Nature PhotonicsPub Date : 2026-08-28DOI: 10.1038/s41566-026-01993-1
Masaki Kando (, )
{"title":"Plasma mirror self-focusing boosts gamma-ray generation","authors":"Masaki Kando \u0000 (, )","doi":"10.1038/s41566-026-01993-1","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41566-026-01993-1","url":null,"abstract":"One approach to generate high-energy X-rays and γ-rays is inverse Compton scattering, where a high-energy electron beam collides with an intense laser pulse. However, this process is notoriously difficult because the electron and laser beams must be precisely aligned in space and time. Now, a coated plasma mirror is shown to dramatically increase the efficiency and energy of the generation.","PeriodicalId":18926,"journal":{"name":"Nature Photonics","volume":"20 9","pages":"980-982"},"PeriodicalIF":38.1,"publicationDate":"2026-08-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148872216","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"物理与天体物理","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Nature PhotonicsPub Date : 2026-08-28DOI: 10.1038/s41566-026-01983-3
Christian Heide
{"title":"Doped germanium keeps pace with the light field","authors":"Christian Heide","doi":"10.1038/s41566-026-01983-3","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41566-026-01983-3","url":null,"abstract":"Attosecond transient reflection spectroscopy reveals that doped germanium can retain a light-field-driven sub-cycle optical response, with impurity doping shifting and reshaping electron dynamics on attosecond timescales.","PeriodicalId":18926,"journal":{"name":"Nature Photonics","volume":"20 9","pages":"987-989"},"PeriodicalIF":38.1,"publicationDate":"2026-08-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148872191","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"物理与天体物理","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Nature PhotonicsPub Date : 2026-08-28DOI: 10.1038/s41566-026-01989-x
Min Sup Hur
{"title":"A milestone toward exawatt plasma optics by Raman amplification","authors":"Min Sup Hur","doi":"10.1038/s41566-026-01989-x","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41566-026-01989-x","url":null,"abstract":"Exawatt-to-zettawatt lasers are essential in the quest for an ultimate understanding of nature, but they are held back by the damage limits of conventional optics. A recent experiment of Raman pulse compression to terawatt power revitalizes the prospect of plasma-based optics for next-generation ultraintense lasers.","PeriodicalId":18926,"journal":{"name":"Nature Photonics","volume":"20 9","pages":"983-984"},"PeriodicalIF":38.1,"publicationDate":"2026-08-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148872199","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"物理与天体物理","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Nature PhotonicsPub Date : 2026-08-28DOI: 10.1038/s41566-026-01986-0
Monika Janik
{"title":"Optical hydrogen sensing across scales","authors":"Monika Janik","doi":"10.1038/s41566-026-01986-0","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41566-026-01986-0","url":null,"abstract":"An optofluidic microcavity combined with an adaptive laser-locking scheme makes it possible to monitor hydrogen from individual molecules to per cent-level concentrations with a compact device.","PeriodicalId":18926,"journal":{"name":"Nature Photonics","volume":"20 9","pages":"985-986"},"PeriodicalIF":38.1,"publicationDate":"2026-08-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148872190","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"物理与天体物理","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Nature PhotonicsPub Date : 2026-08-28DOI: 10.1038/s41566-026-02002-1
Anastasiia Vasylchenkova
{"title":"The state and prospects of the European photonics sector","authors":"Anastasiia Vasylchenkova","doi":"10.1038/s41566-026-02002-1","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41566-026-02002-1","url":null,"abstract":"At the centre of Europe’s rich photonics ecosystem, the European Photonics Industry Consortium (EPIC) connects stakeholders and promotes collective actions and advocacy. Nature Photonics spoke to its Director General Carlos Lee about recent trends, strengths and challenges facing Europe.","PeriodicalId":18926,"journal":{"name":"Nature Photonics","volume":"20 9","pages":"977-979"},"PeriodicalIF":38.1,"publicationDate":"2026-08-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148872193","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"物理与天体物理","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Nature PhotonicsPub Date : 2026-08-28DOI: 10.1038/s41566-026-01996-y
Anastasiia Vasylchenkova
{"title":"Time to embrace new platforms","authors":"Anastasiia Vasylchenkova","doi":"10.1038/s41566-026-01996-y","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41566-026-01996-y","url":null,"abstract":"With silicon-based integrated photonics having reached commercial-level maturity, the research community is directing its efforts towards heterogeneous designs and alternative material platforms with new functionalities.","PeriodicalId":18926,"journal":{"name":"Nature Photonics","volume":"20 9","pages":"991-992"},"PeriodicalIF":38.1,"publicationDate":"2026-08-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148872200","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"物理与天体物理","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Fluid motion and crystallization control enable air-processed fully screen-printed perovskite solar cells","authors":"Changshun Chen, Qing Yao, Youjian Ding, Yanxiang Zhao, Anshi Chu, Chenxin Ran, Yingdong Xia, Yonghua Chen, Wei Huang","doi":"10.1038/s41566-026-01991-3","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41566-026-01991-3","url":null,"abstract":"Fully screen-printed perovskite solar cells represent a promising solution for scalable manufacturing of perovskite photovoltaics. However, their development is hindered by inefficient vertical phase transformation within thick, multi-layered films, which results in incomplete infiltration, premature surface nucleation and residual stress. Here we report a fluid motion crystallization strategy employing a co-solvent system of ionic liquid methylammonium propionate and butyronitrile. The butyronitrile reduces the fluid motion resistance and disperses PbI2 aggregates with optimized solvation structure, enabling rapid and deep infiltration of the perovskite precursor. This promotes a bottom-up, ordered phase transition before surface nucleation, effectively suppressing defect formation. The subsequent growth of a dense, interconnected perovskite nanocrystal network featuring an island-like surface morphology strengthens the interfacial contact with the carbon electrode. This intimate contact enhances the carrier transport and minimizes the recombination losses. Finally, air-processed, fully screen-printed perovskite solar cells yield a power conversion efficiency of 22.41% (certified 21.86%). Devices retain over 90.5% of their initial power conversion efficiency after 2,000 h under International Summit on Organic Photovoltaic Stability light-soaking-1 (ISOS-L-1) accelerated ageing conditions and show no degradation after 900 h of operation at 85 °C with 50% ± 10% relative humidity (ISOS-L-3 protocol).","PeriodicalId":18926,"journal":{"name":"Nature Photonics","volume":"72 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":35.0,"publicationDate":"2026-08-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148853501","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"物理与天体物理","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Nature PhotonicsPub Date : 2026-08-27DOI: 10.1038/s41566-026-01999-9
Alexander Y. Hwang, Hubert S. Stokowski, Luke Qi, David K. Concepcion, Geun Ho Ahn, Ethan Rosenfeld, Taewon Park, Devin J. Dean, Martin M. Fejer, Amir H. Safavi-Naeini
{"title":"Ultra-wideband electrically tuned mid-infrared on-chip parametric oscillator","authors":"Alexander Y. Hwang, Hubert S. Stokowski, Luke Qi, David K. Concepcion, Geun Ho Ahn, Ethan Rosenfeld, Taewon Park, Devin J. Dean, Martin M. Fejer, Amir H. Safavi-Naeini","doi":"10.1038/s41566-026-01999-9","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41566-026-01999-9","url":null,"abstract":"Developing compact, broadband mid-infrared coherent sources for applications in spectroscopy and sensing remains a pressing challenge in photonics. However, material limitations and integration constraints have restricted the accessible wavelengths and operation bandwidths of current mid-infrared lasers. Here we address these challenges by developing a nonlinear integrated photonic device that converts a fixed-wavelength near-infrared pump laser into broadly tunable mid-infrared light. Our device, an optical parametric oscillator integrated on thin-film lithium niobate, generates 22 THz of multi-milliwatt, voltage-tunable radiation from 2.7 to 3.4 μm, a region typically difficult to access but vital for environmental, chemical and biological sensing. By introducing an on-chip-tunable parametric oscillator architecture taking advantage of the Vernier effect, we obtain electrical control of the emission wavelengths from coarse, multi-terahertz scales down to continuous, sub-100-GHz mode-hop-free tuning ranges. This work establishes a robust platform for a new class of compact, widely tunable mid-infrared sources with potential for future scaling.","PeriodicalId":18926,"journal":{"name":"Nature Photonics","volume":"11 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":35.0,"publicationDate":"2026-08-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148853500","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"物理与天体物理","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Nature PhotonicsPub Date : 2026-08-20DOI: 10.1038/s41566-026-01990-4
Jinjian Yan, Jinchai Li, Guanqi Li, Penggang Li, Lili Wu, Xinyi Guo, Zhenkun Lin, Linhua Cao, Xiaoqi Wu, Xu Yang, Zhaoxia Bi, Tao Tao, Bin Liu, Li Ji, Kai Huang, Junyong Kang, Rong Zhang
{"title":"In situ dry repair and passivation unlocks size-independent performance in Ⅲ-nitride micro-LEDs","authors":"Jinjian Yan, Jinchai Li, Guanqi Li, Penggang Li, Lili Wu, Xinyi Guo, Zhenkun Lin, Linhua Cao, Xiaoqi Wu, Xu Yang, Zhaoxia Bi, Tao Tao, Bin Liu, Li Ji, Kai Huang, Junyong Kang, Rong Zhang","doi":"10.1038/s41566-026-01990-4","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41566-026-01990-4","url":null,"abstract":"Nitride-based micro-LEDs are poised to revolutionize next-generation displays with exceptional brightness and contrast, but their efficiency collapses at the micrometre scale owing to etching-induced sidewall damage, a critical bottleneck hindering commercialization. Here we introduce an in situ dry repair and passivation (IDRP) technique that effectively eliminates plasma-induced sidewall damage, unlocking the full potential of micro-scale devices. This approach not only substantially overcomes the size-related efficiency degradation but also enables a reversed size effect, where efficiency increases as dimensions shrink, even down to 1.6 μm devices. The IDRP-treated devices also exhibit substantially improved manufacturing yield and electrostatic discharge robustness. The IDRP strategy proves universally effective across the nitride-based spectrum, leading to record-high peak external quantum efficiencies of 64.7% and 55.1% for 2 μm blue and green InGaN micro-LEDs, respectively. These unprecedented performance metrics enable high-performance pixels, demonstrated here in a nitride microdisplay tailored for emerging augmented reality and virtual reality applications. As a fully integrated, semiconductor-standard dry process, IDRP provides a simple, rapid and powerful route to advance the industrialization of micro-LEDs, representing a transformative technology for large-scale display manufacturing. An in situ dry repair and passivation technique is developed to overcome plasma-induced sidewall damage in nitride-based micro-light-emitting diodes (micro-LEDs), leading to external quantum efficiencies of 64.7% and 55.1% for 2-μm-sized blue and green micro-LEDs, respectively.","PeriodicalId":18926,"journal":{"name":"Nature Photonics","volume":"20 9","pages":"1099-1106"},"PeriodicalIF":38.1,"publicationDate":"2026-08-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148769235","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"物理与天体物理","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}