Laser Focus World is an industry bedrock—first published in 1965 and still going strong. We publish original articles about cutting-edge advances in lasers, optics, photonics, sensors, and quantum technologies, as well as test and measurement, and the shift currently underway to usher in the photonic integrated circuits, optical interconnects, and copackaged electronics and photonics to deliver the speed and efficiency essential for data centers of the future.

Our 80,000 qualified print subscribers—and 130,000 12-month engaged online audience—trust us to dive in and provide original journalism you won’t find elsewhere covering key emerging areas such as laser-driven inertial confinement fusion, lasers in space, integrated photonics, chipscale lasers, LiDAR, metasurfaces, high-energy laser weaponry, photonic crystals, and quantum computing/sensors/communications. We cover the innovations driving these markets.

Laser Focus World is part of Endeavor Business Media, a division of EndeavorB2B.

Laser Focus World Membership

Never miss any articles, videos, podcasts, or webinars by signing up for membership access to Laser Focus World online. You can manage your preferences all in one place—and provide our editorial team with your valued feedback.

Magazine Subscription

Can you subscribe to receive our print issue for free? Yes, you sure can!

Newsletter Subscription

Laser Focus World newsletter subscription is free to qualified professionals:

The Daily Beam

Showcases the newest content from Laser Focus World, including photonics- and optics-based applications, components, research, and trends. (Daily)

Product Watch

The latest in products within the photonics industry. (9x per year)

Bio & Life Sciences Product Watch

The latest in products within the biophotonics industry. (4x per year)

Laser Processing Product Watch

The latest in products within the laser processing industry. (3x per year)

Get Published!

If you’d like to write an article for us, reach out with a short pitch to Sally Cole Johnson: [email protected]. We love to hear from you.

Photonics Hot List

Laser Focus World produces a video newscast that gives a peek into what’s happening in the world of photonics.

Following the Photons: A Photonics Podcast

Following the Photons: A Photonics Podcast dives deep into the fascinating world of photonics. Our weekly episodes feature interviews and discussions with industry and research experts, providing valuable perspectives on the issues, technologies, and trends shaping the photonics community.

Editorial Advisory Board

  • Professor Andrea M. Armani, University of Southern California
  • Ruti Ben-Shlomi, Ph.D., LightSolver
  • James Butler, Ph.D., Hamamatsu
  • Natalie Fardian-Melamed, Ph.D., Columbia University
  • Justin Sigley, Ph.D., AmeriCOM
  • Professor Birgit Stiller, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, and Leibniz University of Hannover
  • Professor Stephen Sweeney, University of Glasgow
  • Mohan Wang, Ph.D., University of Oxford
  • Professor Xuchen Wang, Harbin Engineering University
  • Professor Stefan Witte, Delft University of Technology

A new spin on materials analysis



TSUKUBA, Japan, Apr 17, 2024 - (ACN Newswire) - Researchers Koichiro Yaji and Shunsuke Tsuda at the National Institute for Materials Science in Japan have developed an improved type of microscope that can visualize key aspects of electron spin states in materials. The quantum mechanical property of electrons called spin is more complex than the spin of objects in our everyday world but is related to it as a measure of an electron’s angular momentum. The spin states of electrons can have a significant impact on the electronic and magnetic behavior of the materials they are part of.

Schematic diagram of the iSPEM and the images it can obtain
Schematic diagram of the iSPEM and the images it can obtain

The technology developed by Yaji and Tsuda is known as imaging-type spin-resolved photoemission microscopy (iSPEM). It uses the interaction of light with the electrons in a material to detect the relative alignment of the electron spins. It is particularly focused on electron spin polarization – the extent to which electron spins are collectively aligned in a specific direction.

The team’s iSPEM machine consists of three interconnected ultra-high vacuum chambers for preparing and analyzing the sample. Electrons are emitted from the sample by absorbing light energy, accelerated through the apparatus, and then analyzed by interaction with a spin filter crystal. The results are displayed as images which experts can use to glean the necessary information about the electron spin states in the sample.

“Compared to conventional machines, our iSPEM machine drastically improves the data acquisition efficiency by ten-thousand times, with a more than ten-times improvement in spatial resolution, ” says Yaji. “This offers tremendous opportunities for characterizing the electronic structure of microscopic materials and devices at previously inaccessible levels in the sub-micrometer region.”

This advance could promote improvements in using electron spin states in information processing and other electronic devices, as part of the fast-developing field know as spintronics. In spintronics applications, the spin state of electrons is utilized to store and process information, in addition to the traditional use of electric charge.

“This could lead to more energy-efficient and faster electronic devices, including quantum computers” says Yaji. Applying the subtleties of quantum mechanical behavior to computing is at the forefront of efforts to take computing powers to another level, but until now most advances have been restricted to arcane demonstrations rather than practical applications. Mastering the understanding, control and visualization of electron spin could be a significant step forward.

“We now plan to use our machine to investigate the possibilities for developing a new generation of electron spin-based devices, because it will let us look into the properties of tiny and structurally complex samples previously hidden from view,” Yaji concludes.

Further information
Name: Koichiro Yaji
National Institute for Materials Science
Email: yaji.koichiro@nims.go.jp 

Paper: https://doi.org/10.1080/27660400.2024.2328206

About Science and Technology of Advanced Materials: Methods (STAM-M)

STAM Methods is an open access sister journal of Science and Technology of Advanced Materials (STAM), and focuses on emergent methods and tools for improving and/or accelerating materials developments, such as methodology, apparatus, instrumentation, modeling, high-through put data collection, materials/process informatics, databases, and programming. https://www.tandfonline.com/STAM-M 

Dr Yasufumi Nakamichi
STAM Publishing Director
Email: NAKAMICHI.Yasufumi@nims.go.jp 

Press release distributed by Asia Research News for Science and Technology of Advanced Materials.

]]>

Source: Science and Technology of Advanced Materials

Copyright 2024 ACN Newswire . All rights reserved.

Stock Quote API & Stock News API supplied by www.cloudquote.io
Quotes delayed at least 20 minutes.
By accessing this page, you agree to the following
Privacy Policy and Terms Of Service.