Fiber Optic

Optical fibers are already used in many fields, but they would have even more applications if they could be manufactured faster and cheaper. An experimental new process is claimed to deliver on both counts, and it uses mostly existing technologies.

A new internet speed record has been clocked at an incredible 178 terabits per second (Tb/s) – fast enough to download the entire Netflix library in under a second. It's achieved by modulating light in new ways before beaming it down optical fibers.

An Australian/German team has developed the world's smallest imaging device, at the thickness of a human hair. It's capable of traveling down the blood vessels of mice, offering unprecedented abilities to 3D-scan the body at microscopic resolutions.

Some of the most useful tools are the ones that allow you to grab something. However, what if that "something" is very, very small? Well, that's where a new light-activated micro-gripper could come in – it's said to be the world's smallest.

A new record has been achieved for the fastest internet speed from a single light source – an absolutely astounding 44.2 terabits per second, 44,000 times faster than the highest speed connection. It was made possible by a new kind of optical chip.

Helicopters regularly have to get their rotor blades inspected, so they can be replaced if they're wearing out. Using the BladeSense system, however, the aircraft would be able to monitor the condition of their blades in real time, while in flight.

Responsible for millions of dollars in crop losses annually, the red palm weevil is a flying beetle that lays its eggs inside date palm trees. It could soon be possible to detect such infestations earlier than ever, using fiber optic cables.

As you might imagine, installing seismic sensors on the ocean floor isn't an easy task. Recently, however, scientists were able to detect seabed seismic activity using something that was already down there – a fiber optic telecommunications cable.

Fiber optics allows for ultra-fast communication systems, and more data can be crammed in by "twisting" the light. Now, Australian researchers have developed a device to decode beams that’s small enough to fit over the end of a fiber optic cable.

​Medical devices such as catheters extend from within a patient's body out through an opening in their skin, and unfortunately those openings often become infected. Thanks to new research, however, ultraviolet optical fibers may eventually keep such infections from occurring.

University of Adelaide researchers have created a fiber optic probe that can reach deep into the brain to capture images and measure temperature. It’s been developed to learn more about hyperthermia to do with drug use, and may lead to new understanding of drug toxicology.​​

While current seismometers can pick up tremors with precision, they’re short-ranged and expensive. Now a Stanford study has demonstrated that an extensive earthquake-detection network could already exist right under our feet: the optical fiber cables piping high-speed internet throughout cities.