MIT scientists shrink light-bending devices 2,000 times in a major breakthrough

MIT researchers developed “implosion carving,” a fabrication method that patterns a hydrogel with laser-made vacancies and then shrinks it about 2,000× in volume.

The process preserves intricate 3D features while turning them into nanoscale photonic structures that can manipulate visible light.

The team used it to build complex nanoscale devices and a simple optical digit-classification system.

They say the approach could help make tiny optical components for optical computing, sensing, and biomedical analysis.