Stereolithography uses light to fabricate objects in layers via chemical reactions

Objects can be 3D printed with light by projecting 2D computerized tomography (CT) scans onto rotating cylinders of resin, which solidify upon exposure.

Objects can be 3D printed with light by projecting 2D computerized tomography (CT) scans onto rotating cylinders of resin, which solidify upon exposure.

Photolithography etches circuit components into a semiconductor wafer

A high-energy laser is fired at molten tin droplets, turning them into plasma that releases the ultraviolet light needed to burn the wafer's photoresist layer. A mask controls what parts of the wafer are etched for subsequent chemical processing.

Chip-based 3D printers can be pocket-sized and involve no moving parts

Researchers have demonstrated a proof-of-concept version of a chip-based 3D printer that emits visible light onto light-sensitive resin to construct solid shapes. The technology may provide a portable, low-cost solution for future, small-scale fabrication needs.

Holograms are produced by shining light through recordings of interference patterns

When one half of a split laser beam that was reflected off the surface of an object recombines with its other, unreflected half, the two produce an interference pattern that becomes etched onto holographic film. When light shines through the back of the film, it reacts with the pattern to create the reflected light, projecting the original object.

View a timeline of 3D printing technology through 2019

The first working 3D printing device was invented in 1983 and utilized stereolithography, a process in which a laser triggers a chemical reaction that hardens liquid resin. Powder-based laser sintering technology was patented in 1987, with metal-based powders first being used for 3D printing in 1997.

Additive manufacturing consists of seven different process categories

Although 3D printing has become synonymous with the term, objects can be fabricated without filaments of hot plastic or light-sensitive powders. For example, during sheet lamination, ultrasonic waves—high-frequency vibrations—can join metal sheets by creating molecular bonds through friction.

Lichtenberg figures capture lightning-like patterns within insulators

When high-energy electrons from particle accelerators are fired into materials like acrylic, they form a charged plane before discharging into scarred patterns within the material. By evenly charging a cylindrical bottle through rotation during the irradiation process, a 3D figure of lightning in a bottle can be created.

Watch the iterative process of successfully printing a slice of vegan cheesecake

3D printing food requires integrating ingredients with a variety of properties, which may not all resist the physical stress of stacking. This means successful 3D printing of food may require rethinking how ingredients are layered and modifying ratios of each, potentially sacrificing taste for structural integrity.

How to make LSD

Lysergic acid diethylamide, often shortened to LSD, comes from ergot, a parasitic fungus that can be found in grains. Chemists rearrange the fungus' chemical structure or the structure of an ergot derivative through complex chemical reactions, transforming it into the hallucinogenic bicycle-shaped LSD crystal. Due to the partially synthetic drug's criminalization, many of the details of modern LSD crafting honed by "underground chemists" are kept secret.

How chefs suspend liquid in edible pearls resembling caviar to introduce a new texture to fluids

Through spherification, drops of a solution of sodium alginate and a flavored liquid are placed in a calcium lactate solution, which forms a chemical skin around them. This is because calcium replaces the sodium in the alginate chains, forming a gel around each drop's liquid interior.

How artificial photosynthesis can help make plastics and fuels using sunlight

These systems link a molecular light absorber to a catalyst that can synthesize fuels—such as ethanol—and ethylene, a precursor to plastics, in a carbon-neutral manner. Because these byproducts have greater energy concentrations than the carbohydrates produced by photosynthetic organisms, research is ongoing to engineer the necessary catalysts.

Visualization of printing synthetic DNA

Ever wonder how synthetic DNA is made? Discover how GenScript uses innovative technology to synthesize precise, high-quality DNA at a larger scale than ever before.

Massive 3D printers have been used to build homes by stacking layers of 'concrete toothpaste,' a fire-resistant material that effectively insulates against outside noise.

Laser skin treatments can promote the production of collagen

Skin resurfacing vaporizes the top layer of skin to reveal healthier, new skin, while collagen can give the skin structure and elasticity. Such procedures treat scars and burns, but may leave light spots on the skin.

Shrink-wrap is created through a treatment of plastic with high-speed electrons

Atoms in polyethylene are bonded in long strings called polymer chains, which can be destabilized by removing hydrogen atoms via collisions with electrons. These gaps serve as bonding sites for neighboring chains to bond and undergo cross-linking, strengthening the plastic while making it more malleable.

Glass can be endlessly recycled without losing quality

Sand from specialized mines is thoroughly cleaned and melted at more than 1,600 degrees Celsius before being poured onto liquid tin and evenly spread out to form glass sheets. Some factories are designed to reprocess 100% of glass scraps created when cutting glass with diamond-tipped blades or lasers.

See top-down views of Washington state's geology with cutting-edge lidar

Lidar is a revolutionary tool that creates visual models of landscapes using rapid light pulse measurements. Geologists in Washington state have deployed the technology to study the state's fault lines, landslides, tsunami inundation zones, and much more.

Modern landfills use layered liners, leachate systems, and gas monitors to safely contain waste

Today, landfill engineering is far more complex than a hole in the ground, which was largely the system cities used less than a century ago. This video explains how it actually works.

Money laundering is a three-step process: placement, layering, and integration

"Placement" occurs when dirty money is introduced into the financial system. Then "layering" happens when the money is moved around to disguise where it actually came from. Finally, the money is placed in other assets or investments in a step called integration.

Andy Warhol’s famous works employed a 'machine-like' technique

Warhol’s silk-screen printing style—rough, noticeably imperfect, and painterly—was the result of a refined technique in service of a grainy tabloid aesthetic.

'Artificial embryos': The hidden steps in forming a spine

Somitogenesis is the process by which segmented body structures like vertebrae form in embryos. While the process is well understood in animals like mice or zebrafish it is difficult to study in humans. But now, researchers have created a model of somitogenesis, using pluripotent stem cells, called an axioloid.

Gamma Knife surgery uses incredibly precise, high-energy light to treat patients

A form of brain stereotactic radiosurgery, this non-invasive technology concentrates beams of light onto specific tumors to damage the DNA of malignant cells, killing them. The gamma rays used are in the same part of the electromagnetic spectrum as those produced in nuclear reactions, cosmic ray collisions, and radioactive decay.

Watch a time-lapse of hard coral growth, which forms coral reefs

Over several weeks in an aquarium, these staghorn coral polyps grew and produced new polyps as they deposited calcium carbonate, which forms the basis of coral reefs. At the 0:28 mark, you can see coral growth healing a damaged branch.

Corrective vision technologies rely on the bending of light waves

When focusing on an object, muscles change the shape of the lens, which refracts incoming light such that it focuses at the retina. If the cornea is unable to bend light correctly, lenses or contact lenses can provide supplemental refraction to ensure a focused image is produced.

Concentrated solar power systems focus sunlight in order to boil water

These systems use thousands of mirrors to reflect sunlight onto a central tower storing molten salt or multiple receivers housing heat transfer fluid that absorbs the radiation. The material is pumped through water to boil it, creating steam that drives a generator.

The weakest form of light that is dangerous to humans is ultraviolet

Unlike radio waves, microwave, infrared, and visible light, UV light can produce chemical changes, such as curing adhesives and resins, causing substances to fluoresce, and destroying the genetic material of microorganisms. This makes UV light useful for sterilization, forensics, and quickly drying nail polish.

Sony set the standard for cylinder-shaped batteries when it repurposed manufacturing equipment used to make rolls of magnetic recording tape.

Visualize how CRISPR-Cas9—a type of immune system used by single-celled organisms to attack invasive viruses—targets and makes precise changes to a gene's DNA.

Massive blooms of microscopic plankton called dinoflagellates produce the neon blue light seen in glowing tides.

Budweiser stores yeast derived from the original 1800s strain in a secret bunker, which only the Head of Yeast Management can access—not even the CEO

Watch how deep-sea mining equipment collects and processes polymetallic nodules—metal-rich, potato-shaped rocks—from the ocean floor and creates environmentally damaging plumes of sediments.

Watch this video that uses Lego bricks to explain how venture capital works.

Tattoos remain visible on your skin thanks to immune cells called macrophages

Dirty lightning is a thunderstorm created from friction between rising and falling flows of ash and smoke during volcanic eruptions.

The Great Salt Lake's distinct dual coloration results from high-salinity organisms that only live in the northern portion and produce a purple protein.

See images of medical cases of firework injuries shared on this 'Instagram for doctors.' (Warning: Graphic content)

The animatronic shark from Steven Spielberg's 'Jaws,' the first modern blockbuster, was a complex underwater apparatus called 'Bruce.'

Read a deep dive on the 'all-purpose healing' peptide BPC-157.

The name 'Silicon Valley' arose from the founding of Shockley Semiconductor Laboratory in Fairchild Semiconductor in 1956-57, founded near Stanford University in Palo Alto

Some coin denominations have ridges etched on their sides, partly to prevent counterfeiting, in a practice called 'reeding.'

An initial public offering or 'IPO' is the process of a private company becoming public by putting shares of the company on the stock market for purchase.

Dorothy's famous entrance into Oz in 'The Wizard of Oz' relied on analog tricks, including a body double and sepia-toned paint, as much as it did on technology

Corals are themselves not coral reefs—the term refers to the tiny marine invertebrates that build the rigid reef.

Fast-casual restaurant Chili's is experiencing a resurgence, with its parent company recently reporting a nearly 32% increase in sales, thanks to passionate Gen Z fans on TikTok.

Most of the observable universe's volume consists of voids and supervoids—enormous regions of space with little to no galaxies, stars, or light.

Scientists can determine Earth's past climate conditions by analyzing air trapped in microscopic bubbles within ice cores—columns of compressed snow layers that build up over hundreds of thousands of years.

To reduce wrinkles in clothing, research recommends gentle wash cycles with more water and tumble drying with smaller loads and longer times.

Gerrymandering works through two techniques: cracking opposing voters across districts to dilute their power, and packing them into a few to waste their votes in lopsided majorities.

In recent years a child anxiety expert has created and tested a novel phobia and anxiety treatment approach for children, focused on changing how parents respond to the fears.