JERUSALEM, July 22 (Xinhua) -- An Israeli-U.S. research team has developed an ultra-fast technology that can control a light beam in much less than a trillionth of a second, Israel's Tel Aviv University said in a statement Wednesday.
The new technology, described in Nature Nanotechnology, could improve optical computers, high-speed communications, advanced cameras, sensors and even quantum technologies by controlling light much faster than existing systems, it said.
The device is an ultra-thin surface covered with tiny silicon structures, each smaller than the wavelength of light. When the surface is hit by a very short laser pulse, its properties briefly change, allowing it to redirect and reshape a passing light beam almost instantly, it said.
In experiments, the researchers controlled the light beam in just 74 femtoseconds, or less than one-tenth of a trillionth of a second. They also changed the beam's shape simply by changing the laser pattern projected onto the surface, it said.
While current systems slow data flows by converting light into electrical signals for processing, the new approach promises faster and more efficient future technologies by allowing some of that processing to be carried out using light itself, it added. ■
