The University of Warwick and QuantIC researchers at Heriot Watt University and the University of Glasgow performed a study in optical sensing, which could considerably enhance the precision of measuring nanoscopic structures.
QuantIC is part of the UK National Quantum Technologies Program and is the UK Quantum Technology Hub in Quantum Enhanced Imaging.
The researchers used pairs of photons, which are essential components of energy that make up light, to develop a method that determines the thickness of objects that are less than a 100,000th of the width of a human hair.
In the latest technique, two near-identical photons are fired onto a component called a beamsplitter and their subsequent behavior is monitored – with some 30,000 photons detected every second, and 500bn in use during an entire experiment.
Identical photons tend to ‘buddy up’ and continue to travel together – the outcome of a mild quantum interference effect. As a result of this, the team’s newly developed setup provides the same stability and precision as current one-photon methods that, owing to the equipment needed, are more expensive.
Providing a host of promising applications, such as research to better understand DNA, cell membranes, and even quality control for nanoscopic 2D materials of one atom’s thickness, for example, graphene, the latest study represents a major improvement on current two-photon techniques with up to 100 times better resolution.

Image Credit: University of Warwick
News This Week
FedEx for your cells: this biological delivery service could treat disease
Researchers want to know why cells produce tiny packages called vesicles — and whether these bundles could be used for therapy. Graça Raposo was a young postdoc in the Netherlands in 1996 when she [...]
New study on the genetic magnetization of living bacteria shows great potential for biomedicine
Magnetic bacteria possess extraordinary capabilities due to the magnetic nanoparticles, the magnetosomes, which are concatenated inside their cells. A research team at the University of Bayreuth has now transferred all of the approximately 30 [...]
Ultrathin Nanotech Promises to Help Tackle Antibiotic Resistance
Researchers have invented a nano-thin superbug-slaying material that could one day be integrated into wound dressings and implants to prevent or heal bacterial infections. The innovation – which has undergone advanced pre-clinical trials – [...]
Researchers Discover New Mnemomic Networks in the Brain
The medial temporal lobe (MTL) houses the human memory system. Broadly, it contains the hippocampus, parahippocampal cortex, perirhinal cortex, and entorhinal cortex. “One big challenge in studying the MTL is its great anatomical variability [...]
The Surprising Origin of a Deadly Hospital Infection
C. diff might not originate from external transmission but rather from within the infected patient themselves. Hospital staff dedicate significant effort to safeguard patients from infections during their hospital stay. Through practices ranging from [...]
Google AI breakthrough – huge step in finding genes that cause diseases
Google says it has made a significant step in identifying disease-causing genes, which could help spot rare genetic disorders. A new model named AlphaMissense is able to confidently classify 89 per cent of all [...]
New Study: Everyday Pleasures Can Boost Cognitive Performance
MINDWATCH study reveals cognitive peaks with everyday pleasures. Listening to music and drinking coffee are the sorts of everyday pleasures that can impact a person’s brain activity in ways that improve cognitive performance, including [...]
Moderna reveals new highly targeted COVID-19 vaccine mRNA-1283
Moderna has developed a new and improved version of its COVID-19 vaccine. The unique formulation (mRNA-1283) reduces the vaccine's content from the full-length SARS-CoV-2 spike protein to a narrowly focused encoding of just two [...]
Leave A Comment