Pub Date : 2026-03-05DOI: 10.1038/s41377-025-02119-y
Michael P. Nielsen, Stefan A. Maier, Michael S. Fuhrer, Nicholas J. Ekins-Daukes
Ambient-temperature thermal infrared radiation is an underutilised resource for secure communications. Demonstrations of free-space data transfer using thermal radiation have been few, and have relied on intrinsically slow modulation of either the emissivity and/or physical temperature of a broadband blackbody emitter, severely limiting data transfer rates ( < 1 kHz). Here, we demonstrate a covert communications method in which photon emission is rapidly electrically modulated both above and below the level of a passive blackbody at the emitter temperature. The time-averaged emission can be designed to be identical to the thermal background, realizing communications with zero optical signature for detectors with bandwidth lower than the modulation frequency. We demonstrate this scheme using both electro- and negative luminescence in thermoradiative diodes, enabling data rates up to at least 100 kbps and modulation rates above 1 MHz. Future prospects for ultra-high-bandwidth (up to THz) emitters and detectors utilising meta-optics and 2D materials are discussed.
{"title":"Balancing positive and negative luminescence for thermoradiative signatureless communications","authors":"Michael P. Nielsen, Stefan A. Maier, Michael S. Fuhrer, Nicholas J. Ekins-Daukes","doi":"10.1038/s41377-025-02119-y","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41377-025-02119-y","url":null,"abstract":"Ambient-temperature thermal infrared radiation is an underutilised resource for secure communications. Demonstrations of free-space data transfer using thermal radiation have been few, and have relied on intrinsically slow modulation of either the emissivity and/or physical temperature of a broadband blackbody emitter, severely limiting data transfer rates ( < 1 kHz). Here, we demonstrate a covert communications method in which photon emission is rapidly electrically modulated both above and below the level of a passive blackbody at the emitter temperature. The time-averaged emission can be designed to be identical to the thermal background, realizing communications with zero optical signature for detectors with bandwidth lower than the modulation frequency. We demonstrate this scheme using both electro- and negative luminescence in thermoradiative diodes, enabling data rates up to at least 100 kbps and modulation rates above 1 MHz. Future prospects for ultra-high-bandwidth (up to THz) emitters and detectors utilising meta-optics and 2D materials are discussed.","PeriodicalId":18069,"journal":{"name":"Light-Science & Applications","volume":"130 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-03-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147346814","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-03-05DOI: 10.1038/s41377-025-02093-5
Jiajia Wang, Xingyuan Xu, Xiaotian Zhu, Yifu Xu, Shifan Chen, Haoran Zhang, Yixuan Zheng, Shuying Li, Yunping Bai, Zhihui Liu, Roberto Morandotti, Brent E. Little, Sai T. Chu, Arthur J. Lowery, David J. Moss, Kun Xu
The exponential growth of cloud computing and artificial intelligence (AI) applications has driven an urgent need for high-bandwidth, energy-efficient hardware architectures in data centers. With Moore’s Law nearing its limits, optical neuromorphic computing hardware offers a promising alternative, providing ultra-high speeds and minimal energy consumption due to its analog architecture. Here, we propose the microcomb-enabled parallel optical convolution streaming processor (OCSP) with time, space, and wavelength three-dimensional multiplexing, operating at data rates of 50 GBaud or higher, achieving a convolution computing speed of up to 4 trillion operations per second (TOPS). Moreover, the OCSP uses a robust self-calibration mechanism to achieve accurate optical phase calibration and set-up of its convolution function. This innovative approach leverages time-space interleaving passive periodic interference architecture, incorporating wavelength-division-multiplexing technology, and is verified experimentally for parallel image feature extraction and recognition tasks. Our OCSP offers a practical pathway for seamlessly integrating photonic computing units into data center interconnects, unlocking photonic computing’s potential for scalable, low-latency AI workloads.
{"title":"Microcomb-enabled parallel self- calibration optical convolution streaming processor","authors":"Jiajia Wang, Xingyuan Xu, Xiaotian Zhu, Yifu Xu, Shifan Chen, Haoran Zhang, Yixuan Zheng, Shuying Li, Yunping Bai, Zhihui Liu, Roberto Morandotti, Brent E. Little, Sai T. Chu, Arthur J. Lowery, David J. Moss, Kun Xu","doi":"10.1038/s41377-025-02093-5","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41377-025-02093-5","url":null,"abstract":"The exponential growth of cloud computing and artificial intelligence (AI) applications has driven an urgent need for high-bandwidth, energy-efficient hardware architectures in data centers. With Moore’s Law nearing its limits, optical neuromorphic computing hardware offers a promising alternative, providing ultra-high speeds and minimal energy consumption due to its analog architecture. Here, we propose the microcomb-enabled parallel optical convolution streaming processor (OCSP) with time, space, and wavelength three-dimensional multiplexing, operating at data rates of 50 GBaud or higher, achieving a convolution computing speed of up to 4 trillion operations per second (TOPS). Moreover, the OCSP uses a robust self-calibration mechanism to achieve accurate optical phase calibration and set-up of its convolution function. This innovative approach leverages time-space interleaving passive periodic interference architecture, incorporating wavelength-division-multiplexing technology, and is verified experimentally for parallel image feature extraction and recognition tasks. Our OCSP offers a practical pathway for seamlessly integrating photonic computing units into data center interconnects, unlocking photonic computing’s potential for scalable, low-latency AI workloads.","PeriodicalId":18069,"journal":{"name":"Light-Science & Applications","volume":"43 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-03-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147346871","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-03-05DOI: 10.1038/s41377-026-02234-4
Xuyang Hong, Jie Xie, Jie Sheng, Feng Xie, Jin Zhang, Kangwei Wang, Ming Cheng, Chun Chen, Jae-Hyeung Park, Cheng Wu
Light field rendering is widely applied to virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), mixed reality (MR) and extended reality (XR). For photorealistic light field displays, it requires a dense view sampling of the scene. However, in dynamic immersive interactions, the available observations are often too sparse to synthesize the complete light field required for a high-fidelity display. Therefore, it poses a huge challenge for generating photometrically consistent views between the virtual and real world. Here, we introduce a neural illumination estimation and editing framework for adaptive light field synthesis. The proposed method can explicitly encode intrinsic parameters of illumination from one single sampling view, which is used for a hybrid-guided generative network to synthesize photometrically plausible dense views of the scene under the guidance of a complete rendering model. It deconstructs the baked-in lighting to enable consistent and high-fidelity relighting from any viewpoint. Our method estimates and edits illumination with only 0.2397 W m−2 irradiance error and 7.02∘ angular deviation, yielding synthesized images with an average 17.0% improvement in PSNR and a 51.2% reduction in LPIPS. This work presents a practical pathway towards truly interactive and adaptive digital light fields, enabling photorealistic content generation for the next generation of near-eye displays and computational imaging systems.
光场渲染广泛应用于虚拟现实（VR）、增强现实（AR）、混合现实（MR）和扩展现实（XR）等领域。对于逼真的光场显示，需要对场景进行密集的视图采样。然而，在动态沉浸式交互中，可用的观测结果往往过于稀疏，无法合成高保真显示所需的完整光场。因此，在虚拟世界和现实世界之间生成光度一致的视图提出了巨大的挑战。本文介绍了一种用于自适应光场合成的神经照度估计和编辑框架。该方法可以从单个采样视图中显式编码照明的内在参数，并将其用于混合引导生成网络，在完整渲染模型的指导下合成具有光度可信度的密集场景视图。它解构了烘焙照明，使从任何角度一致和高保真重照明。我们的方法仅以0.2397 W m−2的辐照度误差和7.02°角偏差估算和编辑光照，生成的合成图像的PSNR平均提高17.0%，LPIPS平均降低51.2%。这项工作为实现真正的交互式和自适应数字光场提供了一条实用途径，为下一代近眼显示和计算成像系统提供了逼真的内容生成。
{"title":"Single-view neural illumination estimation and editing for dynamic light field display","authors":"Xuyang Hong, Jie Xie, Jie Sheng, Feng Xie, Jin Zhang, Kangwei Wang, Ming Cheng, Chun Chen, Jae-Hyeung Park, Cheng Wu","doi":"10.1038/s41377-026-02234-4","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41377-026-02234-4","url":null,"abstract":"Light field rendering is widely applied to virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), mixed reality (MR) and extended reality (XR). For photorealistic light field displays, it requires a dense view sampling of the scene. However, in dynamic immersive interactions, the available observations are often too sparse to synthesize the complete light field required for a high-fidelity display. Therefore, it poses a huge challenge for generating photometrically consistent views between the virtual and real world. Here, we introduce a neural illumination estimation and editing framework for adaptive light field synthesis. The proposed method can explicitly encode intrinsic parameters of illumination from one single sampling view, which is used for a hybrid-guided generative network to synthesize photometrically plausible dense views of the scene under the guidance of a complete rendering model. It deconstructs the baked-in lighting to enable consistent and high-fidelity relighting from any viewpoint. Our method estimates and edits illumination with only 0.2397 W m−2 irradiance error and 7.02∘ angular deviation, yielding synthesized images with an average 17.0% improvement in PSNR and a 51.2% reduction in LPIPS. This work presents a practical pathway towards truly interactive and adaptive digital light fields, enabling photorealistic content generation for the next generation of near-eye displays and computational imaging systems.","PeriodicalId":18069,"journal":{"name":"Light-Science & Applications","volume":"68 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-03-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147346813","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-03-03DOI: 10.1038/s41377-026-02239-z
Joohoon Kim,Junsuk Rho
A recent study demonstrates a metasurface platform for 3D vectorial holography that enables independent control of light intensity and polarization along the propagation axis. By utilizing longitudinally engineered meta-atoms, this approach achieves multi-dimensional optical encryption platform.
{"title":"Metasurfaces enable sculpting light in three dimensions.","authors":"Joohoon Kim,Junsuk Rho","doi":"10.1038/s41377-026-02239-z","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41377-026-02239-z","url":null,"abstract":"A recent study demonstrates a metasurface platform for 3D vectorial holography that enables independent control of light intensity and polarization along the propagation axis. By utilizing longitudinally engineered meta-atoms, this approach achieves multi-dimensional optical encryption platform.","PeriodicalId":18069,"journal":{"name":"Light-Science & Applications","volume":"100 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-03-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147329333","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-03-03DOI: 10.1038/s41377-026-02235-3
Fenghe Zhong,Zhuoying Wang,Youngseop Lee,Jiaxiao Han,Naidi Sun,Shuo Yang,Shengyun Ji,Hao F Zhang,Cheng Sun,Song Hu
Microvascular function and oxygen metabolism are central to tissue and organ health. However, label-free methods for imaging oxygen dynamics in three-dimensional (3D) microvascular networks at the level of single red blood cells (RBCs)-the fundamental units of oxygen transport in vivo-remain lacking. Here, we introduce super-resolution functional photoacoustic microscopy (SR-fPAM), which spatiotemporally tracks RBC movements under dual-wavelength excitation. SR-fPAM reconstructs super-resolved 3D microvascular architecture comparable to two-photon microscopy while providing quantitative measurements of RBC flow and oxygenation. In live mice, SR-fPAM revealed redistribution of oxygen and hemodynamics across 3D microvascular networks following a single-vessel stroke. These findings establish SR-fPAM as an enabling tool that bridges a critical gap in oxygen-metabolism imaging and opens new avenues for studying microvascular health and disease with unprecedented functional insights.
{"title":"Super-resolution functional photoacoustic microscopy via label-free cell tracking.","authors":"Fenghe Zhong,Zhuoying Wang,Youngseop Lee,Jiaxiao Han,Naidi Sun,Shuo Yang,Shengyun Ji,Hao F Zhang,Cheng Sun,Song Hu","doi":"10.1038/s41377-026-02235-3","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41377-026-02235-3","url":null,"abstract":"Microvascular function and oxygen metabolism are central to tissue and organ health. However, label-free methods for imaging oxygen dynamics in three-dimensional (3D) microvascular networks at the level of single red blood cells (RBCs)-the fundamental units of oxygen transport in vivo-remain lacking. Here, we introduce super-resolution functional photoacoustic microscopy (SR-fPAM), which spatiotemporally tracks RBC movements under dual-wavelength excitation. SR-fPAM reconstructs super-resolved 3D microvascular architecture comparable to two-photon microscopy while providing quantitative measurements of RBC flow and oxygenation. In live mice, SR-fPAM revealed redistribution of oxygen and hemodynamics across 3D microvascular networks following a single-vessel stroke. These findings establish SR-fPAM as an enabling tool that bridges a critical gap in oxygen-metabolism imaging and opens new avenues for studying microvascular health and disease with unprecedented functional insights.","PeriodicalId":18069,"journal":{"name":"Light-Science & Applications","volume":"12 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-03-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147346450","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-03-03DOI: 10.1038/s41377-026-02248-y
Leonardo Rossi,Gabriele Bolognini
Spontaneous Brillouin scattering is widely used to probe the mechanical and thermal state of matter, yet it has been assumed to be intrinsically stable. Jin and colleagues overturn this view by showing that spontaneous Brillouin light carries its own thermally driven noise floor. Their framework predicts-and experiments confirm-a universal upper bound of SNR = 1 under ideal detection conditions which can become even more restrictive than the conventional shot-noise limit in practical Brillouin systems. This discovery introduces a new fundamental limit to Brillouin-based sensing, microscopy and metrology.
{"title":"The hidden limit in light: intrinsic noise reshaping Brillouin metrology.","authors":"Leonardo Rossi,Gabriele Bolognini","doi":"10.1038/s41377-026-02248-y","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41377-026-02248-y","url":null,"abstract":"Spontaneous Brillouin scattering is widely used to probe the mechanical and thermal state of matter, yet it has been assumed to be intrinsically stable. Jin and colleagues overturn this view by showing that spontaneous Brillouin light carries its own thermally driven noise floor. Their framework predicts-and experiments confirm-a universal upper bound of SNR = 1 under ideal detection conditions which can become even more restrictive than the conventional shot-noise limit in practical Brillouin systems. This discovery introduces a new fundamental limit to Brillouin-based sensing, microscopy and metrology.","PeriodicalId":18069,"journal":{"name":"Light-Science & Applications","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-03-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147329335","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-03-03DOI: 10.1038/s41377-025-02166-5
Yannick Salamin,Gaojie Yang,Brian Mills,André Grossi Fonseca,Charles Roques-Carmes,Quansan Yang,Justin Beroz,Steven E Kooi,Marc de Miguel Comella,Kiran Mak,Sachin Vaidya,Daniel Oran,Corban Swain,Yi Sun,Shai Maayani,Jamison Sloan,Amel Amin Elfadil Elawad,Josue J Lopez,Edward S Boyden,Marin Soljačić
Nanophotonics has revolutionized the control of light-matter interactions in various fields of fundamental science and technology. In this work, we propose Implosion Fabrication (ImpFab) as a versatile nanophotonics fabrication platform providing the highest spatial resolution, material versatility, and full volumetric control. ImpFab uniquely combines top-down lithography with bottom-up nanoparticle assembly within a hydrogel scaffold, enabling precise control over optical material properties, such as refractive index, by adjusting printing parameters. We showcase the potential of ImpFab by fabricating three-dimensional photonic crystals and quasicrystals, as well as demonstrating optical structures with spatially modulated unit cell material properties. Our results highlight the potential of ImpFab in producing nanostructures with tailored optical functionalities, which are crucial for applications in sensing, imaging, and information processing, and opening new avenues in developing non-Hermitian photonic systems with spatially controlled gain and loss.
{"title":"Three-dimensional nanophotonics with spatially modulated optical properties.","authors":"Yannick Salamin,Gaojie Yang,Brian Mills,André Grossi Fonseca,Charles Roques-Carmes,Quansan Yang,Justin Beroz,Steven E Kooi,Marc de Miguel Comella,Kiran Mak,Sachin Vaidya,Daniel Oran,Corban Swain,Yi Sun,Shai Maayani,Jamison Sloan,Amel Amin Elfadil Elawad,Josue J Lopez,Edward S Boyden,Marin Soljačić","doi":"10.1038/s41377-025-02166-5","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41377-025-02166-5","url":null,"abstract":"Nanophotonics has revolutionized the control of light-matter interactions in various fields of fundamental science and technology. In this work, we propose Implosion Fabrication (ImpFab) as a versatile nanophotonics fabrication platform providing the highest spatial resolution, material versatility, and full volumetric control. ImpFab uniquely combines top-down lithography with bottom-up nanoparticle assembly within a hydrogel scaffold, enabling precise control over optical material properties, such as refractive index, by adjusting printing parameters. We showcase the potential of ImpFab by fabricating three-dimensional photonic crystals and quasicrystals, as well as demonstrating optical structures with spatially modulated unit cell material properties. Our results highlight the potential of ImpFab in producing nanostructures with tailored optical functionalities, which are crucial for applications in sensing, imaging, and information processing, and opening new avenues in developing non-Hermitian photonic systems with spatially controlled gain and loss.","PeriodicalId":18069,"journal":{"name":"Light-Science & Applications","volume":"46 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-03-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147346451","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
In response to the emerging demand for dynamic and cross-scale microscopic observation in fields such as biology, medicine, and materials science, the liquid lens has been widely adopted in modern microscopy to enable real-time, continuous optical zooming. However, the limited optical power of the liquid lens restricts the zoom range, and the nonlinear dynamic aberrations introduced during zooming can significantly degrade image quality. To address these challenges, a continuous optical zoom microscope with a large zoom ratio and adaptive aberration correction is proposed, based on an end-to-end joint optimization framework that integrates optical design and neural network guided by physical degradation. By incorporating spatially-variant, multi-wavelength, and continuous-magnification 4D PSF of the system as physical priors, this work achieves fast and high-quality continuous zoom imaging from 10.6× ~ 101.4×, while adaptively correcting complex aberrations that vary with both magnification and spatial location. The core hardware component of the system is a zoom objective lens with a movable relay image plane, which especially integrates electrowetting liquid lenses. On the algorithmic side, 4DPSF-aware Physical Degradation-guided Network (4DPSF-PDNet) is introduced for adaptive aberration correction during the zooming process. By embedding the PSF into the network, the method effectively suppresses distortions and artifacts and achieves precise correction of complex, dynamically varying aberrations. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed adaptive continuous microscope holds significant promise for a wide range of applications in biology, medical diagnostics, and materials science.
{"title":"Large zoom ratio and adaptive aberration correction microscope using 4DPSF-aware Physical Degradation-guided Network.","authors":"Dong-Xu Yu,Zhao Jiang,Yi Zheng,Hao-Ran Zhang,Rong-Qiang Li,You-Ran Zhao,Xiao-Ke Lu,Yu-Cheng Lin,Chao Liu,Qiong-Hua Wang","doi":"10.1038/s41377-025-02155-8","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41377-025-02155-8","url":null,"abstract":"In response to the emerging demand for dynamic and cross-scale microscopic observation in fields such as biology, medicine, and materials science, the liquid lens has been widely adopted in modern microscopy to enable real-time, continuous optical zooming. However, the limited optical power of the liquid lens restricts the zoom range, and the nonlinear dynamic aberrations introduced during zooming can significantly degrade image quality. To address these challenges, a continuous optical zoom microscope with a large zoom ratio and adaptive aberration correction is proposed, based on an end-to-end joint optimization framework that integrates optical design and neural network guided by physical degradation. By incorporating spatially-variant, multi-wavelength, and continuous-magnification 4D PSF of the system as physical priors, this work achieves fast and high-quality continuous zoom imaging from 10.6× ~ 101.4×, while adaptively correcting complex aberrations that vary with both magnification and spatial location. The core hardware component of the system is a zoom objective lens with a movable relay image plane, which especially integrates electrowetting liquid lenses. On the algorithmic side, 4DPSF-aware Physical Degradation-guided Network (4DPSF-PDNet) is introduced for adaptive aberration correction during the zooming process. By embedding the PSF into the network, the method effectively suppresses distortions and artifacts and achieves precise correction of complex, dynamically varying aberrations. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed adaptive continuous microscope holds significant promise for a wide range of applications in biology, medical diagnostics, and materials science.","PeriodicalId":18069,"journal":{"name":"Light-Science & Applications","volume":"51 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-03-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147329336","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-03-03DOI: 10.1038/s41377-025-02052-0
Xingfa Gao,Yuzhen Huang,Rixuan Wang,Yinglun Sun,Lai Wang
The rapid evolution of wearable technology, interconnected devices, and medical devices is driving innovation in advanced materials for flexible optoelectronics. III-nitride semiconductors, with their exceptional optoelectronic properties, strong piezotronic and piezo-phototronic effects, biocompatibility, and thermal/chemical/mechanical stability, present a compelling alternative to traditional organic and Si-based inorganic materials. Despite significant research efforts, a systematic review summarizing the advancements and challenges in III-nitride flexible optoelectronics is lacking. This article provides a comprehensive overview of recent developments in this field. It begins by highlighting the advantages of III-nitride semiconductors for flexible optoelectronics. The article then discusses the fabrication techniques for III-nitride flexible devices, covering materials growth, film exfoliation and transfer, as well as functional micro/nanostructures. A wide range of flexible applications of III-nitrides are explored, including flexible displays, implantable optogenetic devices, wearable photodetectors, and flexible mechanical sensors. Finally, challenges and potential solutions related to device fabrication, performance enhancement, theoretical modeling, and system integration are discussed. This work serves as a foundational reference and roadmap for further advancements in III-nitride flexible optoelectronics.
{"title":"Advancing flexible optoelectronics with III-nitride semiconductors: from materials to applications.","authors":"Xingfa Gao,Yuzhen Huang,Rixuan Wang,Yinglun Sun,Lai Wang","doi":"10.1038/s41377-025-02052-0","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41377-025-02052-0","url":null,"abstract":"The rapid evolution of wearable technology, interconnected devices, and medical devices is driving innovation in advanced materials for flexible optoelectronics. III-nitride semiconductors, with their exceptional optoelectronic properties, strong piezotronic and piezo-phototronic effects, biocompatibility, and thermal/chemical/mechanical stability, present a compelling alternative to traditional organic and Si-based inorganic materials. Despite significant research efforts, a systematic review summarizing the advancements and challenges in III-nitride flexible optoelectronics is lacking. This article provides a comprehensive overview of recent developments in this field. It begins by highlighting the advantages of III-nitride semiconductors for flexible optoelectronics. The article then discusses the fabrication techniques for III-nitride flexible devices, covering materials growth, film exfoliation and transfer, as well as functional micro/nanostructures. A wide range of flexible applications of III-nitrides are explored, including flexible displays, implantable optogenetic devices, wearable photodetectors, and flexible mechanical sensors. Finally, challenges and potential solutions related to device fabrication, performance enhancement, theoretical modeling, and system integration are discussed. This work serves as a foundational reference and roadmap for further advancements in III-nitride flexible optoelectronics.","PeriodicalId":18069,"journal":{"name":"Light-Science & Applications","volume":"27 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-03-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147329334","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Achieving low-loss optical interfaces between high-refractive-index (n > 2) components is critical for mid-infrared photonic systems, yet hindered by the trade-off between refractive index matching, IR transparency and thermal stability. Here, we introduce a groundbreaking solution-bonding the optical lenses and fibers with a liquid-like chalcogenide glass, which possesses an ultra-low glass transition temperature below room temperature, high refractive index and exceptional mid-infrared transparency. The basic performances of the liquid glass are characterized and proved by detailed viscosity distribution, mechanical shear and bonding tensile strength measurements. Most of all, the optical transmission and laser delivery of these bonded chalcogenide glass fiber devices demonstrate a significant improvement, with transmission efficiency increasing from 36% to 91%, and laser power delivery from several hundred mW rising to 14.5 W at a wavelength near 4 µm. Additionally, the system demonstrates long-term stability, maintaining performance over at least 3 months and more than 206 heating-cooling cycles when utilizing this liquid-like glass adhesive. This research not only addresses the challenge of bonding mid-infrared optical components but also holds immense promise for advancing integrated mid-infrared optics applications, including spectroscopy, sensing, and imaging.
{"title":"Breaking the mid-infrared interconnection barrier: a robust bonding for high-power optics based on liquid-like chalcogenide glass.","authors":"Xiange Wang,Feng Xiao,Yiming Du,Kai Jiao,Keke Chen,Wei Tang,Yuyang Wang,Xiang Shen,Shixun Dai,Maozhi Li,Xunsi Wang,Shengchuang Bai,Rongping Wang,Ganapathy Senthil Murugan,Barry Luther-Davies","doi":"10.1038/s41377-025-02098-0","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41377-025-02098-0","url":null,"abstract":"Achieving low-loss optical interfaces between high-refractive-index (n > 2) components is critical for mid-infrared photonic systems, yet hindered by the trade-off between refractive index matching, IR transparency and thermal stability. Here, we introduce a groundbreaking solution-bonding the optical lenses and fibers with a liquid-like chalcogenide glass, which possesses an ultra-low glass transition temperature below room temperature, high refractive index and exceptional mid-infrared transparency. The basic performances of the liquid glass are characterized and proved by detailed viscosity distribution, mechanical shear and bonding tensile strength measurements. Most of all, the optical transmission and laser delivery of these bonded chalcogenide glass fiber devices demonstrate a significant improvement, with transmission efficiency increasing from 36% to 91%, and laser power delivery from several hundred mW rising to 14.5 W at a wavelength near 4 µm. Additionally, the system demonstrates long-term stability, maintaining performance over at least 3 months and more than 206 heating-cooling cycles when utilizing this liquid-like glass adhesive. This research not only addresses the challenge of bonding mid-infrared optical components but also holds immense promise for advancing integrated mid-infrared optics applications, including spectroscopy, sensing, and imaging.","PeriodicalId":18069,"journal":{"name":"Light-Science & Applications","volume":"21 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-03-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147329338","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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