Researchers develop photonic chips for advanced astronomical and optical imaging

Scientists have developed new photonic integrated circuits (PICs) designed to enhance imaging capabilities in astronomy and microscopy.

Researchers from Heriot-Watt University, in collaboration with institutions in Germany and the United States, successfully tested an ultrafast-laser-written beam combiner chip. During on-sky observations at the CHARA Array in California, the chip demonstrated its ability to combine light from separate telescopes with high precision. This technology could potentially replace larger, more complex mirrors and lenses in astronomical interferometry, allowing for higher resolving power to study stellar structures.

Separately, a team including researchers from Stanford University has developed a fingernail-sized photonic chip capable of splitting partially coherent light into distinct, mutually incoherent beams. By using a silicon photonic circuit and an optimization algorithm, the device can identify and separate underlying coherence modes within a mixed optical field. This advancement, published in Nature Photonics, allows cameras and telescopes to capture information that conventional imaging systems often miss.