1. Quantum light behaves differently than classical focused laser beams
A group of researchers at Tampere University in Finland are exploring the anomalous behavior of focused light fields—an effect of the physics of optical waves—within quantum light. And they’ve shown quantum light with a well-defined photon number behaves differently than classical focused laser beams. This provides new insight about the phenomena and enables super-sensitive distance measurements.
“Our initial work resulted in quantum-enhanced measurements of rotation and when looking into how this concept could be extended to longitudinal and lateral displacements, we realized that, in the longitudinal case, the Gouy phase could be the driving force behind these measurements,” says Markus Hiekkamäki, a doctoral researcher in the Experimental Quantum Optics group of the Physics Unit. “After delving into related literature, we discovered no one had really explored the effects of the Gouy phase on multiphoton quantum states and it led us to investigate the phenomenon in more detail.”
Exploring light waves within the quantum domain
The first of the three main basic phenomenon involved is the Gouy phase, the phase anomaly of waves that occurs when a beam of light is focused. “We set out to explore this fundamental feature of waves within a quantum setting, the quantum Gouy phase,” says Hiekkamäki.
Read more: https://www.laserfocusworld.com/lasers-sources/article/14284485/quantum-light-behaves-differently-than-classical-focused-laser-beams
2. Webb wows with new view of the 'Pillars of Creation'
Near-infrared camera on board JWST is able to peer through the towers of interstellar dust captured in Hubble’s iconic image.
Near-infrared camera on board JWST is able to peer through the towers of interstellar dust captured in Hubble’s iconic image.
The near-infrared camera (NIRCam) instrument on board the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has returned an updated and even more spectacular image of the iconic “Pillars of Creation”, first captured by the Hubble Space Telescope nearly three decades ago.
Star formation models
NASA says that the latest images should help researchers to refine their models of star formation, by identifying more precise counts of newly formed stars, alongside the quantities of gas and dust in the region.
Read more: https://optics.org/news/13/10/31
