A tiny ring that produces light pulses

29. Researchers led by EPFL have made a tiny, ring-shaped device that can generate a pulsed laser signal. Their work could be used in tele applications and in chemical analysis. Solitons are a type of wave that, unlike other waves, retains its shape even as it moves further away from its source. Soliton waves of light are of great interest because they can produce evenly spaced frequencies of light, like the teeth of comb. These "frequency combs" can be used in technologies that require widely spaced frequencies, such as tele and chemical analysis. Publishing in Science , researchers led by EPFL have successfully produced light solitons with a small chip-based device, setting a new record in the field.