Articles by Abby Proch

  1. What Can We Learn About Light From The Mantis Shrimp? 5/16/2022

    What can mantis shrimp and Sir Isaac Newton tell us about our understanding of light and color and what it means to see a rainbow? Relive one of my favorite episodes of Radiolab, now nearly a decade old, and what it can teach us about our gifts and our limitations. 

  2. Bright Ideas — JWST and LISA Reach Milestones, Women The Focus Of New Scholarship And Industry Award 5/11/2022

    Bright Ideas presents the most captivating news and innovations in photonics. This week, NASA revealed the latest alignment and instrument setup successes for the James Webb Space Telescope. Plus, Edmund Optics and MKS Instruments put women first with the launch of a new scholarship opportunity and acceptance of an industry gender-balance award, respectively. 

  3. Bright Ideas — Fraunhofer ISE Doubles Solar Cell Processing Output, LLNL Finds 3D Printer Defects With Laser-Based Ultrasound 5/4/2022

    Bright Ideas presents the most captivating news and innovations in photonics. This week, LLNL researchers are debuting a new laser-based ultrasound method for detecting tiny surface and subsurface defects in laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) 3D metal printing, while Fraunhofer ISE is revealing its high-efficiency process for producing more than 15,000 large-scale solar panel wafers in just one hour — about twice as much as the industry standard. 

  4. Bright Ideas — Mini Camera Captures Record 3cm To 1.7km DoF, Upconverting Red Laser Light For New 3D Printing Method 4/27/2022

    Bright Ideas presents the most captivating news and innovations in photonics. This week, NIST researchers introduced a camera with an incredible depth-of-field (DoF) inspired by the sight of a prehistoric predecessor to the horseshoe crab, and Stanford scientists are tapping into triplet fusion upconversion for a new take on 3D printing. 

  5. NIL Technology Founder & CEO Theodor Nielsen Discusses Flat Optics For AR/VR 4/25/2022

    NIL Technologies Founder and CEO Theodor Nielson explores the groundbreaking improvements in size, weight, and power reduction (SWaP) when using flat optics, or meta optics, in AR/VR applications.

  6. Bright Ideas — HEL & Hypersonic Weapons Tests Successful, High-Quality Graphene-hBN Deposition Method Proves Scalable 4/20/2022

    Bright Ideas presents the most captivating news and innovations in photonics. This week, two laser weapon system effectively upended their targets, while a hypersonic weapon carried out its second successful training test. Plus, University of Michigan researchers have established a scalable deposition method for developing hBN on graphene, potentially leading the way for new deep-UV LEDs and quantum technologies. 

  7. Bright Ideas — Hot Topics From DCS, What To Look For At LASER WORLD, And Booming Business For Synopsys, Jenoptik & ANSYS 4/13/2022

    Bright Ideas presents the most captivating news and innovations in photonics. This week, we wrap up the best of the SPIE Defense + Commercial Sensing show in Orlando, look ahead to the LASER WORLD of Photonics show in Munich, and recap some of the biggest business moves and milestones in photonics and optics. 

  8. Dragonfly Telephoto Array Discovers Ultra Diffuse Galaxies, Challenges Understanding of Dark Matter 4/11/2022

    Large-scale telescope projects such as James Webb Space Telescope that have enraptured even the most peripheral space enthusiasts often take decades of dedication and billions of public and private funds to help realize their goals. That bothers astronomer Dr. Bob Abraham, who teamed up with fellow astronomer Dr. Pieter van Dokkum to embark on a more intimate project with near-immediate results, one that unexpectedly changed the way astronomers think about dark matter.

  9. Casting Off, Cleaning Up: How One 3D Printing Method Aims to Revolutionize Manufacturing 4/4/2022

    Over the last 40 years, 3D printing as an alternative manufacturing method has been quietly gathering momentum. Despite the rise of 3D printing, also known as additive manufacturing (AM), it has yet to present itself as a viable alternative to time-tested methods, in part because it just can’t keep up with the pace. Seurat Technologies is hoping to change that with its "area printing" method.

  10. Bright Ideas — Highest-Res Image of Sun Ever, And An In-Depth Look At JWST’s Mid-Infrared Instrument 3/30/2022

    No need to “keep your eyes on the skies,” as they say. In this week’s Bright Ideas, we rely on two optical systems for our view into the unknown. Optica walks us through a wider and more detailed understanding of the James Webb Space Telescope’s incredible MIDI, or Mid-Infrared Instrument, as it prepares to deliver a never-before-seen look in the beyond.  And the European Space Agency’s Solar Orbiter shows us the most holistic view of the Sun to date — all thanks to its Extreme Ultraviolet Imager (EUI).