• Domestic science and medicine in the 19th - early 20th centuries Chemistry of the 19th century in medicine
• What are peptides? Types and types of peptides. All about peptides and anti-aging cosmetics with peptides Additional peptides are not formed
• Toxic effect on humans of hazardous chemicals
• Radioautography Method of autoradiography in cytology
• Identification of bacteria by antigenic structure
• Organic matter in wastewater What are organic compounds in water
• Hydrogen index (pH factor)
• What is the pH of water and why is it important to know it?
• Redox potential Redox systems
• Reversible redox system Reversible redox systems

Photonics- the field of science and technology associated with the use of light radiation (or photon flux) in systems that generate, amplify, modulate, propagate and detect optical signals.

Optoinformatics- the field of photonics that has emerged and dominated in recent years, in which new technologies for transmitting, receiving, processing, storing and displaying information based on photons are being created.

Photonics and optoinformatics is a vigorously developing high-tech industry, the annual income from sales of devices and systems of which is tens of trillions of rubles in the world.

Egor Litvinov, student

Photonics for me is the art of controlling light, the art of using light for the benefit of man. Like any art, photonics has many images, ideas and interpretations, and each person sees it in his own way. By doing this kind of art, you get a whole range of tools from which you can choose the ones you need, learn how to use them to perfection, and apply them to get photonics as you see it. Possession of this art can bring inspiration and just pleasure. And in an effort to get something new, you risk being completely captured.

Tatyana Vovk, student

I am a student of the educational program "Physics and Technology of Nanostructures", and it would be logical to assume that the area of ​​my knowledge and interests is precisely nanophotonics, the science of the interaction of light with various nanostructures and particles. This is true: as a scientific work, I am conducting research on the optical cooling of nanocrystals. However, in my third year, the teacher of our group in quantum mechanics, Yuri Vladimirovich Rozhdestvensky (also my supervisor), analyzed the classical problem of the states of electrons in the Earth's gravity field. He suggested that the most active students consider this problem not near the Earth, but near a neutron star with a powerful gravitational field. It was great to discover that this problem could explain the radio emission from neutron stars, about which there is still no consensus among astrophysicists. As a result, my classmate and our leaders published a study in a highly-rated foreign journal - The Astrophysical Journal! This recognition of the scientific community is very valuable, because none of us have ever dealt with astrophysics before. It was very interesting for us to develop and get results in a completely different area of ​​physics - the "Physics of Nanostructures" has everything you need for this. Our leaders and teachers always welcome the initiative and are happy to "start the process" of scientific creativity. With due perseverance, this sometimes leads to surprising results!

Maxim Masyukov, student

Having a broad outlook, it was quite difficult for me to choose my future profession. Basically, I was interested in three disciplines: computer science, physics, mathematics, and it was important for me that these three disciplines were dominant in the learning process. While participating in an Olympiad for schoolchildren, I heard about the Faculty of Photonics and Optoinformatics at ITMO University. Having studied the site and the training disciplines, I realized that this is what I need. Photonics is one of the youngest and fastest growing branches of science. Inflamed with the desire to contribute to scientific progress, I entered this faculty, and was satisfied. Since the 2nd year I have been engaged in scientific work, which includes the study of fresh foreign articles in this scientific field, programming, mathematical calculations, computer modeling. Versatile knowledge guarantees success in a future career.

Vladimir Borisov, postgraduate student

Photonics, if you will, is the optics of the 21st century. Why not keep calling it optics? The fact is that over the past 50-60 years, the science that studies the physics of light has stepped so far forward that it can hardly be compared with generally accepted optics. There are nonlinear effects, and ultra-high power densities, and ultra-short pulses. Here, of course, a variety of quantum effects and their applications. In short, the cutting edge of optical science. And, since such a science no longer resembles an old optician, she found a new word - "Photonics".
Photonics is an applied science in many respects. Before photonics, no one could have imagined how useful light could be in our lives. Now we are moving towards the fact that more and more of the latest technologies use light. We already know how to transmit information over vast distances at the speed of light. And soon we will learn how to encrypt it so that no one can “eavesdrop” on us. We are moving towards treating various serious diseases with the help of light technologies. Now, during the most complex operations, surgeons use laser scalpels to make the most accurate incisions. And imagine that soon the advances in photonics will allow us not to make an incision at all to remove a tumor or patch an artery. Thanks to photonics, deep space exploration is not such an unattainable goal for us. And if scientists, including those at our faculty, do their best, then photonics will soon give us a real invisibility cap and, perhaps, a lightsaber. And, of course, one should not forget about the quantum computer - one of the pinnacles of modern science, the achievement of which is impossible without photonics.
In short, photonics is now at the forefront of modern science. It combines the opportunity to explore still unexplored issues, as well as to apply their knowledge for the benefit of society. Perhaps this is the area of ​​physics where an inquisitive student can maximize his potential, fulfilling himself as a scientist in the best possible way.

Yaroslav Grachev, Ph.D., assistant, graduate of the faculty

Photonics is currently called optics in its modern aspect. The faculty is engaged in the development of relevant areas of optics using modern information technologies, and these are:
- and work with laser pulsed radiation of high energy and ultrashort duration;
- and vice versa, the use of low-energy radiation of the terahertz range of electromagnetic waves for non-contact, non-destructive diagnostics and visualization of objects with substance recognition;
- and holography, including both imaging holography and the creation and processing of three-dimensional digital copies of an object in real time.
For me, working in this field of science has become an excellent opportunity to acquire practical skills in design and experimental activities. A person with practical skills and knowledge is always in demand.

Olga Smolyanskaya, Ph.D., Head of the Laboratory "Femtomedicine" of the International Institute of Photonics and Optoinformatics

The term "Photonics" was first mentioned in 1970 at the 9th International Congress on High Speed ​​Photography in the USA, Denver. And at the first stage, “photonics” was understood as a field of science that studies optical systems in which photons were carriers of information. In connection with the development of laser technologies and the invention of laser diodes and fiber-optic communication systems, the concept of "photonics" included optical telecommunications. Today "photonics" is: optical and quantum communication systems; transmission, recording and storage of information; medical diagnostics and therapy (biophotonics); development and production of lasers; biological and chemical studies of various objects; environmental monitoring; lighting design, etc.
Biophotonics is related to photobiology and medical physics. Therefore, on the one hand, biophotonics deals with the diagnosis and study of biological molecules, cells and tissues. On the other hand, it uses light to affect biological tissues, such as in surgery and therapy. Biophotonics studies various aspects of the interaction of biological objects and photons. Therefore, the scope of biophotonics is, first of all, human health. Specialists in the field of biophotonics are also engaged in the creation of medical light sources, detectors, visualization systems and mathematical processing of optical signals.

Maria Zhukova, PhD student

Photonics is the science of light, it is the technology of its creation, transformation, application and detection. Light has always played an important role in human life - think about it, thanks to it we orient ourselves in space, see each other. First, people learned to create artificial light sources to ensure a comfortable existence, and now we have a huge number of high-tech devices that are used in numerous and diverse fields of technology.
Photonics includes the use of lasers, optics, crystals, fiber optics, electro-optical, acousto-optic devices, cameras, complex integrated systems. Photonics today is both scientific research and real developments in the fields of: medicine, alternative energy, fast computing, creation of high-performance computers, new materials, telecommunications, environmental monitoring, security, aerospace industry, time standards, art, printing, prototyping, and almost everything that surrounds us.
Today in Russia, as well as throughout the world, more and more companies and large manufacturing enterprises are beginning to create and use new technologies related to photonics. F otonics opens up wide opportunities and prospects for development in the scientific academic environment, as well as in the field of real developments. This field of knowledge will undoubtedly develop from year to year!

Ministry of Communications of the Russian Federation
State educational institution of higher
vocational education
Volga State University of Telecommunications
cations and informatics»	Glushchenko A.G., Zhukov S.V.
_________________________________	Fundamentals of photonics. Lecture notes. - Samara.: GOUVPO
	PGUTI, 2009. - 100 p.
Department of Physics
	(Abstract of the discipline).
A.G. Glushchenko, S.V. Zhukov
LECTURE NOTES
FOR ACADEMIC DISCIPLINE	Reviewer:
	Petrov P.P. – Candidate of Technical Sciences, Associate Professor, Associate Professor of the Department “………..
BASICS OF PHOTONICS	» GOUVPO PSUTI
In the direction of preparation: Photonics and optoinformatics ()

Samara - 2009

	Name
	section of the discipline
	sources of continuous	heat sources, gas
	and line spec-	discharge lamps, LED
		odes, laser spark;
		main types of lasers
		(solid state, gas,
		ionic, semiconductor
		you, continuous and im-
	sources of coge-	pulsed, with restructuring
	X-ray radiation	radiation frequency and duration
		impulses), ge-
		harmonic generators, WRC and
		SMBS converters,
		spectral generators
		supercontinuum;
		photocathodes and photomultipliers, semi-
	radiation receivers	conductor receivers,
		photosensitive mats
		ribs, microbolometers;
		electro-optical and acu-
		stooptic light
	control devices	valves, liquid
	characterization	crystalline and semi-
	coherent sticks	conductor transpa-
	beams:	welts, devices based on
		ve photorefractive media,
		Faraday isolators;
		electron beam and,
		liquid crystal
	display devices	displays, laser projectors
	information:	systems, holo-
		graphic displays, si-
		volume formation systems

	Name
	section of the discipline
		a little image;
		principles of creating micro-
		electromechanical
	microelectromecha-	devices and photolithography
		fia, optical micro
	nic devices	electromechanical elements
		cops, application of micro
		electromechanical
		devices;
		fiber components
	control devices	optical lines, module -
		tori, multiplexers and
	leniya light in op-
		demultiplexers, isolation
	tic hair	tori, connectors,
	horse light guides:
		focusing drivers
		elements;
		planar dielectric
	control devices	waveguides, non-linear
		transducers
	leniya light in in-	readings, channel wave-
	integral optics:	dy, input-output elements
		radiation;
		optical circuits, opti-
	control devices	chesky transistor, micro-
	shining light on	chip, optical limits
	based on photonic	readers, photon-
	crystals:	crystalline fibers

Introduction

Photonics is a science that studies different forms of radiation that are created by particles of light, that is, photons.

Definitions of the term

Interestingly, there is no generally accepted definition of the term "Photonics".

Photonics is the science of generation, control and detection of photons, especially in the visible and near infrared spectrum, as well as their distribution in the ultraviolet (wavelength 10-380 nm), long-wave infrared (wavelength 15-150 microns) and ultra-infrared part of the spectrum (for example, 2-4 THz corresponds to a wavelength of 75-150 μm), where quantum cascade lasers are actively developing today.

Photonics can also be characterized as a field of physics and technology related to the emission, detection, behavior, consequences of the existence and destruction of photons. This means that photonics is concerned with the control and conversion of optical signals and has a wide field for its application: from the transmission of information through optical fibers to the creation of new sensors that modulate light signals in accordance with the slightest changes in the environment.

Some sources note that the term "optics" is gradually being replaced by a new generalized name - "photonics".

Photonics covers a wide range of optical, electro-optical and optoelectronic devices and their varied applications. Primary areas of research in photonics include fiber and integrated optics, including nonlinear optics, physics and technology of semiconductor compounds, semiconductor lasers, optoelectronic devices, high-speed electronic devices.

Interdisciplinary directions

Due to the high global scientific and technical activity and the huge demand for new results

Within photonics, new and new interdisciplinary areas are emerging:

Microwave photonics studies the interaction between an optical signal and a high frequency (greater than 1 GHz) electrical signal. This area includes the basics of optical microwave interaction, the operation of photonic devices in microwave, photonic control of microwave devices, high-frequency transmission lines, and the use of photonics to perform various functions in microwave circuits.

Computer photonics combines modern physical and quantum optics, mathematics and computer technologies and is at the stage of active development, when it becomes possible to implement new ideas, methods and technologies.

Optoinformatics is a field of science and technology related to the research, creation and operation of new materials, technologies and devices for transmitting, receiving, processing, storing and displaying information based on optical technologies.

Relationship of photonics with other fields of science

Classic optics. Photonics is closely related to optics. However, optics preceded the discovery of light quantization (when the photoelectric effect was explained by Albert Einstein in 1905). The instruments of optics - a refractive lens, a reflecting mirror, and various optical units that were known long before 1900. At the same time, the key principles of classical optics, such as the Huygens rule, Maxwell's equations, and the alignment of a light wave, do not depend on the quantum properties of light, and are used in both optics and photonics.

Modern Optics The term "Photonics" in this field is roughly synonymous with the terms "Quantum Optics", "Quantum Electronics", "Electro-Optics", and "Optoelectronics". However, each term is used by different scientific societies with different additional meanings: for example, the term "quantum optics" often denotes basic research, while the term "Photonics" often denotes applied research.

The term "Photonics" in the field of modern optics most often means:

Particular properties of light Possibility of creating photonic processing technologies

signals Analogy to the term "Electronics".

History of photonics

Photonics as a field of science began in 1960 with the invention of the laser, and also with the invention of the laser diode in the 1970s, followed by the development of fiber optic communication systems as a means of transmitting information using light methods. These inventions formed the basis for the telecommunications revolution at the end of the 20th century, and helped fuel the development of the Internet.

Historically, the beginning of the use of the term "photonics" in the scientific community is associated with the publication in 1967 of the book "Photonics of dye molecules" by Academician A. N. Terenin. Three years earlier, on his initiative, the Department of Biomolecular and Photon Physics was established at the Faculty of Physics of Leningrad State University, which since 1970 has been called the Department of Photonics.

A. N. Terenin defined photonics as "a set of interrelated photophysical and photochemical processes." In world science, a later and broader definition of photonics has become widespread, as a branch of science that studies systems in which photons are information carriers. In this sense, the term "photonics" was first mentioned at the 9th International Congress on High Speed ​​Photography.

The term "Photonics" began to be widely used in the 1980s in connection with the beginning of widespread use of fiber optic transmission of electronic data by telecommunications network providers (although fiber optics was used in narrow usage earlier). The use of the term was confirmed when the IEEE community established an archival report

with title "Photonics Technology Letters" at the end 1980s

AT During this period until about 2001, photonics as a field of science was largely focused on telecommunications. Since 2001, the term

"Photonics" also covers a huge field of science and technology, including:

laser production, biological and chemical research, medical diagnostics and therapy, display and projection technology, optical computing.

Optoinformatics

Optoinformatics is a field of photonics in which new technologies for transmitting, receiving, processing, storing and displaying information based on photons are created. In essence, the modern Internet is unthinkable without optoinformatics.

Promising examples of optoinformatics systems include:

Optical telecommunication systems with data transfer rates up to 40 terabits per second over one channel;

ultra-large capacity optical holographic storage devices up to 1.5 terabytes per disk in standard sizes;

multiprocessor computers with optical interprocessor communication;

an optical computer in which light controls light. The maximum clock frequency of such a computer can be 1012-1014 Hz, which is 3-5 orders of magnitude higher than existing electronic counterparts;

photonic crystals are new artificial crystals with giant dispersion and record low optical loss (0.001 dB/km).

Lecture 1 Topic 1. The history of photonics. Problem-

we are electronic computers.

Section 1.1. History of photonics.

The use of light to transmit information has a long history. Sailors have used signal lamps to transmit information using Morse code, and beacons have warned sailors of dangers for centuries.

Claude Chapp built an optical telegraph in France in the 1890s. Signalmen were located on towers located from Paris to Lille along a chain 230 km long. Messages were transferred from one end to the other in 15 minutes. In the United States, an optical telegraph connected Boston to Martha Vineyard Island, located near that city. All these systems were eventually replaced by electric telegraphs.

English physicist John Tyndall in 1870 demonstrated the possibility of controlling light based on internal reflections. At a meeting of the Royal Society, it was shown that light propagating in a stream of purified water can go around any corner. In the experiment, water flowed over the horizontal bottom of one chute and fell along a parabolic trajectory into another chute. The light entered the stream of water through a transparent window at the bottom of the first trough. When Tyndall directed the light tangentially to the jet, the audience could observe the zigzag propagation of light within the curved part of the jet. A similar zigzag distribution

The light conversion also occurs in an optical fiber.

A decade later, Alexander Graham Bell patented a photophone (fig.), in which a directional

Using a system of lenses and mirrors, the light was directed to a flat mirror mounted on a horn. Under the influence of sound, the mirror oscillated, which led to the modulation of the reflected light. The receiving device used a selenium-based detector, the electrical resistance of which varies depending on the intensity of the incident light. Voice-modulated sunlight falling on a sample of selenium changed the strength of the current flowing through the circuit of the receiving device and reproduced the voice. This device made it possible to transmit a voice signal over a distance of more than 200 m.

AT At the beginning of the 20th century, theoretical and experimental studies of dielectric waveguides, including flexible glass rods, were carried out.

In the 1950s, fibers designed for image transmission were developed by Brian O'Brien, who worked at the American Optical Company, and Narinder Kapani and colleagues at the Imperial College of Science and Technology in London. These fibers found application in light guides used in medicine for visual observation of internal organs Dr. Kapani was the first to develop glass fibers in a glass sheath and coined the term "fiber optics" in 1956. In 1973, Dr. Kapani founded Kaptron, a company specializing in the field of fiber optic splitters and switches.

AT In 1957, Gordon Gold, a graduate of Columbia University, formulated the principles of the laser as an intense light source. The theoretical work of Charles Townes with Arthur Shavlov at Bell Laboratories helped to popularize the idea of ​​the laser in the scientific community and caused a rapid surge of experimental research aimed at creating a working laser. In 1960, Theodor Mayman created the world's first ruby ​​laser at Hughes Laboratories. In the same year, Townes demonstrated the work helium-neon laser. In 1962, laser generation was obtained on a semiconductor crystal. This type of laser is used in fiber optics. Very belatedly, only in 1988, Gold managed to get four

new patents based on the results of work performed by him in the 50s	The US Navy has implemented fiber
years and devoted to the principle of laser operation.	optical line aboard the Little Rock ship in 1973. AT
The use of laser radiation as a carrier of information	1976 as part of the Air Force ALOFT program
tion was not disregarded by communication specialists	replaced the cable equipment of the A-7 aircraft with fiber
nications. The possibilities of laser radiation for the transmission of information	optical. At the same time, the cable system of 302 copper cables
formations are 10,000 times higher than the capabilities of radio frequency	lei, which had a total length of 1260 m and weighed 40
th radiation. Despite this, laser radiation is not completely	kg, was replaced by 12 fibers with a total length of 76 m and a weight of 1.7
suitable for outdoor signal transmission. To work	kg. The military was also the first to introduce fiber
this kind of lines are significantly affected by fog, smog and rain,	optical line. In 1977, a 2 km system was launched with
as well as the state of the atmosphere. The laser beam is much	information transfer rate of 20 Mb / s (megabit per second -
it is easier to overcome the distance between the Earth and the Moon than between	du) that connected the ground satellite station with the center
du opposite boundaries of Manhattan. Thus,	management.
Initially, the laser was a communication	In 1977, AT&T and GTE established commercial
a light source that does not have a suitable transmission medium.	cal telephone systems based on optical fiber.
In 1966, Charles Kao and Charles Hockham, who worked in	These systems have surpassed in their characteristics those considered
English laboratory of telecommunication standards,	previously unshakable performance standards, which
	lo to their rapid spread in the late 70s and early 80s
use as a transmission medium when achieving transparency,	years. In 1980, AT&T announced an ambitious hair-
providing attenuation (determines transmission losses	horse-optical system linking Boston and
signal) less than 20 dB/km (decibel per kilometer). They came to	Richmond. The implementation of the project has personally demonstrated the
the conclusion that the high level of attenuation inherent in the first	growth qualities of the new technology in serial high-speed
loknam (about 1000 dB/km), associated with those present in the glass	systems, and not only in experimental setups. By-
impurities. A way was also indicated for creating suitable for those	after that, it became clear that in the future the stake should be placed on the
fiber communication associated with a decrease in the level	horse-optical technology, which showed the possibility of
impurities in glass.	rocky practical application.
In 1970, Robert Maurer and his colleagues from	As technology advances, it expands just as rapidly
Corning Glass Works received the first attenuation fiber	elk and strengthened production. Already in 1983, a single
it is 20 dB/km. By 1972, under laboratory conditions,	modal fiber optic cable, but its practical use
a level of 4 dB/km, which corresponded to the Kao criterion and	use was associated with many problems, so on
Hockham. At present, the best fibers have a level	for many years, fully use such cables
loss of 0.2 dB/km.	succeeded only in some specialized developments.
No less significant success has been achieved in the field of semi-	By 1985, the main organizations for the transmission of data on
conductor sources and detectors, connectors, techno-	long distances, AT&T and MO, not only implement-
transmission theory, communication theory and other related	whether single-mode optical systems, but also approved them as
curl optics areas. All this, together with a huge interest	standard for future projects.
som to use the obvious advantages of fiber op-	Although the computer industry, technology
tics caused in the middle and late 70s significant	computer networking and production management are not so
progress towards the creation of fiber-optic systems.	quickly, like the military and telecommunications companies, took

However, in these areas, experimental work was also carried out to research and introduce new technology. The advent of the information age and the resulting need for more efficient telecommunications systems only spurred the further development of fiber optic technology. Today, this technology is widely used outside the field of telecommunications.

For example, IBM, a leader in computer manufacturing, announced in 1990 the release of a new high-speed computer that uses a link controller for disk and tape external drives based on fiber optics. This was the first use of fiber optics in commercial equipment. The introduction of a fiber controller, called ESCON, made it possible to transfer information at higher speeds and over long distances. The previous copper controller had a data rate of 4.5 Mbps with a maximum line length of 400 feet. The new controller operates at 10 Mbps over a distance of several miles.

In 1990, Lynn Mollinar demonstrated the ability to transmit a signal without regeneration at a rate of 2.5 Gb / s over a distance of about 7500 km. Typically, a fiber optic signal needs to be amplified and reshaped periodically, approximately every 25 km. During transmission, the fiber optic signal loses power and is distorted. In the Mollinar system, the laser operated in the soliton mode and a self-amplifying fiber with erbium additives was used. Soliton (very narrow range) pulses do not scatter and retain their original shape as they propagate through the fiber. At the same time, the Japanese company Nippon Telephone & Telegraph achieved a speed of 20 Gb / s, however, over a significantly shorter distance. The value of soliton technology lies in the fundamental possibility of laying a fiber-optic telephone system along the bottom of the Pacific or Atlantic Ocean, which does not require the installation of intermediate amplifiers. However, since

Since 1992, soliton technology remains at the level of laboratory demonstrations and has not yet found commercial application.

Information Age The four processes involved in manipulating information

formation, based on the use of electronics: 1.Sbrr

2. Storage

3. Processing and analysis

4. Transfer

To implement these processes, fairly modern equipment is used: computers, electronic offices, branched telephone networks, satellites, television, etc. Looking around, you can find a lot of evidence of the onset of a new era. The annual growth of services in the information industry is now about 15%.

The following are facts about the importance

and prospects of electronics in modern life.

AT USA in 1988, there were 165 million telephone sets, while in In 1950 there were only 39 million. In addition, the services provided by telephone companies have become much more diverse.

From 1950 to 1981, telephone system wires increased from 147 million miles to 1.1 billion.

AT In 1990, the total length of optical fibers in US telephone systems was about 5 million miles. By the year 2000 it will increase to 15 million miles. At the same time, the capabilities of each fiber correspond to the capabilities of several copper cables.

AT In 1989, about 10 million personal computers were sold in the US. Back in 1976 there were no personal computers at all. Now it is a common element of the equipment of any office and industrial production.

AT Currently, in the United States, thousands of computer databases are available through a personal computer and a conventional telephone network.

Fax messages (faxes) began to predominate in business correspondence.

First fiber optic telephone system	Telecommunications and computers
cable, installed in 1977, allowed the transmission of information	Until recently, there was a clear delineation
formation at a speed of 44.7 Mb / s and negotiate	between what was part of the telephone system and
simultaneously on 672 channels. Today the Sonet system is	with regard to the computer system. For example, tele-
standard system in optical telephony, allows	background companies were prohibited from participating in the computer market
transfer information at a maximum speed of 10 Gb / s,	thorn technology. Today the ban formally remains in force,
which is approximately 200 times greater than the capabilities of the first opti-	but its effect is significantly weakened. Computers
chesky system. Achievement and standardization expected	can now transmit data over telephone lines, and those
significantly higher speeds, which are not yet available
based on modern electronic components.	computer) signal before transmission. Telephone and com-
All of the above examples feature	Computer companies are increasingly competing in the IT market.
sources of information and means of their association. Under information	mation technologies.
tion here can be understood as the content of a telephone conversation	The reasons for the relaxation of this prohibition are
thief with a friend, and any project. Means of transmission of information	clear. The development of electronic technology implies a close
transfers from one place to another are important in terms of having	interaction of its various directions. Difference between
full amount of information anywhere in the country. In quality-	computer and telephone technology weakened even more in
An example of the transmission of information can be given as a television	1982 after the collapse of AT&T, the largest corporation
background conversation with a subscriber at the other end	portions on a global scale. The information network is becoming
countries, and the conversation between neighboring offices, separated by	single system. It is now increasingly difficult to determine for what
by a pair of doors. Telephone companies are increasingly using	part of the network is responsible for telephone companies, which part of the network
use the same digital technologies as for transmission	belongs to computer companies, and which one is in
	homeowner's property.
obviously, but from the point of view of digital technologies for the transfer of information	The development of the cable network in the United States, along with the inclusion
	transfer of computer data to the services provided
	phone companies are the best proof
digital impulses or numbers, the form of which corresponds exactly	benefits associated with the advent of the information age.
corresponds to computer data. This kind of transformation	Previously, telephone companies provided two-way communication
audio signal to digital allow telephone companies to	between subscribers, called POTS (Plain Old Telephone Ser-
pits with less distortion to transmit the conversation. In most-	vices - plain old telephone services). At present,
In the new telephone systems, it is digital	many other services appeared, such as automatic
technology. In 1984, about 34% of central telephones	sky dialer, answering machine, etc. (these services are called PANS
stations used digital transmission equipment. To	Pretty Amazing New Services - simply amazing new
In 1994, this figure increased to 82%. fiber optics	services). Telephone companies are aiming to create integration
extremely convenient for digital telecommunications. By-	rovannyh digital networks (Integrated Services Digital Network,
higher requirements for efficiency, reliability, speed and	ISDN), intended for transmission over the telephone network of go-
the efficiency of data transmission is ensured by the characteristic	voice, data and video. This kind of network is
kami fiber-optic systems.	make it possible to transfer any kind of information where
	anywhere and at any time.

Fiber Optic Alternative

The WAN discussed in this chapter requires an efficient medium for the transmission of information. Traditional technologies based on the use of copper cable or microwave transmission have disadvantages and are significantly inferior in performance to fiber optics. For example, copper cables are characterized by a limited information transfer rate and are subject to the influence of external fields. Microwave transmission, although it can provide a fairly high data transfer rate, requires the use of expensive equipment and is limited to the line-of-sight zone. Fiber optics allows information to be transmitted at significantly higher speeds than copper cables and has a much more affordable cost and fewer restrictions than microwave technology. The possibilities of fiber optics are just beginning to be realized. Even now, fiber optic lines outperform analogs based on copper cable in their characteristics, and it should be taken into account that the technological capabilities of copper cables have less potential for development than fiber optic technology that is beginning to develop. Fiber optics promises to be an integral part of the information revolution, as well as part of the worldwide cable network.

Fiber optics will affect everyone's life, sometimes almost imperceptibly. Here are some examples of the inconspicuous entry of fiber optics into our lives:

cable to your house; connecting electronic equipment in your office with

equipment in other offices; connection of electronic units in your car;

industrial process control.

Fiber optics is a new technology that is just beginning its development, but the need for its use as a transmission medium for various applications has already been proven.

dachas, and the characteristics of fiber optics will allow in the future to significantly expand the scope of its application.

1.2. Problems of electronic computers.

The first mass-produced universal computers on transistors were released in 1958 simultaneously in the USA, Germany and Japan. In the Soviet Union, the first tubeless machines "Setun", "Razdan" and "Razdan 2" were created in 1959-1961. In the 60s, Soviet designers developed about 30 models of transistor computers, most of which began to be mass-produced. The most powerful of them - "Minsk 32" performed 65 thousand operations per second. Entire families of machines appeared: Ural, Minsk, BESM. The BESM 6 became the record holder among computers of the second generation, having a speed of about a million operations per second - one of the most productive in the world.

The priority in the invention of integrated circuits, which became the element base of third-generation computers, belongs to the American scientists D. Kilby and R. Noyce, who made this discovery independently of each other. Mass production of integrated circuits began in 1962

year, and in 1964 the transition from discrete to integral elements began to be carried out rapidly. ENIAC, mentioned above, with dimensions of 9x15 meters in 1971 could be assembled on a plate of 1.5 square centimeters. In 1964, IBM announced the creation of six models of the IBM family (System 360), which became the first computers of the third generation. The models had a single command system and differed from each other in the amount of RAM and performance.

The beginning of the 70s marks the transition to fourth generation computers - on very large integrated circuits

(VLSI). Another sign of a new generation of computers are abrupt changes in architecture.

The technology of the fourth generation gave rise to a qualitatively new element of the computer - a microprocessor or a chip (from the English word chip). In 1971, they came up with the idea to limit the capabilities of the processor by laying in it a small set of operations, the microprograms of which must be entered into read-only memory in advance. Estimates have shown that using 16 kilobit read only memory will eliminate 100-200 conventional integrated circuits. This is how the idea of ​​a microprocessor appeared, which can be implemented even on a single chip, and the program can be written into its memory forever.

By the mid-70s, the situation in the computer market began to change dramatically and unexpectedly. Two concepts of the development of computers have clearly stood out. Supercomputers became the embodiment of the first concept, and personal computers became the embodiment of the second. Of the fourth-generation large computers based on ultra-large integrated circuits, the American machines Krey-1 and Krey-2, as well as the Soviet models Elbrus-1 and Elbrus-2, especially stood out. Their first samples appeared about

at the same time - in 1976. All of them belong to the category of supercomputers, as they have the maximum achievable characteristics for their time and a very high cost. By the early 1980s, the performance of personal

computers amounted to hundreds of thousands of operations per second, the performance of supercomputers reached hundreds of millions of operations per second, and the world's fleet of computers exceeded 100 million.

published the now famous article by Gordon Moore (Gordon Moore)

"Overflow of the number of elements on integrated circuits"

(“Cramming more components onto integrated circuits”), in which the then director of research and development at Fairchild Semiconductors and future co-founder of Intel Corporation predicted the development of microelectronics for the next ten years, predicting that the number of elements on the chips of electronic circuits would further double every year. Later, speaking to an audience at the International Electron Devices Meeting in 1975, Gaudron Moore noted that over the past decade, the number of elements on chips had indeed doubled every year, but in the future, when the complexity of chips increases, the number of transistors in microcircuits will double in number every two years. . This new prediction also came true, and Moore's law continues in this form (doubling in two years) to this day, which can be clearly seen from the following table (Fig. 1.4.) and the graph

Judging by the latest technological leap that Intel managed to make over the past year, preparing dual-core processors with twice the number of transistors on a chip, and in the case of the transition from Madison to Montecito - quadrupling this number, then Moore's law is returning, albeit briefly, to its original form - doubling the number of elements on the chip in a year. One can consider the consequence of the law for the clock speed of microprocessors, although Gordon Moore has repeatedly stated that his law applies only to the number of transistors on a chip and reflects

Photonics- a discipline that deals with fundamental and applied aspects of working with optical signals, as well as the creation of devices for various purposes on their basis.

General information Help topics crystals Optics lasers Devices History of photonics Relationship of photonics with other sciences Classic optics Modern optics

General information

Photonics is essentially an analogue of electronics, using instead of electrons the quanta of the electromagnetic field - photons. That is, it is engaged in photonic signal processing technologies, which is associated with significantly lower energy losses, which means it has a greater possibility of miniaturization.

So photonics:

• studies the generation, control and detection of photons in the visible and near spectrum. Including ultraviolet (wavelength 10...380 nm), long-wave infrared (wavelength 15...150 µm) and ultra-infrared part of the spectrum (for example, 2...4 THz corresponds to a wavelength of 75...150 µm), where quantum cascade lasers.
• deals with the control and conversion of optical signals and has a wide application: from the transmission of information through optical fibers to the creation of new sensors that modulate light signals in accordance with the slightest changes in the environment.

Photonics covers a wide range of optical and optoelectronic devices and their varied applications. Primary areas of research in photonics include fiber and integrated optics, including nonlinear optics, physics and technology of semiconductor compounds, semiconductor , optoelectronic , high speed electronic devices.

Help topics

crystals
Main article:

crystals- These are solids that have a natural external form of regular symmetrical polyhedra, based on their internal structure, that is, on one of several certain regular arrangements of the particles (atoms, molecules, ions) that make up the substance.

Crystals are divided according to their properties:

Optics
Main article:

Optics(from other Greek ὀπτική - optics, the science of visual perception) - a branch of physics that considers phenomena associated with the propagation of electromagnetic waves in the visible, infrared and ultraviolet ranges of the spectrum. Optics describes the properties of light and explains the phenomena associated with it. Optical methods are used in many applied disciplines, including electrical engineering, physics, medicine (in particular, ophthalmology and radiology). In these, as well as in interdisciplinary areas, the achievements of applied optics are widely used.

In optics, the main topics are:

• Flat optics – new articles coming soon
• Plastic optics – new articles coming soon

lasers
Main article:

Laser(from English laser, an acronym for l night a mplification by s simulated e mission of r radiation"amplification of light by stimulated emission"), or optical quantum generator is a device that converts pump energy (light, electrical, thermal, chemical, etc.) into the energy of a coherent, monochromatic, polarized and narrowly directed radiation flux.

On the subject of lasers:

• VCSEL Advantage - More articles coming soon
• Lasers: Understanding the Basics – More Articles Coming Soon
• History of the laser – more articles coming soon

Devices
Main article:

A man-made object (device, mechanism, structure, installation) with a complex internal structure, created to perform certain functions, usually in the field of technology.

• Device (radio engineering) - a set of elements representing a single structure (block, board). It may not have a specific functional purpose in the product.

More about devices:

• Photometric ball – more articles coming soon
• Interferometry – new articles coming soon

History of photonics

The term "Photonics" began to be widely used in the 1980s in connection with the widespread use of fiber-optic transmission of electronic data by telecommunications network providers (although optical fiber was used in narrower usage before). The use of the term was confirmed when the IEEE community established an archived paper called "Photonics Technology Letters" in the late 1980s.

During this period, until about 2001, photonics was largely concentrated in telecommunications. Since 2001, it has also been referred to as:

• laser production (),
• biological and chemical research,
• climate change and environmental monitoring,
• medical diagnostics and therapy,
• display and projection technology,
• optical computing.

Relationship of photonics with other fields of science

Classic optics

Photonics is closely related to optics. However, optics predates the discovery of light quantization (when the photoelectric effect was explained by Albert Einstein in 1905). The instruments of optics - the refractive lens, the reflecting mirror and various optical units, which were known long before 1900. At the same time, the key principles of classical optics, such as the Huygens rule, Maxwell's equations and the alignment of the light wave, do not depend on the quantum properties of light and are used as in optics , as well as in photonics.

Modern optics

The term "Photonics" in this field is roughly synonymous with the terms "Quantum Optics", "Quantum Electronics", "Electro-Optics" and "Optoelectronics". However, each term is used by different scientific societies with different additional meanings: for example, the term "quantum optics" often denotes basic research, while the term "Photonics" often denotes applied research.

Photonics is the physical science of the generation of light (photons), its detection, transformation, emission, transmission, modulation, signal processing, switching, amplification and indication. Most of the applications are in the visible and infrared region, although the scope extends to the entire spectrum.

A promising area of ​​research is silicon photonics, and the further development of the industry is associated with the growth of success in this area.

Story

Photonics stood out with the creation of the laser in 1960. This invention was followed by: a laser diode in the 1970s, for data transmission, and an optical amplifier based on erbium-doped fiber. These inventions set the stage for the telecommunications revolution at the end of the 20th century and provided the infrastructure for the Internet.

The term became widespread in the 1980s, when telecommunications network operators mastered the transmission of data over fiber, promoted by Bell Laboratories. The use of the word took hold when the Society for Lasers and Electron Optics of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers established the journal Photonics Technology Letters in the late 1980s.

During the period leading up to the collapse of the dot-coms (internet companies) around 2001, the field of photonics was mainly optical communications networks. To date, it has covered a huge number of scientific and technological applications, including laser production, biological and chemical sensing, medical diagnostics and therapy, information display technology, and optical computing.

Photonics, communication with other areas

Classic optics

Here the connection is very close. Classical optics predates the discovery that light is discrete, which became quite clear when Albert Einstein triumphantly established the nature of the photoelectric effect in 1905. Optical instruments include refractive lenses, reflective mirrors, and numerous optical components and instruments developed from the 15th to the 19th century. The fundamental principles of classical optics discovered in the 17th century, like the Huygens principle, and the Maxwell equations written in the 19th century, and the wave equations, are not based on the quantum properties of light.

Modern optics

This area of ​​science is related to optomechanics, electro-optics, optoelectronics and quantum electronics. However, each area has its own characteristics, its scientific communities and its place in the market.

Quantum optics usually refers to fundamental research, and photonics is applied research and development:

• Study of the properties of light particles.
• Creation of signal processing devices using photons.
• Practical applications of optics.
• Creation of devices similar to electronic ones.

The term "optoelectronics" is applicable to devices or circuits that simultaneously have electrical and optical functions, i.e. to thin film semiconductor devices. Previously, the term "electro-optics" was used, and electro-optics included non-linear devices with electro-optical interactions, such as modulators on bulk crystals (Pockels cells), as well as advanced image sensors, commonly used by civil or government organizations for observation.

Newly emerging areas

Photonics is closely related to the emerging quantum informatics and quantum optics, to the extent that they use common methods. Other emerging areas include optomechanics, which studies the effect of mechanical vibrations of mesoscopic or macroscopic objects on light, and the creation of devices that combine photonic and atomic devices for timekeeping, navigation, and metrology services. The difference between polaritonics is that the fundamental information carriers are polaritons (mixtures of photons and phonons) operating in the frequency range from 300 GHz to about 10 THz.

Review of studies

Photonics deals with the emission, transmission, amplification, detection and modulation of light.

Sources of light

Light sources in photonics are usually structurally more complex. Superluminescent diodes and lasers are used, as well as single-photon sources, cathode-ray tubes and plasma screens. In this case, CRTs, plasmas and displays generate their own light, while LCDs (like TTFs) require backlighting from cold cathode or, more commonly, LEDs.

For semiconductor light sources, it is characteristic that instead of classical semiconductors (silicon and germanium), intermetallic compounds are more often used. Examples of material systems used are gallium arsenide (GaAs) and gallium aluminum arsenide (AlGaAs), or other composite semiconductors. These materials are also used in conjunction with silicon to make hybrid silicon lasers.

Communication medium

Light can pass through any transparent medium. Fiberglass or plastic fiber can be used to guide the light along the desired path. In optical communication systems, fiber allows data to be transmitted over distances of more than 100 km without amplification, depending on the bit rate and the type of modulation used for transmission. A very promising area of ​​research is the development and production of special structures and materials with desired optical properties - photonic crystals, photonic crystal fibers and metamaterials.

Amplifiers

Optical amplifiers are used to amplify optical signals. Erbium-doped optical fiber amplifiers, semiconductor optical amplifiers, Raman effect amplifiers and optical parametric amplifiers are used in optical communication lines. A very promising area is the study of quantum dot semiconductor optical amplifiers.

Detection (detection)

Photodetectors are designed to detect light, these include devices of varying degrees of speed: high-speed photodiodes, medium-speed charge-coupled devices, inert, used to convert solar light energy into electrical energy. There are also many photodetectors based on thermal, chemical, quantum, photoelectric and other effects.

Modulation

Light source modulation is used to encode information transmitted by light sources. One of the simplest examples of direct modulation of a light source is turning a flashlight on and off to transmit a message in Morse code. It is also possible to control the light source by means of an external optical modulator.

An additional area of ​​research is the type of modulation. In optical communication, a commonly used type of modulation is on/off switching. In recent years, improved forms of modulation such as phase shift or orthogonal frequency division multiplexing have been developed to counteract transmission-degrading effects such as dispersion.

Photonic systems

Science is also engaged in the research of photonic devices for use in optical communication systems. This area of ​​research focuses on the implementation of photonic devices like high-speed photonic networks and encompasses research into optical regenerators that improve the quality of optical signals.

Photonic integrated circuits

The fields of microphotonics and nanophotonics usually include photonic crystal devices and solid state devices.

Photonic integrated circuits are optically active integrated photonic semiconductor devices that consist of at least two different functional units (amplification regions and grating-based laser mirrors). These enhanced performance devices are responsible for the commercial success of optical communications and the ability to increase the available bandwidth without significantly increasing the communication cost to the end user. The most commonly used photonic integrated circuits based on indium phosphide.

Applications

Photonics has become ubiquitous and has penetrated all areas of everyday life. Just as the invention of the transistor in 1948 greatly expanded the applications of electronics, the industry's unique applications continue to evolve, and are virtually limitless.

Economically important applications of semiconductor photonic devices include:

• Recording and processing of optical data.
• Information display.
• Optical pumping of high-power lasers.
• Telecommunications: optical fiber communication, optical downconverters.
• Photonic computing: clock distribution and communication between computers, printed circuit boards, or within optoelectronic integrated circuits.
• Household equipment.
• Lighting.
• Xerography-based laser printing.
• Barcode scanners, printers.
• CD/DVD/Blu-ray devices.
• Remote control devices.
• Medicine: health monitoring, diagnostics, low vision correction, laser surgery, surgical endoscopy, tattoo removal.
• Industry: Use of laser for welding, hole drilling, cutting and surface treatment by various methods.
• Robotics.
• Agriculture.
• Chemical synthesis.
• Thermonuclear energy.
• Construction: laser leveling, laser rangefinders, intelligent structures.
• Aviation: photonic gyroscopes without moving parts.
• Military equipment: laser defense systems, IR sensors, control, navigation, search and rescue operations.
• Metrology: measurement of time, frequency and distances.
• spectroscopy.
• Occurrence and detection of layers in mines.
• Entertainment industry: laser shows, holographic art.
• In the future: quantum computing.

A photonic computer, Wi-Fi from a light bulb, invisible materials, combat lasers and supersensitive sensors ... All these are the fruits of the same science - photonics. About why light today has become the object of study for almost half of physicists around the world, in our new material

Photo: GiroScience / Alamy / DIOMEDIA

The mouse in the chamber is illuminated with an infernal green light: it takes a few seconds for the laser to penetrate deep into the body and scan it to the smallest detail. An image of a tangled tangle of blood vessels appears on the screen - down to the smallest, a tenth of a millimeter in size. This is an optoacoustic microscope - a unique device, so far the only one in Russia. It converts an optical signal into an acoustic one and allows not only to "see" vessels up to microcapillaries, but also to detect the smallest particles in the blood - for example, single cancer cells.

And if you increase the intensity of the radiation, then the cell from overheating will simply burst and shatter into pieces. Do you understand? - says Professor Ildar Gabitov. - We can remove unwanted biological objects directly inside the body without surgical intervention and without affecting the entire body. These possibilities of simultaneous diagnostics and therapy are typical for a new branch of medicine - theranostics.

We are located at the Center for Photonics and Quantum Materials at the Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology in the Biophysics Laboratory. While scientists hone their skills on tissue samples. But in the near future, a full-fledged research vivarium will appear at Skoltech.

Interestingly, the idea to combine diagnostic and treatment technologies arose from the Nobel laureate, one of the authors of the American atomic bomb, Richard Feynman. He predicted the creation of autonomous instruments that would be able to perform surgical operations directly on the human body. Feynman wrote: "... It would be interesting if you could swallow a surgeon. You will introduce a mechanical surgeon into the blood vessels, and he will go to the heart and "look around" there ...". Perhaps all this will become a reality in the next decade. To do this, we need to understand how photons interact with matter at the nanoscale and develop methods for controlling light.

computer from light

Light is the basis of everything, - adds Professor Gabitov on the way to another laboratory. - Without light, there would be nothing: life on Earth could not have arisen. There would be no modern medicine, no modern industry, and the entire modern society with its most complex information structure, economy and everyday life would not exist either. The science of photonics, whose rapid development is due to a huge number of applications, studies the properties of light, the interaction of light with matter, and develops methods for controlling light fluxes. One thing is common for these methods - they are based on manipulations with light particles - photons. (A photon is a quantum of electromagnetic radiation; unlike an electron, it has no mass and electric charge and moves in vacuum at the speed of light - "O".)

And why has photonics begun to develop so rapidly right now? All advanced countries, including Russia, have identified it as a strategically important direction...

I would name two main factors - the development of the tool base and the growing technological needs, including the information infrastructure of modern society. Today, 30-40 percent of products manufactured in the world are created using photonics, and the list of areas where discoveries will be applied is growing every day.

One of the hottest areas is computer technology. Back in 1965, Intel founder Gordon Moore formulated the law according to which the number of transistors on a chip and, therefore, the speed will double every two years. But in 2016, his law stopped working: electronics can no longer develop so quickly. Will photonic technologies replace it?

Electronics technology in some areas has really come to a certain limit. We are all witnesses to the rapid development of devices based on electronics. Many people have a smartphone in their pocket - an amazing device, the functionality of which was unimaginable 20 years ago. Its appearance well illustrates the philosophical law of the transition of quantity into quality. If we tried to make something similar to a smartphone in the days of so-called discrete electronics, then the corresponding device from radio tubes, capacitors, resistances, inductances, etc. it would be the size of a block. In addition, it would consume an incredible amount of energy and would not be able to work due to constant breakdowns due to the unreliability of the elements. Only the emergence of microcircuits with a high degree of integration (contain a large number of elements. - "O") led to the creation of devices of a new type, which are now available to everyone. However, further progress, according to which electronics develops, in a number of cases is not possible.

- And what is the reason?

Secondly, the development of computers is greatly hampered by the lack of materials that can remove heat. The elements in modern devices are getting very small, but there are a lot of them, they are extremely densely packed, so that overheating cannot be avoided. Currently, industry giants such as Google and Facebook have been forced to locate their "data centers" (data processing centers. - "O") in cold climates: beyond the Arctic Circle and in the North on oil platforms, where there is a lot of cold water . And the largest data center in China is located at an altitude of 1065 meters above sea level in Hohhot, in Inner Mongolia. The problem needs to be addressed because the density of storage systems will only increase. The ability to erase or destroy something is completely disappearing from the culture of users, as it was 20 years ago when we used floppy disks or disks. Cloud space seems endless.

And the third reason, the most important, due to which the speed of computers is no longer growing, is related to the number of electrons that participate in an elementary logical operation. Now in one operation actually one electron is involved. That is, further we will have to use the "half" or "quarter" of the electron, which is an absolute absurdity. Therefore, the idea arose to try to create highly integrated devices using photons.

Will it be like the technological breakthrough of the 1970s, when fiber optics were used instead of copper cable? After all, it was this transition that essentially created the modern information society.

Yes, optical fiber - a thin thread of transparent material, through which light is transferred at high speed - an amazing material. Imagine: tens of kilometers of optical fiber have the same transparency as a meter of window glass! This makes it possible to use photons instead of electrons as information carriers. The creation of optical fiber technology and the invention of optical amplifiers led to a tremendous breakthrough in the field of high-speed transmission. Now, of course, there is a temptation to use photonic technologies not only for transmission, but also for information processing.

- Is it possible to create a photonic computer in the near future?

Here we run into unresolved problems. For example, a modern processor is a complex structure made of the smallest elements. Every year, companies improve technologies: Apple and Samsung have technological dimensions of approximately 7 nanometers (that is, today it is possible to operate with parts of this size and, accordingly, place a lot of miniature elements. - "Oh"). But a photon, as we know, is both a particle and a wave at the same time. At the same time, the length of this wave used in modern information systems is 1550 nanometers. Roughly speaking, a smartphone based on photonic technology would be about 200 times larger today than we are used to.

The second unresolved problem is the lack of effective methods for controlling photon fluxes. Electrons, as you know, have a charge, so they can be manipulated using a magnetic or electric field. Photons are neutral and this cannot be done. Today, everyone expects the emergence of new hybrid devices that would combine photonics and electronics. Research centers of key companies are struggling to solve this problem.

What will it give? Incredible performance? Does humanity have tasks that need to be solved with such productivity?

Of course, there are such tasks in the field of climate modeling, brain research, medical and biological problems... This list can be continued for a long time. As for new opportunities for everyday life, you know, I cannot answer this question. Again, 20 years ago, we could not have imagined what amazing capabilities smartphones would have. Therefore, fantasizing about what functionality the creation of highly integrated photonics devices can lead to is a thankless task.

The Science of Enlightenment

- How expensive is the science of photonics? What facilities do scientists need?

It is difficult to imagine gigantic projects like the hadron collider in the field of photonics - the scale of the processes here is smaller. But this science is very expensive. Typically, photonics centers that work with very small structured objects, with new materials and new devices, cost about 250-300 million dollars.

- Where is the scientific potential concentrated today and where, most likely, will new superdevices appear?

More and more research is being shifted and concentrated in large companies. Key employees are very expensive, so companies outsource some of the pilot and high-risk research to universities that have qualified professors and good students.

If we talk about countries, then a lot of work is being done in the United States. In addition, there are good centers in England, Germany, Japan, and Korea. Partly in France. Much work is being done in universities, such as the University of Rochester in New York. This is generally a well-known place for everyone who is related to optics. Such well-known optical giants as Kodak, Xerox, Bausch and Lomb started their work here.

- China has not yet made it to this list?

China is a different story. Enormous funds are allocated there for photonics. The Chinese are already dominating in certain areas of production, but may still be a little behind in the development of new devices. Although somewhere, for example in quantum communication, the Chinese have overtaken the whole world. Literally this September, with the help of the QUESS quantum satellite, they made a connection between China and Austria. At the same time, not only was the record for the distance covered by the signal broken, but it also laid the foundation for the creation of communication links that cannot be hacked.

China is developing very quickly, it attracts not only significant funds, but also human potential. Now, interestingly, Chinese students often no longer stay in the same States after their studies, they return to China, and then, becoming heads of laboratories, invite their professors there.

It's no secret that electronics is an area where, to put it mildly, Russia is far behind: in the civilian microprocessor market, we have 100 percent of imports. What can be said about Russian photonics? This is especially interesting, since in the BRICS Russia and India are responsible for it, as one of the most promising areas in science.

Yes, Russia and India will apparently carry out joint programs in the field of radio photonics. But in general, the choice, I would say, is justified. Few people remember that back in 1919, at the height of the Civil War, the State Optical Institute (GOI) was created in our country by decision of the government. By 1923 it was one of the best equipped scientific institutions in the world.

In general, this wonderful institution has solved a lot of problems. For example, before the First World War, Germany was the main manufacturer of optics, and somewhere at the height of the war, as they say now, sanctions were introduced. That is, the devices were no longer supplied to Russia. It was necessary to create an industry, in which the GOI played a huge role. On its basis, in the same 1919, a 300-meter interferometer was built for observing stars. They were engaged in both fundamental science and the creation of a technological base. Everything was created here - from medical microscopes to the most complex military optics and lenses for spacecraft.

Unfortunately, in the crazy 1990s, the GOI fell into a deplorable state. Many specialists were accepted by the leadership to work at ITMO - St. Petersburg Research University of Information Technologies, Mechanics and Optics. Now it is a unique educational institution where very serious scientific work is being carried out. Well, besides, it is impossible not to mention Phystech, MISIS, University. Bauman in Moscow, Novosibirsk University. Now all this direction is on the rise, and the decision of the Russian government to support the development of photonics in Russia is not accidental. Skoltech, by the way, participated in the formation of this program. Finally, there is a serious interest on the part of business: there are organizations that produce competitive products for both civilian and military applications, develop new products.

Back to the Future

Please tell us about photonic technologies that will change our everyday life. At what stage is the development of Li-Fi - Wi-Fi powered by photons?

The ancestor of this technology is the German physicist Harald Haas, who in 2011 used an LED lamp as a router. In laboratory conditions, it achieved a transfer rate of 224 Gb / s. This speed allows, for example, to download 18 films of 1.5 GB in 1 second. Another important nuance is secrecy. Radio waves can pass through walls, which means that when communicating via Wi-Fi, the radio signal can be easily read, and the data can be stolen and decrypted. Modulated light from the room will not go far, it is much more difficult to covertly intercept such a signal - it is perceived and transmitted in the line of sight. But this technology is still far from being implemented. More realistic technologies based on plasmonics.

- What are they?

Plasmonics began to develop only 15 years ago, but the phenomena associated with it have been known for a very long time. For example, even in ancient Egypt, metals were added to glass and painted in various colors. And in the British Museum there is a unique goblet made of glass in which gold is dissolved, and so, in one light it is pink, and in another it is green. The point, as it turned out, is that when dissolved in glass, gold does not disperse into molecules, but gathers into clusters - about 50 nanometers in size of a particle. If illuminated with light, the wavelength is greater than the size of the particle, and the light passes around it without scattering. This discovery led to the creation of a wide variety of technologies, such as nanolasers, which are smaller than a wavelength, and ultrasensitive sensors.

- Are there already working models?

There is. The first papers on such lasers were published several years ago by Misha Noginov, a Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology graduate living in the United States. He was the first to build a laser measuring 40 nanometers - a million times smaller than the thickness of a human hair. Information about this appeared in 2011 in the journal Nature. Since then, the experimental life of nanolasers has begun. In particular, our other former compatriot Mark Stockman, a student of academician Spartak Belyaev, rector of Novosibirsk State University, came up with SPASER - a plasmonic nanosource of optical radiation. It is a particle 22 nanometers in size, that is, hundreds of times smaller than a human cell. Thanks to a special coating, SPASER particles are able to "find" metastasizing cancer cells in the blood and, sticking to them, destroy them. According to Stockman's extremely optimistic estimates, the first devices of this kind may appear within the next year.

- What will supersensitive sensors be used for in the first place?

For example, for marking explosives. It is very important for anti-terrorist activities to know where this or that explosive came from, to find the source from which it leaked. Great efforts are being made all over the world to mark explosives, because then, by collecting what was left after the explosion, one can understand where the substance was made - right down to the shift and time. And so that the enemy could not understand what is added there. And this problem is solved simply: several molecules get into the explosive, which can be recognized by a sensor based on photonic technologies.

Another area is drug labeling. It is known that in any tablet there is a very small amount of active substance, and the bulk is made up of the filler and the shell. We can mix, say, five dyes in a certain proportion, then dilute to low concentrations and thus label genuine tablets through a certain coating composition. To distinguish them from fakes, you just need to put the tablets on a special substrate and see what spectrum they emit. This promising direction is widely developed in the world.

In our laboratory at Skoltech, we are developing a sensor that can detect the level of cortisol, the stress hormone, in a person's blood. It will be a wearable gadget that transmits information in real time. Can you imagine what an invaluable thing for people whose work is connected with constant concentration of attention?

In the late 1960s, there was talk in the world about the creation of combat lasers. Our program was led by Nobel laureate Nikolai Basov. Under his leadership, a combat laser was created capable of hitting a ballistic missile. What areas of photonics are of interest to the military?

Of course, work in the field of combat lasers is being carried out in all countries, but this is not a topic that can be covered. More actively discussed today are possible metamaterials (as materials are called, the properties of which have been enriched by nanotechnology. - "O") for masking.

- Yes, companies have repeatedly stated that they are ready to create an invisibility cloak, as in the novel by HG Wells.

This is an extremely popular trend in the media space. In Wells' novel, invisibility was based on the principle of material transparency. This principle, or rather its imitation, is currently being implemented. Now, for example, in Seoul, a project is being discussed to build a tower, which becomes "transparent" from time to time. The surface of the building will be illuminated with LEDs, and a number of cameras located on the facades will broadcast an image of the sky to its surface in real time. A fully "activated" tower should become invisible against the sky. True, it is not very clear how aviation security issues will be resolved, given that there is an airport not far from this place.

Another technology was described in a fantasy book - "The Invisible Woman". There, the lady is surrounded by a shell that distorts the course of the rays.

This principle is realized with the help of metamaterials. Metamaterials can bend light rays in such a way that the object behind it becomes invisible. But the problem is that this is only possible with very small objects - on the order of a centimeter - and in a narrow region of the spectrum.

In both cases, it is too early to talk about real invisibility.

Physics for tomorrow

In the twentieth century, the development of a particular area of ​​physics was determined, as a rule, by a political order. In one of his last interviews, Academician Ginzburg said that when the Americans dropped the atomic bomb, his salary tripled... And what, in your opinion, drives the development of this or that area of ​​physics today?

In the last few decades, the order is determined not by political, but rather by industrial needs. After all, how was it before? Some discovery was made, some phenomenon was studied, some mathematical facts were revealed, and after a rather considerable time they were embodied in applications. Now the speed of implementation is such that it takes just a few months from discovery to the appearance of technology. All biophotonics arose about seven years ago, and today not a single large center of photonic technologies can do without an appropriate laboratory.

Therefore, now in the West, the development of physical disciplines is shifting from physics departments to engineering ones. It is there that financing is better today and there is an industrial order. In parallel, the funding of physics faculties is declining. This is such a general trend that I see both in Europe and in the US.

- Does this mean that a redistribution of funds between fundamental and applied science is coming?

Quite possibly. The progress of fundamental science often requires very large capital investments. Fundamental science is becoming very expensive, which is why there is international cooperation and financial consolidation. This is a general phenomenon. At one time, we at the Landau Institute had such a point of view that only incomprehensible and unknowable phenomena are real physics. Everything else is an application. So from this point of view, in our days, the fundamental science will be, suppose, the study of dark matter and dark energy.

In one of your interviews, you said that the quality of students' education in physics departments is declining catastrophically. You teach in the USA and in Russia. Does this apply to both countries?

The decline in interest in science is a worldwide problem. It is clearly visible almost everywhere. Apparently, humanity should think about it, because sooner or later it will lead to some negative consequences. Yes, I am stating the fact that the quality of education of students after school is declining. There are many reasons for this, one of them is the destruction of the search system and subsequent care for talented guys, especially from the provinces.

In addition, the modern Russian system of boarding schools is experiencing great difficulties, because they are allocated funds like ordinary schools. Academic institutions find some third-party sources of funding, but this is not their profile. The state should systematically deal with this. In Soviet times, this system, which China has now borrowed from us, worked very well.

In the United States, it was as if they copied the Soviet system of mathematical schools at one time, but I have not heard about China yet ...

When I talk with colleagues in China, I see a lot of familiar things - what we went through in our time. For example, the Soviet system of Olympiads and the selection of the best students is copied there. This is very close to me, because I myself got into science that way. My mother was a teacher and subscribed to the Teacher's Newspaper, where the tasks of the Physics and Mathematics Olympiad were printed. I solved them immediately for all classes and sent the solutions by mail. Moreover, the tasks were compiled by very wise teachers, because they leveled the difference between specialized schools, which gave very good trainings, and rural ones. In other words, the emphasis was on intelligence, on resourcefulness, on people with potential. Now in Russia this is not the case.

Many people call the 20th century the century of nuclear physics. What field of physics will become the flagship in the 21st century?

The most amazing area of ​​modern physics, in my opinion, is the science of the universe. Dark matter and dark energy are mysterious, amazing phenomena that have been discovered and are still waiting to be explained. The study and unraveling of these phenomena will lead to tremendous progress in our understanding of the structure of the world. But photonics, which we talked about today, will play the same role in the 21st century as the steam engine in the 19th century or electronics in the 20th century.

Calculate Light
Business card

The physicist Ildar Gabitov got interested in photonics through mathematical formulas. Now he works in three directions at once - he studies the properties of light, implements developments in life and creates programs for the development of science

Ildar Gabitov - Professor of the Faculty of Mathematics at the University of Arizona (USA), Director of the Center for Photonics and Quantum Materials of the Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology, Leading Researcher at the Institute of Theoretical Physics. L.D. Landau RAS.

He was born in 1950 to a teacher and mining engineer. He studied at the Leningrad University at the Faculty of Physics. At the Department of Mathematical Physics, his teachers were famous professors - Olga Ladyzhenskaya and Vasily Babich. For some time he worked in a closed institution near Leningrad, in Sosnovy Bor. Then - at the Institute of Mathematics in Bishkek. From there he moved to the Landau Institute, to Academician Vladimir Zakharov. At the very beginning of the 1990s, he moved to Germany, and then to the Los Alamos National Laboratory in the USA, after which he settled at the University of Arizona. Spends most of the year there.

Professor Gabitov is the author of over 100 scientific papers on theoretical and mathematical physics, nonlinear optics, the theory of integrating systems, fiber optic communications, multiscale phenomena and nanomaterials, nanophotonics and nanoplasmonics. He is recognized as an expert by many international professional associations, including the National Science Foundation (USA), Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, US Civilian R&D Foundation (USA), Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (UK). He is a member of the Academic Council of the Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology. He participated in the preparation of the "Interdepartmental program for research and development in the field of photonics for the period 2017-2020" of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation.

• Activities and pedagogical views of Jan Amos Comenius
• The rate constant is calculated by the formula Rate constant value
• Phase diagrams of two-component systems "polymer - solvent" Phase diagrams of two-component systems "polymer - solvent"
• Fine and hyperfine structure of optical spectra
• How to learn chemistry on your own from scratch: effective ways
• Properties and characteristics of alkenes
• Characteristics of a student from the place of internship
• Characteristics for a student who had an internship at an enterprise: writing rules
• Biography of Faraday. Great scientists. Michael Faraday. discovery of electromagnetic rotation
• Modern innovations in education

• Substituents on the benzene ring are divided into two groups Reactions of the benzene ring
• Types of chemical reactions in organic chemistry Electrophilic addition reactions
• Methods for separating heterogeneous mixtures
• Polymethacrylic acid
• General characteristics of the elements of the VI A subgroup Elements 6a of the subgroup
• Theoretical foundations of physics
• Graph theory in chemistry. graph theory. Basic definitions and theorems of graph theory
• Algebra and harmony in chemical applications
• Tests on the course "Ecology and nature management
• WWF Russia Director Igor Chestin: Yakutia is among the leaders I know that you travel a lot… Why do you need this