Quantum Lithography

Optical lithography is used in the manufacture of microchips to etch patterns on silicon wafers. Because of diffraction, the size of these patterns is limited by the wavelength of the light used. The authors present a new lithographic protocol that uses the quantum properties of light. With this new technique, it is possible to beat the diffraction limit and, in principle, continue the miniaturization process until the atomic scale is reached.

Optical Technology and Paper Management in the 21st Century

There’s a lot of truth to the saying that “Gutenberg made everyone a reader, Xerox made everyone a publisher, and the personal computer is making everyone an author.” What changes in document management are on the horizon? The focus of this article is the changing role of paper in the dissemination and storage of information.

Focus Fluctuations in Laser-Materials Interactions

In laser-materials processing, the maximization of workpiece quality depends in part on optimizing conditions of laser beam size and fluence. Taking as an example the case of misfocus in sharp threshold laser ablation, the author describes the quality variations in laser-material processing that can be caused by a moving workpiece that jitters in and out of the laser beam's focal plane. He also discusses the possibility of engineering specific materials for improved misfocus tolerance.

Microstructured Optical Fibers

Microstructured optical fibers have unique properties that offer an opportunity to manipulate light in new ways, providing a platform for a novel class of all-fiber photonic devices. The authors review recent developments in the design and application of microstructured optical fibers for tuning and switching optical signals.

Light Controlling Light with Enhanced Kerr Nonlinearity

The Kerr nonlinear index of refraction of a three-level atomic medium can be greatly enhanced by atomic coherence induced by two laser beams. Such electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) media can be used to generate efficient nonlinear optical processes at low light intensities. Control and enhancement of Kerr nonlinearity in EIT media can be useful in all-optical communication, all-optical computing, and quantum information processing.

The Grating Light Valve Projector

An optical projector using grating light valves (GLV) as a spatial light modulator array has been demonstrated. A GLV projector uses a combination of lasers and microelectrical mechanical systems (MEMS) to produce a high-definition image suitable for a variety of different projector applications.

Imaging with High-Power Lasers

Imaging with high-power lasers produces excellent quality pictures with very well controlled pixels. Two different mechanisms are used to create the pixels: one that modifies the surface adhesion of the image layer, and another that ablates the material. These methods can be used for a variety of applications, including creation of black and white images, color images, and images on metallic surfaces.

Experiments With Polarization Part I: Sunglasses

In this issue of OPN, OSA Fellow Keigo Iizuka presents the first of a series of hands-on experiments he developed to spark interest in optics among members of the general public.

Interview with Elizabeth Rogan

In an interview with OPN, OSA’s new executive director, Elizabeth Rogan, reflects on her first few months on the job and on the challenges ahead.

Eye oximeter measures vital signs, advances in lithography, optical mouse for cell phones, lap tops, saves space, organic molecule shows blue promise

OSA’s First Journal: JOSA 1917-61

In this issue, OPN Contributing Editor John N. Howard describes another milestone in OSA history: the Society’s first foray into journal publishing.

Optical Farming

Just outside the nation’s capital—on land traversed by superhighways and surrounded by suburban sprawl—corn grows, cattle graze, pigs root, tractors plow, and researchers apply 21st century science to the millennia-old challenge of wresting food from the land.

What Is Innovation?

This is the first in a series of articles that will explore entrepreneurship as it pertains to our industry. The primary goal of the quarterly column is to assemble and dissect known business and management intelligence that is critical for successful companies to earn respectable profits. The first installment in the series discusses innovation and its forms, since innovation is where the entrepreneurial process really begins.

Book Reviews

From the President

OSA Home Page

Feature Article References

OSA 2002 Election Preview