Scientists are using data science tools to study molecular activity faster than traditional fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) allows. While FCS estimates dynamical quantities, it requires high signal-to-noise ratios and time traces in the microsecond range. The researchers are using Bayesian analysis to overcome the limitations of fluorescent correlative methods in deducing molecular properties such as [..]

A team of researchers at the Dresden University of Technology (TU Dresden; Dresden, Germany) has developed a self-calibrating lensless endoscope that produces 3D images of objects smaller than a single cell. Without a lens or any optical, electrical, or mechanical components, the tip of the endoscope measures 200 µm across. As a minimally invasive tool [..]

Since rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an autoimmune disease in which the patient’s immune system attacks the lining of their joints, it is generally accepted that aggressive therapy administered within the first three months of the onset of symptoms enhances long-term outcomes for those with RA. Due to the pain, swelling, and damage caused by this [..]

Building an adjustable zoom lens in a millimeter-thick cell phone, a miniaturized microscope, or the distal end of a medical endoscope necessitates complex lenses that can handle the entire optical spectrum and be electrically reshaped within milliseconds. Researchers have demonstrated an adjustable technique for manipulating light without the use of mechanical movement, resulting in devices [..]

The noninvasive imaging of body organs through turbid biological tissues like skin and muscle is made possible by a novel bio-imaging method that combines ultrasound and optical processes. This newly created optical imaging technique may replace the need for intrusive visual examinations using endoscopic cameras. To examine and identify symptoms of deep tissue disease, invasive endoscopic [..]

Astronomers may soon be able to view galaxies, stars, and planetary systems in exquisite detail thanks to researchers’ development of an ultra-sensitive light-detecting system. The terahertz sensor operates at room temperature, an advance over comparable technology that can only operate at or near minus 454 degrees Fahrenheit. The terahertz sensor generates images with extremely high [..]

A ground-breaking imaging technique created by researchers offers hope for cleaning up water by providing unexpected and crucial data about catalyst particles that can’t be obtained in any other manner. They have created a technique to capture images of catalytic nonfluorescent reactions, or processes that don’t produce light, on nanoscale particles. The new technique could [..]

According to a recent study titled “The Current Reality of Facial Recognition,” although AI technology has progressed, there is still a long way to go. The article’s opening line reads, “With closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras installed everywhere, from shops to buses to private homes, the UK is one of the most watched nations in the [..]

Microlenses have previously been created using microscopic glass blowing, but this typically entails gas expansion from a single reservoir. Researchers have now created a technique for fabricating axicons that use gas expansion from various reservoirs to create the conical shape of the optical component. Unlike conventional methods like etching transfer from a 3-D mask that [..]

Amoebas are unusual creatures that form when a dispersed population of cells spontaneously comes together and reorganizes itself into a multicellular macroscopic organism. To do this, a few leader cells emit chemical pulses that cause the other individual cells to move in the direction opposite to that of the traveling pulses, leading to the formation [..]

Researchers have developed a novel photonic chip that uses light instead of electricity — and consumes relatively little power in the process. The chip design could be used to process massive neural networks millions of times more efficiently than today’s classical computers do. Neural networks are machine-learning models that are widely used for such tasks [..]

Scientists are working to perfect a new type of holographic display technology that can be incorporated into eyeglasses to superimpose video images on a user’s real-world view. The technology eventually could be incorporated into regular eyeglasses. Virtual reality systems are used with VR apps to create an immersive experience while blocking out the real world. [..]

A team of biophysicists has created a new fluorescent protein that not only glows when irradiated with ultraviolet and blue light but is also exceedingly small and stable under high temperatures. The research team believes the protein holds promise for fluorescence microscopy, a technique being used in research on cancer, infectious diseases, and organ development. [..]

Early-stage research by a university team suggests that a new laser setup will double the energy of a proton beam – potentially offering a route to much wider access for high-precision cancer therapy. While proton beam treatment is already used on some patients, in particular children with deep-seated brain and spinal tumors that are difficult [..]

Researchers have developed a unique high-resolution imaging method that can capture mid-infrared spectral images of fast events or dynamic processes that take place on the order of milliseconds. This spectral range is used for many applications because it can reveal the detailed chemical composition of a sample. This novel approach could one day be used [..]

Researchers have developed a new mathematical technique that quickly determines the ideal makeup and arrangement of millions of individual, microscopic features on a metasurface, to generate a flat lens that manipulates light in a specified way. Previous work attacked the problem by limiting the possible patterns to combinations of predetermined shapes, such as circular holes [..]

Researchers have developed a low-cost, easy way to make custom lenses that could help manufacturers avoid the expensive molds required for optical manufacturing. The researchers developed a liquid mold from droplets that they can manipulate with magnets to create lenses in a variety of shapes and sizes. High-quality lenses are increasingly used in everything from [..]

Researchers have developed a new biopsy technique that uses pulses from two kinds of lasers to take pictures of microscopic biological structures. The new biopsy technique, called ultraviolet-localized mid-infrared photoacoustic microscopy, or ULM-PAM, develops images of the microscopic structures found in a piece of tissue by bombarding the sample with both infrared and ultraviolet laser [..]

Physicists and engineers propose a new type of sensor. They are based on the new notion of exceptional surfaces: surfaces that consist of exceptional points. In order to understand the meaning of exceptional points, consider an imaginary violin with only two strings. In general, such a violin can produce just two different tones — a [..]

After decades of patient quantum computer science groundwork, the notion of “quantum computing” has, in the past several years, seen a surge in new activity and interest—not only in the lab, but at commercial firms, and even among the public at large. Spurring that new interest has been successful lab demonstrations of systems and simulations [..]