A laser can be used to make an optical fibre out of air
Shutterstock / Maryna Stamatova
A doughnut-shaped laser was used to create a 45-metre-long optical fibre out of air, and a pulse of light was then sent through it. The technology could eventually be used to detect radioactive materials from kilometres away.
Tight beams of light, like lasers, can transmit information and energy, but they tend to widen as they travel, which makes them lose both. This is why they are often confined to glass tubes, or optical fibres, when used for communication. …
