The world is filled with light and is essential to one of our senses (sight) and our existence in the Earth itself. Light is at the heart of many technology which affect our lives, like the harvesting of energy using solar cells, light emitting diode (LED) displays, as well as telecommunications via fiber optic networks.
The iPhone is an outstanding demonstration of the potential of light. In the device, its electronic functions are based on quantum mechanics. The screen in front is a completely photonic device which controls light through liquid crystals. Backside: white light emitting diodes to create an LED flash, as well as lenses that can capture pictures.
Photonics is the term we use or optics to describe the use of light in the development of new technology and applications. The importance of these technologies in our modern lives is recognized each in May on the 16th of May which is an International Day of Light.
Scientists from the African continent, in spite of the constraints on resources they operate within, have made significant contributions to the field of photonics. A few of them are documented in a special issue in the journal Applied Optics. With colleagues from this area of Morocco and Senegal and Senegal, we presented this compilation of articles that aims to highlight excellence and demonstrate the importance of research that focus on continental problems.
Photonics: A Spotlight On Africa
The history of Africa’s formal optics is rooted in many thousands of years. There are reference to the lens’s design documented in the earliest Egyptian writings.
Recently, Africa has contributed to two Nobel prizes that were based on optics. Ahmed Zewail (Egyptian born) observed the ultra-fast chemical processes using Lasers (1999, Nobel Prize for Chemistry) as well as Serge Harouche (Moroccan born) was studying the behavior of particles in photons, light (2012, Nobel Prize for Physics).
The African optics tale is an area of high-quality optics. The best parts are as impressive like anywhere else, however there’s too little of them to place Africa on the world optics map. Based on a calculation for 2020 that I was provided by the Optical Society of America Based on their publications, Africa contributes less than 1percent to the world’s journals that have photonics or optics as a subject.
However, there are many possibilities to meet continental challenges with optics. Some examples of areas in which Africans could be innovative include:
- bridge the digital divide by implementing the latest technology in communications
- optic imaging and spectroscopy to aid in improvement in agricultural practices and to monitor changing climate
- using the sun’s energy using optical materials to harness pure energy
- biophotonics and health solutions
- quantum technologies to create new forms of sensing, communicating, computer imaging, and sensing
The essays in the special issue of the journal cover the diversity of topics that are relevant to continents.
The other is making use of optics to communicate between free space (air) even during bad temperatures. The solution was tested with weather data taken from two African cities: Alexandria in Egypt as well as Setif within Algeria.
Another article is on tiny quantum quantum sources of quantum-entanglement that can be used to detect. The researchers used diamonds as a stone that is found within South Africa and more commonly found in jewelry. Diamond is not without flaws, among them, it can generate single photons after being excited. The single photon’s output divided into two directions in the same way as if the particle moved both directions in the same direction. This is the nutty idea of entanglement. It is, in this instance, made with diamonds. When an object is set on a single path the entanglement will discern it. Oddly enough, there are times when photons travel to the left however the object is on the right path, but it is able to be identified.
One of the contributors proposes an affordable technique to find and identify harmful bacteria in the water.
The latest developments in the field of spectroscopy (studying color) to detect the health of cells; biosensors for monitoring glucose and salt levels in blood; as well as optical instruments to improve the security of food each play a role in optical technologies across the globe.
A different area of African optical research that could have many applications is the application of optical fibres that can detect the soil’s quality and its strength and structural strength. The use of optical fibres is usually connected as communication devices, but the latest approach is to make use of optical fibres that are which is already in place to monitor minor changes to the world such as an early warning system for earthquakes. It has been discovered that traditional optical fibres can be utilized to determine if soil is getting worse, due to a the lack of moisture or a physical change in the structural changes (weakness or shift). It’s an immediate instrument for farmers, based upon decades of study.
The variety of subjects that are included in the collection show the way that researchers from across the continent are making use of the smallest resources to make maximum impact. A strong focus on applications may also indicate that African governments are keen for researchers to focus on solving real-world problems, instead of purely academic issues. One example could be South Africa, which has an approved plan for its national policy ( SA QuTI) that aims to transform quantum research into quantum technology, and educate the workforce to compete in an emerging economy.
To A Brighter And More Promising Future
If you are a young scientist and want to get into this field, the possibilities are limitless. Photonics does not have any discipline limits, students typically are drawn to the disciplines of engineering, physics biology, or chemistry. Its strength is in the blending of abilities, which combine the theoretical, computational and empirical techniques, which are then brought together to tackle issues. In a typical conference on photonics, you’re likely to see several more industrial participants than academics. This is a testimony to the widespread impact of photonics in modern technology, as well as the job possibilities for students.
The previous century was founded on electronic devices and the control of electrons. This century is likely to be led by photonics that will control photons.
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