Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

SPIE @spie.org · 1d

We have exciting news! We’re pleased to announce the new SPIE Optical Systems Lab at Monroe Community College, to be built with a $150,000 investment from #SPIE. ✨

This will serve as a hub for hands-on training and workforce development in #optics and #photonics. Read more in the press release. ⤵️

SPIE Optical Systems Lab named at Monroe Community College

The new laboratory, to be built with a $150,000 investment from SPIE, will support optical technician-training programs at the Rochester-based college

spie.org

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SPIE @spie.org · 1d

Join us on 14 October for an AR | VR | MR Fireside Chat with Joris Biskop, CEO of AddOptics.

Hear insights on the latest in immersive tech, hosted by Bernard Kress, Christophe Peroz, & Grace Lee. Register: https://spie-org.zoom.us/webinar/register/3017570026416/WN_-3_LtYnqQSiI3ccq3lL53w #SPIEXR

Promotional graphic for SPIE Online AR VR MR Webinar Series featuring a Fireside Chat with Joris Biskop from AddOptics, scheduled for 14 October 2025 at 9:00 AM PT. Includes a portrait of Joris Biskop smiling, wearing glasses.

Reposted by SPIE

Physics World @physicsworld.bsky.social · 2d

A perovskite-based detector could create next-generation nuclear medicine scanners that image faster and provide clearer results. The perovskite is also easier to grow and cheaper than existing detector materials. 🧪⚛️ physicsworld.com/a/perovskite...

Perovskite detector could improve nuclear medicine imaging – Physics World

A lead halide material can detect and image single gamma-ray photons with both high-spatial and high-energy resolution

physicsworld.com

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SPIE @spie.org · 5d

Don’t miss NCI’s Outreach Webinar on Optical Imaging Products for Cancer, Oct 20 from 11:00 AM–12:30 PM PT. Discover funding opportunities + commercialization resources available to cancer imaging researchers.

Register: https://cbiit.webex.com/weblink/register/r2551cda01a54581e9628114d718edfc1

Meet virtually with Cisco Webex. Anytime, anywhere, on any device.

Simple, modern video meetings for everyone on the world's most popular and trusted collaboration platform.

cbiit.webex.com

SPIE @spie.org · 6d

Like many rivers, Montana’s Gallatin River faces algal blooms that threaten its ecosystem. Researchers at MSU are building low-cost optical sensors to track river health in real time, turning #photonics into a tool for conservation.

Read more in the Sept/Oct issue of #PhotonicsFocus! #optics

Sensing troubled waters under the big sky

Networks of smart multi-spectral sensors may help monitor pollution like algal blooms in bodies of water.

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SPIE @spie.org · 7d

Registration is open for #PhotonicsWest 2026!

Join us in San Francisco from January 17 to 22 for six days of research, exhibitions, and networking.

New this year: Vision Tech, showcasing the future of imaging and AI.

We can't wait to see everyone!

SPIE Photonics West 2026 opens for registration

Six action-packed days full of networking, technical presentations, exhibitions, and industry-focused talks mark the most important week in optics and photonics

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Reposted by SPIE

Physics World @physicsworld.bsky.social · 15d

Researchers determine that a photon can spend a negative amount of time in an excited atomic state while passing through a cloud of atoms - a finding with potential applications in studies of light-matter interactions and quantum sensing. 🧪⚛️ physicsworld.com/a/negative-t...

Negative time observed in photon-atom interaction – Physics World

Researchers find that a photon can spend a negative amount of time in an excited atomic state while passing through a cloud of atoms

physicsworld.com

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SPIE @spie.org · 8d

The optics industry can’t run without skilled technicians, and there aren’t enough of them.

MCC’s revived training program + the new SPIE Technicians Series aims to bridge the gap & keep innovation moving forward. 💡📕

Read more about the technician shortage in the Sept/Oct issue of #PhotonicsFocus!

Solving the optics technician shortage starts with education

A new Technician Training series published by SPIE Press addresses optics technician training in light of technician shortages.

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Reposted by SPIE

Ivan Amato @ivanamato.bsky.social · 9d

ICYMI. Here I take color away from your world and then give it back to you.

SPIE @spie.org · 9d

Color doesn’t exist outside the brain. 🧠

From fruit flies to humans, perception transforms raw light into hues, even nonspectral ones like purple. New work is mapping the neural circuits that make color possible. 🎨

Learn more about color perception in the Sept/Oct issue of #PhotonicsFocus!

A most curious absence of color outside your head

Neuroscientists are still working to unravel how humans perceive color.

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SPIE @spie.org · 9d

Color doesn’t exist outside the brain. 🧠

From fruit flies to humans, perception transforms raw light into hues, even nonspectral ones like purple. New work is mapping the neural circuits that make color possible. 🎨

Learn more about color perception in the Sept/Oct issue of #PhotonicsFocus!

A most curious absence of color outside your head

Neuroscientists are still working to unravel how humans perceive color.

spie.org

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SPIE @spie.org · 11d

Join us on October 6 for the next #SPIE_JBO Hot Topics Webinar: Optical Elastography.

Hear from global experts on how this tech is reshaping cancer imaging, ophthalmology, dermatology, and more.

Free registration: https://spie-org.zoom.us/webinar/register/6217570032227/WN_kFcZ6b8lTduLiRPp87R1Fw

Promotional image for JBO Hot Topics Webinar on Optical Elastography, scheduled for 6 October 2025 at 9:00 AM PT. The background shows colorful, abstract biomedical imagery with central red light beam. Text invites to register for free, emphasized by the logos of Journal of Biomedical Optics and SPIE at the bottom.

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SPIE @spie.org · 11d

Before Silicon Valley, there was Edwin H. Land. The Polaroid founder pioneered instant photography, polarized lenses, & even advised on US spy satellites, shaping imaging tech long before the digital era.

Read more about Land's life & career in the #PhotonicsFocus Sept/Oct issue! #optics #photonics

Image of innovation: Edwin H. Land, developer of instant photography

Edwin H. Land, founder of the Polaroid Corporation, has been an inspiration for some of today's top technology founders.

spie.org

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SPIE @spie.org · 13d

Space images from Hubble, Webb, Rubin, and Chandra don’t show “true” colors; they translate invisible wavelengths into visible ones. Colorization reveals hidden details and helps us understand the universe. 🔭 🛰️

Read more in the Sept/Oct issue of #PhotonicsFocus!

Astro-color alchemists

Astronomers have a method for colorizing grayscale images from various space- and groundbased observatories.

spie.org

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SPIE @spie.org · 14d

Far-UVC light (222 nm) can kill viruses and bacteria without harming skin, making it a potential pandemic fighter. Now, researchers are trying to develop efficient, low-cost light sources so the technology can move from labs to everyday use.

Read more in the Sept/Oct issue of #PhotonicsFocus!

Far-UVC fix: The wavelength that harms viruses, not humans

Safe for skin but deadly to pathogens, far-ultraviolet C light could help fight the next pandemic—but only if engineers can build a cheap and efficient light source first.

spie.org

SPIE @spie.org · 15d

A new light-based chip developed by researchers at @ufresearch.bsky.social boosts AI power efficiency by 100x! Optical computing could be the key to greener, faster machine learning. 💡

Read the #AdvancedPhotonics article summary here: https://bit.ly/41JPYJ6

New light-based chip boosts power efficiency of AI tasks 100 fold

Researchers have developed a silicon chip that uses light with electricity to perform convolution operations for AI, dramatically reducing energy use and increasing speed

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SPIE @spie.org · 19d

“It’s easy to stop [innovation]. It’s much harder to restart it.” – Rep. Joe Morelle

The SPIE Photonics Industry Summit kicked off in DC this morning, where speakers from Congress, ARPA-E, and the US Army Space & Missile Defense stressed investment, workforce, and leadership in #photonics.

Group of professionals, posing for a photo at a conference.

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Reposted by SPIE

Joe Morelle @morelle.house.gov · 19d

Photonics began with a simple idea: letting light itself do the drawing. Nearly 200 years later, the photonics field is still fueling innovations that are reshaping our world.

Proud to join @spie.org today to discuss our ongoing work to ensure the U.S. leads in this vital field of discovery.

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SPIE @spie.org · 20d

Your brain’s tiniest vessels do more than carry blood! They also pulse to regulate flow. 🧠

A new imaging study reveals vasomotion flares from arterial walls could be key to understanding stroke and Alzheimer’s - https://bit.ly/42fdnSQ

#Neurophotonics

Imaging study reveals how tiny brain vessels pulse to regulate blood flow

Research shows that vasomotion in the mouse brain originates in arterial walls and spreads through the vascular network in short bursts, offering insights into how the brain regulates its blood supply

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SPIE @spie.org · 21d

Join us on 30 Sept for the latest edition of the Poincaré Webinar Series with Morten Kildemo. He will present on Spectroscopic Mueller Matrix Ellipsometry and its applications in plasmonics and metasurfaces. Sign-up: https://spie-org.zoom.us/webinar/register/4316766662115/WN_zIicx5O2RM2viKsdrD7rMQ

Promotional image for an SPIE online Poincaré Webinar Series featuring Morten Kildemo. The person is smiling, wearing glasses. Text describes the webinar about plasmonic and dielectric metasurfaces, scheduled for September 30, 2025, at 2:00 PM.

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SPIE @spie.org · 21d

New optical imaging research reveals methionine’s potential to reduce oxidative stress in ALS-model cells. Advanced microscopy shows metabolic shifts that may open doors to future therapies. 🔬

Newly published in #SPIE_JBO! More here: https://bit.ly/4mVVO2E
@stimulatedraman.bsky.social #optics

Optical imaging reveals methionine’s surprising role in combating ALS-related cell stress

A multimodal, label-free optical imaging platform combining DO-SRS and 2PEF microscopy enables high-resolution, real-time visualization of metabolic and redox dynamics in ALS-model cells under methion

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SPIE @spie.org · 22d

What is a photon, really? 😬

A new study applies first quantization to light and bridges classical optics and quantum mechanics. This framework, published in #AdvancedPhotonics, reveals the "quantum diversity" of photons.

🔗 Read the full story here: https://bit.ly/4plHKBd

Rethinking the photon: New study reframes quantum light using first quantization

Framework reveals a direct link between classical electromagnetism and quantum photon behavior, highlighting the “quantum diversity” of photons

spie.org

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SPIE @spie.org · 22d

Exciting! Best of luck. 😀

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SPIE @spie.org · 23d

AI meets autofluorescence: A new optical imaging technique uses tissue’s natural glow to detect colorectal cancer. Real-time, dye-free, and highly accurate.

Learn more by reading the #BiophotonicsDiscovery article summary on our website: https://bit.ly/41JbKg8

Optical imaging technique could help spot colorectal cancer sooner

AI-assisted autofluorescence lifetime imaging can accurately distinguish malignant from benign colorectal tissue in real time, offering a promising tool for improving cancer detection during endoscopi

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SPIE @spie.org · 25d

Medical imaging researchers from Vanderbilt & @mdanderson.bsky.social have developed Glo-In-One-v2, a powerful AI model that enables multiclass segmentation of kidney pathology images.

The article published in #SPIE_JMI includes the #OpenSource model!

https://bit.ly/4guTL35

Educational diagram illustrating the comparison between healthy glomerular tissue and glomerular lesions in kidneys. Includes detailed annotations and microscope images, as well as a flowchart demonstrating the process of data detection, segmentation using software tools, and model outputs.

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SPIE @spie.org · 26d

Check out the #Neurophotonics special issue "Understanding Brain Disease with Live Imaging” edited by Adam Bauer (Washington University School of Medicine), @nozomi-nishimura.bsky.social (Cornell Univ.), and Bistra Iordanova (Univ. of Pittsburgh): https://bit.ly/45LYxFN

@annadevor.bsky.social

Neurophotonics cover for the special issue “Understanding Brain Disease with Live Imaging,” featuring research by Kévin Chalard, Yan Chastagnier, Julie Perroy, and Vivien Szabo (doi 10.1117/1.NPh.12.S1.S14612)

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