Category Physics

1. Graphene foam invented at Rice University is reinforced with carbon nanotubes. It can hold thousands of times its own weight and still bounce back to its full height. Credit: Tour Group/Rice University
2. Graphene foam invented at Rice University is reinforced with carbon nanotubes. It can hold thousands of times its own weight and still bounce back to its full height. Credit: Tour Group
3. A microscope image of rebar graphene shows carbon shells, multiwalled carbon nanotubes and two-dimensional graphene. Credit: Tour Group

A chunk of conductive graphene foam reinforced by carbon nanotubes can support more than 3000X its own weight and easily bounce back to its original height, according to Rice University scientists...

Coreless optical fibre: If a photonic crystal fibre is twisted, it does not require a core with a different refractive index to trap light at its centre. Credit: Science 2016/MPI for the Science of Light

Researchers have discovered a new mechanism for guiding light in photonic crystal fibre (PCF). PCF is a hair-thin glass fibre with a regular array of hollow channels running along its length. When helically twisted, this spiralling array of hollow channels acts on light rays in an analogous manner to the bending of light rays when they travel through the gravitationally curved space around a star, as described by the general theory of relativity.

Optical fibres act as pipes for light...

Coreless optical fibre: If a photonic crystal fibre is twisted, it does not require a core with a different refractive index to trap light at its centre. Credit: Science 2016/MPI for the Science of Light

Researchers have discovered a new mechanism for guiding light in photonic crystal fibre (PCF). PCF is a hair-thin glass fibre with a regular array of hollow channels running along its length. When helically twisted, this spiralling array of hollow channels acts on light rays in an analogous manner to the bending of light rays when they travel through the gravitationally curved space around a star, as described by the general theory of relativity.

Optical fibres act as pipes for light...

Illustration of a broadband terahertz amplifier based on a quantum cascade laser. It allows for an amplifier range of more than 1 THz and the generation of ultrashort light pulses with record pulse widths of 3 ps. Credit: Image courtesy of Vienna University of Technology, TU Vienna

A group from TU Wien and ETH Zurich have succeeded in their attempts to generate ultrashort terahertz light pulses. With lengths of just a few picoseconds, these pulses are ideally suited to spectroscopic applications and enable extremely precise frequency measurements to be taken. The unique properties of terahertz radiation mean it is of interest for a wide range of potential applications, including non-invasive medical imaging and the detection of hazardous substances...