship and submarine part production…how TSN Ethernet will change the future of mil/aero...

Briefs: Lighting
With this groundbreaking discovery of time-dependent changes in networked nanodomains, developers are on the path to building adaptive networks for information storage and processing. Read on to learn more.
Feature Image
Products: Photonics/Optics
See what's new on the market, including a solution for actuating choke and other valves in subsea applications; Sumida's new CEP1311F Flyback Transformers, designed for use with “no-opto” isolated flyback circuits; SPIROL's range of 2024 aluminum Press-In Inserts; Instron's AVE3, an advanced non-contacting video extensometer that delivers precise strain measurement with unparalleled, micron-level accuracy; and more.
Feature Image
Special Reports: Connectivity
Document cover
Rugged/Hi‐Rel Electronics - June 2025
How advanced packaging is transforming mission‐critical electronics…a new era of high‐speed data transmission in defense…fully rugged PCs provide a decisive edge on the battlefield. Read about...

Videos