Mitsubishi Electric has developed the prototype of what is believed to be the world's first* optical receiver for use in laser communication terminals (LCTs), that integrates space optical communication using laser beams and a function to detect the direction of received beams in the 1.5-um band, a general-purposeband used for terrestrial optical fiber communications and other applications.

High-resolution satellite imagery is used to assess damage caused by disasters, but since such images are transmitted via radio waves it has been difficult to transmit high-resolution images in real time due to limitations in data capacity and the size of satellite antennas.

Large-capacity, high-speed space optical communications that do not require optical fiber are thus required to support fast and accurate damage assessments following disasters. But space optical communications use very narrow laser beams, about 1/1000th of that of radio waves, so the challenge has been how to precisely align laser beams with satellites traveling at high speed.

Detailed release available here

Related Links
Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
Space Technology News - Applications and Research

Tweet

Researchers create exotic magnetic structures with laser light
Lund, Sweden (SPX) Apr 26, 2022
Research at Lund University in Sweden has found a new way to create nano-sized magnetic particles using ultrafast laser light pulses. The discovery could pave the way for new and more energy-efficient technical components and become useful in the quantum computers of the future. Magnetic skyrmions are sometimes described as magnetic vortices. Unlike ferromagnetic states - which occur in conventional magnets such as compasses and refrigerator magnets - the skyrmion state is quite peculiar: the orie ... read more