Australia uses nanoparticles to design new light sources that help improve chip quality and production

A team of physicists from the Australian National University (ANU) and the University of Adelaide announced that by using nanoparticles to develop a new light source, they were able to observe the world of extremely small objects thousands of times smaller than a human hair, which promises to lead to major advances in medicine and other technologies.

The research could have a major impact on medical science, as it provides a cost-effective solution to analyze objects that were previously too small to be "seen" by even a microscope, and the work could also benefit the semiconductor industry and improve quality control in computer chip manufacturing.

The technique from the Australian National University uses carefully designed nanoparticles to increase the frequency of light seen by cameras and other technologies by a factor of seven. The researchers say there is "no limit" to how far the frequency of light can be raised. The higher the frequency, the smaller the object we see with the light source.

The technique, which only requires a single nanoparticle to work, could be applied to microscopes, helping scientists zoom in on the world of ultra-small objects at 10 times the resolution of traditional microscopes. This will allow researchers to study objects that would otherwise be too small to see, such as the internal structure of cells and individual viruses. Being able to analyze such tiny objects could help scientists better understand and fight certain diseases and health conditions.

"Conventional microscopes can only study objects larger than 10 millionths of a meter. However, there is a growing need ina range of fields, including the medical field, to be able to analyse small objects as small as a billionth of a metre, "said lead author Dr Anastasiia Zalogina, from the Research School of Physics at the Australian National University and the University of Adelaide." Our technology can help meet this need."

Researchers say nanotechnology developed at the Australian National University could help create a new generation of microscopes that can produce more detailed images.

"Scientists who want to generate highly magnified images of extremely small nanoscale objects cannot use traditional light microscopes. Instead, they have to rely on super-resolution microscopy techniques or use electron microscopes to study these tiny objects, "Zalogina notes," but this is slow and the technology is very expensive, often costing more than $1 million." Another disadvantage of electron microscopy is that it can damage the fine samples being analyzed, while light microscopy mitigates this problem."

Although our eyes cannot detect infrared and ultraviolet rays, it is possible for us to "see" them through cameras and other technology. Co-author Dr Sergey Kruk, also from the Australian National University, said the researchers were interested in obtaining very high frequencies of light, also known as "extreme ultraviolet". With purple light we can see much smaller things than with red light. With extreme ultraviolet light sources, we can see much more than what can be seen with traditional microscopes today.

Dr Sergey Kruk said the ANU technology could also be used in the semiconductor industry as a quality control measure to ensure streamlined manufacturing processes. "Computer chips are made up of very tiny components with a feature size of almost a billionth of a meter. During chip production, it would be beneficial for manufacturers to use tiny extreme ultraviolet light sources to monitor the process in real time so that any problems can be diagnosed early."

In this way, manufacturers can save resources and time to make inferior chips, thereby increasing the output of chip manufacturing. It is estimated that every 1% increase in computer chip manufacturing output can save $2 billion.

"Australia's thriving optical and optoelectronics industry, represented by nearly 500 companies and worth around $4.3 billion in economic activity, puts our high-tech ecosystem in a strong position to adopt new types of light sources to tap into new global markets for nanotechnology industry and research." Dr. Sergey Kruk pointed out.

The work was carried out in collaboration with researchers from the University of Brescia, the University of Arizona and Korea University.

Source: OFweek