Insights
Solar batteries without the charger? We’re working on that
Michael De Volder tells us how a Friday afternoon experiment led to research on a new low-cost battery design that can be charged directly by light without a separate solar cell or power converter.
Increasing manufacturing capability and productivity
Professor Bill O’Neill, Head of the Centre for Industrial Photonics, discusses the current role that precision industrial lasers and other technologies are playing in increasing capability and productivity in manufacturing.
Advanced materials: one of the UK's eight great technologies for future growth
Today, we commence a month-long focus on research on advanced materials. To begin, materials scientist Professor Mark Blamire and engineer Professor Bill O'Neill discuss how research in Cambridge is helping to advance the material world.
Small is beautiful: Why ultra precision manufacturing is such a big deal
Are you happy with your smartphone? Bill O'Neill, Professor of Laser Engineering and Director of the IfM's Centre for Industrial Photonics isn't.
Photonics PhD student explains influence of Star Wars novel on her work
PhD student Karen Yu explains how George Lucas' Star Wars novel has influenced her work in the field of photonic lasers as part of the University of Cambridge's 'Novel Thoughts' project.
50 Years of Working at The Speed of Light
2010 marks the 50th anniversary of the invention of the Laser (Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation). The science has evolved from a series of curious instruments conceived and produced by a handful of scientists, to one of the most important scientific inventions of all time.
