From correcting vision to treating cancer, lasers have a variety of uses inside hospitals and clinics.  As with any application involving a laser, rigorous attention needs to be paid to safety. However, this becomes more difficult when the user isn’t an engineer and may be performing delicate life-saving procedures.  

Solar energy could so easily meet our ever-growing energy demands – if only we could find a way to capture and utilise the sun’s rays efficiently.

Conventional solar panel technology is a first step towards this goal, but the fabrication and installation of such first-generation photovoltaic devices are often difficult, while concerns over the longevity and efficiency for these devices remain a sticking point in the solar energy sector.

Whether it’s to check the quality of a bottle of wine, determine whether an organic apple is really pesticide-free, or even self-diagnose a rash at home, consumer spectrometers could give the general public a range of new capabilities, as well as open up a huge market for spectroscopy.