CRPuO researchers Dr. Orad Reshef, postdoctoral researcher with Prof. Robert Boyd (Canada Excellence Research Chair in Quantum Nonlinear Optics) and Prof. Jeff Lundeen (Canada Research Chair in Quantum Photonics) have developed a new optical device to miniaturize many of the common systems in our lives, from camera lenses to telescopes to future applications in health care.
Stemming from Prof. Lundeen’s suggestion to manipulate light based on its angle, a novel domain in the field of optics and photonics, the researchers set out to develop a “counterpart to the lens, doing things the lens can’t do to shrink down entire imaging systems” (Media, University of Ottawa, 2021). Using their various areas of expertise, both researchers demonstrated different ways to develop this new optical element, now known as a spaceplate, which “simulates the same spreading that light would experience travelling a large distance in a small device” (Media, University of Ottawa, 2021).
This discovery has propelled Dr. Reshef and Prof. Lundeen to further develop the next generation of this technology for applications in various devices previously thought to be impossible miniaturize, continuing to put uOttawa and the CRPuO at the forefront of optics and photonics research.
You can read the uOttawa interview with lead researchers Dr. Reshef and Prof. Lundeen here.
You can read their full paper, “An optic to replace space and its application towards ultra-thin imaging systems” highlighting this discovery in Nature Communications.
Congratulations to our members on this exciting new discovery!
References
Media, University of Ottawa (2021, October 12). Say goodbye to your camera bump: uOttawa researchers miniaturize optics by discovering counterpart to lens. https://media.uottawa.ca/news/say-goodbye-your-camera-bump-uottawa-researchers-miniaturize-optics-discovering-counterpart#