A tiny photonic device that launches laser beams directly from a chip into open space could help bridge a long-standing gap between optical processors and the real world. It might also give Leonardo da Vinci an artistic run for his money.
To demonstrate the idea, researchers used the device to project images — including a recognizable sketch of da Vinci’s Mona Lisa — by sweeping a beam of light across a surface thousands of times per second.
The study, published in Nature, describes what the researchers call a “photonic ski-jump,” a microscopic waveguide that bends upward from a chip and acts like a miniature scanning laser. According to the study, the device can steer light far faster than conventional beam-scanning systems while occupying a footprint smaller than a grain of sand.
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