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"This invention extends the reach of semiconductor lasers -- which have the greatest commercial penetration of all lasers -- into the nanoscale and down to dimensions much smaller than a wavelength," says Capasso. "This means the plasmonic laser antenna is potentially useful in a broad range of scientific and engineering applications, including near-field optical microscopes, spatially resolved chemical imaging and spectroscopy."
The new device integrates an optical antenna and a laser into a single unit, consists of fewer components, has a smaller footprint (takes up less space), and benefits from an improved signal-to-noise ratio relative to previous approaches. The inventors expect, with further development, its wide adoption and use in academic and research settings as well as in the high-tech commercial sector.
"Eventually, we envision the laser integrated into new probes for biology like optical tweezers -- which can manipulate objects as small as a single atom," says Crozier. "It could also be used for integrated-circuit fabrication or to test impurities during the fabrication process itself. One day, consumers might be able to back up three terabytes data on one disk."
"This invention extends the reach of semiconductor lasers -- which have the greatest commercial penetration of all lasers -- into the nanoscale and down to dimensions much smaller than a wavelength," says Capasso. "This means the plasmonic laser antenna is potentially useful in a broad range of scientific and engineering applications, including near-field optical microscopes, spatially resolved chemical imaging and spectroscopy."
The new device integrates an optical antenna and a laser into a single unit, consists of fewer components, has a smaller footprint (takes up less space), and benefits from an improved signal-to-noise ratio relative to previous approaches. The inventors expect, with further development, its wide adoption and use in academic and research settings as well as in the high-tech commercial sector.
"Eventually, we envision the laser integrated into new probes for biology like optical tweezers -- which can manipulate objects as small as a single atom," says Crozier. "It could also be used for integrated-circuit fabrication or to test impurities during the fabrication process itself. One day, consumers might be able to back up three terabytes data on one disk."
X-Ray Vision: Laser Nanoantenna
Bringing Terabytes To Optical Discs
When changes come to optical disc storage technologies, they’re typically big-time changes. The 650MB of storage on a burnable CD seemed great—at least until burnable DVDs provided 4.7GB and more of storage. And next-generation optical disc technologies (HD DVD with at least 15GB and Blu-ray with at least 25GB) could make DVDs obsolete. But now Harvard University researchers (led by Professor Federico Capasso and Assistant Professor Ken Crozier) are developing a laser nanoantenna that could blow those storage technologies away with the strength of a Category 5 hurricane. The laser nanoantenna, also called a plasmonic laser antenna, could eventually lead to a storage capacity of 5TB on an optical disc the size of a DVD or CD.
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Bringing Terabytes To Optical Discs
When changes come to optical disc storage technologies, they’re typically big-time changes. The 650MB of storage on a burnable CD seemed great—at least until burnable DVDs provided 4.7GB and more of storage. And next-generation optical disc technologies (HD DVD with at least 15GB and Blu-ray with at least 25GB) could make DVDs obsolete. But now Harvard University researchers (led by Professor Federico Capasso and Assistant Professor Ken Crozier) are developing a laser nanoantenna that could blow those storage technologies away with the strength of a Category 5 hurricane. The laser nanoantenna, also called a plasmonic laser antenna, could eventually lead to a storage capacity of 5TB on an optical disc the size of a DVD or CD.
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