3Q: Exploring the universe’s “first light”
After the James Webb Space Telescope’s first year in service, astronomers are awash in new observations that illuminate the oldest stars and galaxies.
Using reflections to see the world from new points of view
A new computer vision system turns any shiny object into a camera of sorts, enabling an observer to see around corners or beyond obstructions.
Scientists map gusty winds in a far-off neutron star system
The 2D map of this “disk wind” may reveal clues to galaxy formation.
Resilient bug-sized robots keep flying even after wing damage
New repair techniques enable microscale robots to recover flight performance after suffering severe damage to the artificial muscles that power their wings.
“MIT Illuminations,” a colorful installation and introduction to creative computation, is now open in Kendall Square
Located in the new MIT Welcome Center in Building E38, the installation expresses the dynamic, vibrant culture of MIT through the medium of programmable light.
Strengthening electron-triggered light emission
A new method can produce a hundredfold increase in light emissions from a type of electron-photon coupling, which is key to electron microscopes and other technologies.
New device can control light at unprecedented speeds
Researchers have developed a programmable optical device for high-speed beam steering.
Deep learning with light
A new method uses optics to accelerate machine-learning computations on smart speakers and other low-power connected devices.
Astronomers find a “cataclysmic” pair of stars with the shortest orbit yet
The stars circle each other every 51 minutes, confirming a decades-old prediction.
Study: Astronomers risk misinterpreting planetary signals in JWST data
Refining current opacity models will be key to unearthing details of exoplanet properties — and signs of life — in data from the powerful new telescope.
MIT team reports giant response of semiconductors to light
The materials’ stiffness increases up to 40 percent, in a reversible effect, the researchers report in a study that also explains the phenomenon's atomic origins.
Engineers repurpose 19th-century photography technique to make stretchy, color-changing films
The technique opens a door to manufacturing of pressure-monitoring bandages, shade-shifting fabrics, or touch-sensing robots.
Physicists harness quantum “time reversal” to measure vibrating atoms
A new technique could improve the precision of atomic clocks and of quantum sensors for detecting dark matter or gravitational waves.
Robotic lightning bugs take flight
Inspired by fireflies, researchers create insect-scale robots that can emit light when they fly, which enables motion tracking and communication.
Engineers build LEGO-like artificial intelligence chip
The new design is stackable and reconfigurable, for swapping out and building on existing sensors and neural network processors.