Heinz Optical Engineering (United States)

Addressing the substantial energy consumption from building heating and cooling is critical for climate change mitigation. Passive daytime radiative cooling (PDRC) offers a highly promising zero-energy strategy to mitigate global warming; however, it encounters several key limitations, including susceptibility to overcooling, constrained environmental adaptability, and challenges in manufacturability. Herein, we develop a trimode multicolor thermochromic canopy with distinct microsphere-rich and pore-rich zones in orthogonal polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) fibrous membranes. This design achieves programmable multitemperature spectral responses, including high mid-infrared emissivity (0.94) in the atmospheric transparency window, competitive near-infrared reflectance (93.7%), and visible light modulation capability of 30.44% via polychromic thermochromic microcapsules (TMs). Promisingly, our PTFE/TM composite enables three autonomous operational modes, yielding a maximum subambient daytime cooling of 7.6 °C in hot conditions, heating of 5.4 °C in cold conditions, and a stable intermediate state at comfortable temperatures. The composite also exhibited excellent durability and superhydrophobicity. EnergyPlus simulations confirm the significant global potential, showing substantial annual energy savings and CO2 emission reductions across diverse climates, outperforming static cooling materials by effectively avoiding overcooling penalties. This work provides a viable zero-energy pathway for mitigating urban heat island effects and promoting climate-resilient building thermal regulation.

Phase-change memory (PCM) has emerged as a promising non-volatile memory technology, offering significant potential for next-generation artificial intelligence and neuromorphic computing systems. However, conventional Ge1Sb4Te7 (GST), a prototypical stoichiometric phase-change chalcogenide, suffers from intrinsic limitations such as inadequate thermal stability and pronounced resistance drift, hindering its practical applications in high-performance devices and chips. In this study, we demonstrate that carbon (C) doping in GST markedly enhances its thermal robustness and data retention, while elucidating the underlying microstructure property relationships. Carbon doping significantly increases the crystallization temperature of GST, shifting it to and beyond 200 °C with increasing carbon content. Higher carbon incorporation also yields up to a fourfold improvement in data retention, achieving 10-year stability at 100 °C. Moreover, GST-C-based PCM devices exhibit excellent electrical stability, featuring ultralow resistance drift (ν = 0.03) and highly reproducible multilevel resistance states. Through ab initio simulations, we uncover the atomic-scale mechanisms governing these enhancements: carbon incorporation induces the formation of robust, shortened bonds with Ge/Sb/Te, promoting tetrahedral C clusters that impede crystallization by elevating the activation energy barrier. This work identifies GST-C as a promising candidate for reliable, high-density PCM and highlights its potential for neuromorphic computing applications.

Spin-based quantum sensors have been applied to the quantum sensing of magnetic fields from DC to GHz with various schemes. The recently developed quantum spectrum analyzer (QSA) technique based on the nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers in diamond shows an ultrawide frequency bandwidth in this application. Here, we improve this technique and develop a robust QSA via diamond engineering. This QSA exploits the electron spin resonance of NV centers in an engineered {111} industrial diamond, which cancels the complex process of magnetic arrangement and significantly enhances the robustness of QSA against spin mixing under high magnetic fields in practice. A tunable frequency bandwidth of up to 18 GHz with a maximum instantaneous bandwidth of 2 GHz is achieved as well as a frequency resolution of several MHz and a large dynamic range of 65 dB. Using this QSA, we realize the optical imaging of frequency-modulated microwaves. Our work provides a promising rapid-deployment architecture for QSA and extends its application to spectral analysis in modern communications.

This chapter describes the Offner reflecting optical system design, along with a design by Reed that Offner cites as prior art in his patent, and some interesting insights and extensions into this design that came about via plate-diagram analysis.

To evaluate changes in choroidal thickness in presbyopes, when reading with regular glasses versus choroidal control glasses, in patients with or without Age-Related Macular Degeneration (AMD). This was a pilot study on short-term axial length (AL) in 33 eyes of 24 presbyopic patients aged 60 to 80years, assigned to two age-matched groups, with or without AMD. About them, changes in choroidal thickness were evaluated with ocular biometry through indirect measurements of axial length at baseline, after 20' of reading with conventional lenses, and after another 20' of reading with peripheral hyperopic defocus glasses. The differences in axial length between the three different times were analyzed. In presbyopes without AMD there was a significant axial length shortening of -13.44 microns in the first conventional reading period, which was reversed by 90% with hyperopic defocus lenses, recovering + 12.11 microns by axial lengthening (choroidal thinning, p = 0.03). In patients with AMD, axial shortening was significantly greater than controls, -23.86 microns with conventional lenses (p < 0.001) and they, also increased their axial length with defocus, although this response was smaller in proportion (+ 15.52 microns). Reading with positive lenses produces myopic defocus and choroidal thickening in presbyopes with and without AMD but was significantly greater in the latter. Glasses with Choroidal Control Technology reduced thickening during reading. What is known • Presbyopia spectacles for near produce myopic defocus and choroidal thickening. What is new • There are differences in choroidal thickening during reading between normal subjects and those with age related macular degeneration. • Spectacles with Defocus Choroidal Control Technology reduce choroidal thickening during reading in presbyopes.

Objetivo: Evaluar los cambios de la longitud axial a corto plazo tras el uso de un anteojo especialmente diseñado con reducción del contraste periférico. Métodos: Se realizó un estudio piloto en el que se evaluó a sujetos que utilizaban anteojos especiales con modulación del contraste periférico y una zona central con corrección de la miopía lejana. Durante el experimento los sujetos leyeron un libro con letras negras sobre fondo blanco en la computadora con la misma luminosidad en dos períodos: uno con los anteojos habituales y el segundo con los especiales. Antes y después de estos períodos se realizaron 10 mediciones de la longitud axial del ojo derecho con el biómetro Lenstar 900 y se promediaron hasta tres decimales. Resultados: Ocho sujetos, cuya edad media era de 22,3 ± 5,5 años, participaron en este estudio. El equivalente esférico medio de su ojo derecho era de -2,31 ± 1,06 dioptrías. Se observó una diferencia significativa de +16,1 micras de aumento de la longitud axial con respecto del valor basal al leer con la graduación habitual durante el primer período de 40 minutos. Cuando los sujetos leyeron en la misma situación con el anteojo de modulación del contraste, el cambio de longitud axial se invirtió significativamente, acortándose en -9,2 micras (p&lt;0,001 y p=0,002, respectivamente prueba t de Student). Conclusiones: La disminución de la longitud axial con los anteojos probados en este estudio puede deberse al engrosamiento de la coroides. Dado que el desarrollo de la miopía se detiene cuando la coroides se engrosa, estos anteojos podrían probarse para el control de la miopía en un ensayo clínico.

Light beams with Orbital Angular Momentum (OAM) are explored in applications from microscopy to quantum communication, while the Talbot effect revives in applications from atomic systems to x-ray phase contrast interferometry. We evidence the topological charge of an OAM carrying THz beam in the near-field of a binary amplitude fork-grating by means of the Talbot effect, which we show to persist over several fundamental Talbot lengths. We measure and analyze the evolution of the diffracted beam behind the fork grating in Fourier domain to recover the typical donut-shaped power distribution, and we compare experimental data to simulations. We isolate the inherent phase vortex using the Fourier phase retrieval method. To complement the analysis, we assess the OAM diffraction orders of a fork grating in the far-field using a cylindrical lens.

Strabismus, commonly known as eyes or squint is a condition in which the eyes do not properly align with each other. Apparent strabismus can be a result of various underlying factors, including refractive errors such as myopia, hyperopia, and astigmatism. This essay explores the relationship between apparent strabismus and different types of refractive errors. The methodology involves a literature review of relevant research articles and studies. The results indicate a significant correlation between certain types of refractive errors and apparent strabismus. The discussion delves into the implications of these findings for clinical practice and treatment strategies. In conclusion, understanding the relationship between apparent strabismus and refractive errors is crucial for accurate diagnosis and management of the condition.

Zr–Rh metallic glass has enabled its many applications in vehicle parts, sports equipment and so on due to its outstanding performance in mechanical property, but the knowledge of the microstructure determining the superb mechanical property remains yet insufficient. Here, we develop a deep neural network potential of Zr–Rh system by using machine learning, which breaks the dilemma between the accuracy and efficiency in molecular dynamics simulations, and greatly improves the simulation scale in both space and time. The results show that the structural features obtained from the neural network method are in good agreement with the cases in ab initio molecular dynamics simulations. Furthermore, we build a large model of 5400 atoms to explore the influences of simulated size and cooling rate on the melt-quenching process of Zr77Rh23. Our study lays a foundation for exploring the complex structures in amorphous Zr77Rh23, which is of great significance for the design and practical application.

For many applications, large curvature surfaces or complicated 3D structures are required to absorb light that falls on them to reduce stray light or energy collection. A novel, to the best of our knowledge, strategy with a metal-dielectric film stack by the atomic layer deposition technique is put forward to achieve broadband absorption coating covering both sides of a quartz tube completely. Absorptive metallic material of titanium-aluminum-carbon composite and dielectric material of aluminum oxide (Al2O3) is employed to realize high absorption (>99%) for the 400-780 nm band with the configuration of a six-layer metal-dielectric film stack. Good angle insensitivity up to 50° for P- and S-polarizations is demonstrated experimentally with the proposed structure on a glass slab. The average absorption of the coated quartz tube reaches as high as 99% for all curving areas on the inner and outer sides, while the nonuniformity is confined to 1.5% for the axial and circumferential directions. This presented approach has enormous potential in the fields of optical detection, optical imaging, optical sensing, and energy management.