Intersubband semiconductor lasers represent a new type of laser that emits photons when electrons within a quantum-well structure release their energy during transit from high- to low-energy states. O...
Learn More

Absorption spectroscopy is a chemical analysis tool that measures light absorption of a material over a range of frequencies. In laser absorption spectroscopy, a laser may be directed through the mate...
Learn More

Flexible single-crystalline semiconductors used in high-performance micro- and macro-electronics have been intensely studied in recent years.  Thin-film transistors using single crystalline silic...
Learn More

One component of lab-on-a-chip technology is on-chip microlenses for optical analysis. Prior investigators have demonstrated tiny optical lenses with variable focal lengths. These lenses use specializ...
Learn More

Detecting chemical and biological agents at low levels is important in military applications, drug enforcement, airport security and environmental monitoring.  A variety of devices and methods cu...
Learn More

Protein characterization has become an integral part of modern biology, even inspiring a new discipline known as proteomics. Mass spectrometry (MS) is the most widely used technique to characterize pr...
Learn More

Power converters change energy from one form to another form more suitable to a specific application. Parallel power converter modules for power sources, such as those used for computer servers, have ...
Learn More

Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) and nanoelectromechanical systems (NEMS) have been used to create mechanical resonators for switching, filtering and other purposes in electrical systems. NEMS/ME...
Learn More

Lasers that operate in the mid-infrared (2 to 5 micron) wavelength region are needed for a variety of applications, including laser-based radar, free-space optical links, chemical and gas sensing syst...
Learn More

A UW-Madison researcher previously described a high-power, single-mode, two-dimensional, semiconductor diode laser formed on a substrate with an anti-guided array of laterally spaced grating surface e...
Learn More

Most high throughput screening (HTS) for new chemicals is done in microtiter well plates. Reagents for HTS can be very expensive, making miniaturization of the plates desirable. Microfluidics is an al...
Learn More

The atomic force microscope (AFM), one of many types of scanned-proximity probe microscopes, images a sample by lightly touching it with a probe tip attached to the end of an extremely flexible leaf s...
Learn More

Spectroscopic studies evaluate the response of a specimen to different colors of light. Lasers are normally used in spectroscopic studies; however, lasers typically operate in one or more cavity modes...
Learn More

Although detecting high-frequency magnetic fields is important in MRI, NMR and magnetic resonance force microscopes, it is more difficult to design magnetic field sensors at high frequencies (greater ...
Learn More

Ultraviolet (UV) lamps are used as a source of white (multi-colored) UV light for many applications; however, these lamps are large and expensive, require a high voltage, generate a lot of heat and ma...
Learn More

Analysis by mass spectrometry requires that molecules first be converted to gas-phase ions. Converting small molecules into ions is straightforward; however, it was not possible to ionize large molecu...
Learn More

The atomic force microscope (AFM), one of many types of scanned-proximity probe microscopes, images a sample by lightly touching it with a probe tip attached to the end of an extremely flexible leaf s...
Learn More

Microfluidic devices are being used in an increasing number of applications, including traditional laboratory tasks. To detect molecules in a small amount of solution, it’s often advantageous to...
Learn More

Most biochemical interactions are studied in solutions containing dilute concentrations of molecules. However, the complexity of the cellular environment makes it difficult to compare the results of s...
Learn More

Neuroscientists often study individual neurons in brain tissue in vitro. In order to reveal the cellular mechanisms underlying neural network reconfiguration, plasticity and behavior, many neurons mus...
Learn More

Controlled micrometer-scale oil droplets have applications in nano-materials, meso-materials, responsive materials, optical materials, filters, sensors and opto-electronic technologies.  Emulsion...
Learn More

Spectrometry is an analysis technique in which certain frequencies of light, relating to the absorption lines of a chemical species, are used to determine the chemical’s properties.  Some m...
Learn More

Circulating tumor cells (CTC) are an important area of cancer research.  They could provide clinically relevant information about a patient’s prognosis.  However, these cells are extre...
Learn More

Silicon-based microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) work well for optical- and physical-sensing applications, and can be fabricated very precisely by using standard integrated circuit technology. Howe...
Learn More

Over the last eight years, academic researchers have been developing a new set of spectroscopic techniques that are multidimensional versions of visible and infrared spectroscopies, such as two-dimens...
Learn More