LASER GENERATES BURSTS OF NOTHING

摘要

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology and JILA recently reported the development of a new kind of semiconductor laser that "excels at not producing light." The description seems a little contrived, as I'm pretty sure my shoe is even better at not producing light. But it is interesting, as the "dark pulse" laser could conceivably be useful in measurements and communications. Because dark pulses - unlike their bright counterparts - generally propagate without distortion, they might turn out to be useful in signal processing applications. "Dark pulses might be used like a camera shutter for a continuous light beam in optical networks."