Rainbow-trapping scientist now strives to slow light waves even further

Rainbow-trapping scientist now strives to slow light waves even further
An electrical engineer at the University at Buffalo, who previously demonstrated experimentally the "rainbow trapping effect" -- a phenomenon that could boost optical data storage and communications -- is now working to capture all the colors of the rainbow.

Gan explains that the ultimate goal is to achieve a breakthrough in optical communications called multiplexed, multiwavelength communications, where optical data can potentially be tamed at different wavelengths, thus greatly increasing processing and transmission capacity.

He notes that it is widely recognized that if light could ever be stopped entirely, new possibilities would open up for data storage.

"At the moment, processing data with optical signals is limited by how quickly the signal can be interpreted," he says. "If the signal can be slowed, more information could be processed without overloading the system."