What is possible using the same 100-Megapixel 'donut lens' Fresnel zoneplate to focus different kinds of shaped light from a 1-Megapixel SLM? A lot - as seen in this experimental compilation from our new paper doi.org/10.1364/OE.5.... Many thanks especially to co-first authors Anthony and Nana!

If you could take 1% of a locked stable laser, and easily make a >100mW phase-locked copy of it several GHz away… would you do it? With all your power, what would you do [FL]? Check out our new paper in EPJ QT doi.org/10.1140/epjq.... Big shout out to co-first authors Nicola Agnew and David Lowit!

Our 1st paper on primary (calibration-free) thermometry is out. Another great paper from Nicola Agnew and a great 1st paper for Veronika Vohníková. Collaboration between @physicsstrath.bsky.social and NPL in a @royalsocietypublishing.org paper here: doi.org/10.1098/rsta..., please have a read!

Time to pivot? Too soon?

So great to see this result officially out - five years after Rob Cameron kicked it all off! Thanks especially to Manos Alexakis and Duncan McArthur in the lab - and of course the whole team. doi.org/10.1021/acs....

Observation of Rayleigh Optical Activity for Chiral Molecules: A New Chiroptical Tool

By measuring a small circularly polarized component in the scattered light, we report the first observation of Rayleigh optical activity (RayOA) for isotropic samples of chiral molecules, namely the two enantiomers of α-pinene in neat liquid form. Our work validates fundamental theoretical predictions made over 50 years ago and expands the chiroptical toolkit.

doi.org

Can only recommend YAO - I had a great time in Lucca, Italy 1997 organised by Patrizia Vignolo & Chiara Menotti!! Many of the people who were there are leading atomic physicists today e.g. @sonjafrankearnold.bsky.social, @ifanghughes.bsky.social, ...

Young Atom Opticians Conference 2025@yao2025.bsky.social · 2y ago

🚀Big news! The #YAO2025 invited speaker lineup is now live on our website!🎉🎉 Check out the amazing researchers joining us in Innsbruck this July. Don't miss out—registration is still open! 🔗: yao.iqoqi.at #QuantumScience #AtomOptics @iqoqi.bsky.social @oeaw.bsky.social @uniinnsbruck.bsky.social

Really excited that our new paper doi.org/10.1103/Phys... kicks off 2025 well! Amazingly it’s a key part of only chapter 5 of first author Alan Bregazzi’s PhD thesis stax.strath.ac.uk/concern/thes..., and work carried out with James McGilligan, @780nm.bsky.social and Erling Riis.

A shout-out to Aussie rock bands? Or maybe "Workers" would be better.