(Press-News.org)
Professor L. Jay Guo’s group from the University of Michigan published a comprehensive review titled “30 years of nanoimprint: development, momentum and prospects” in the inaugural issue of Opto-Electronic Technology, systematically summarizing key developments and future trends in NIL, with a special focus on industry advancements in nano-Si device manufacturing and nanophotonics.
The review elaborates extensively on two main NIL methods: thermal NIL (T-NIL) and UV NIL (UV-NIL), examining different types of molds, photoresists, and imprint techniques in detail (Fig. 1). For instance, plate-to-plate NIL can pattern large substrates but faces challenges in precision, high defect rates, and substantial force requirements; step-and-repeat NIL, using smaller molds repeatedly, significantly enhances precision and reduces defects; roller-based NIL offers continuous printing, greatly improving throughput but faces constraints such as curved mold fabrication, resist layer control, and demolding risks (Fig. 2). Additionally, the paper addresses core challenges in NIL, including residual layer thickness control, defect density management, and precision alignment.
Significant breakthroughs of NIL in mass manufacturing are also discussed, covering sectors like semiconductor production, flat optics, wafer-level optics, and biomedical applications. Canon's launch of the FPA-1200NZ2C, the industry's first semiconductor-grade NIL equipment, showcases high resolution, low defects, and exceptional productivity. Metalenses, a successful NIL product in flat optics, are being integrated into smartphone cameras, automotive lidar, and augmented reality (AR) glasses.
In academia, NIL research is becoming increasingly diversified and in-depth, involving high-quality optical device fabrication, precise molecular orientation control in semi-crystalline polymers, strain engineering for property tuning, and exploring emerging NIL technologies like polymer fiber imprinting, laser-assisted imprinting, ultrasonic NIL, and electrochemical imprinting (Fig. 3). These advances significantly expand NIL's applicability, paving the way for future innovations in electronics, biosensors, flexible electronics, and wearable devices.
With increasing demands for nanomanufacturing, the industrialization of NIL will inevitably accelerate. Although challenges such as defect management and alignment precision persist, ongoing process optimizations and cross-disciplinary collaborations promise to propel NIL into a new era of high-precision manufacturing.
About the Research Group:
Professor L. Jay Guo is the Emmett Leith Collegiate Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the University of Michigan, and a Fellow of both IEEE and Optica. He has long been committed to interdisciplinary frontier research. His team focuses on the development of high-resolution lithography and nanoimprinting processes, which extend to the core areas of photonic sensors and photoacoustic sensing devices, organic and hybrid photovoltaic detectors, flexible transparent conductors, and nanostructured colors, with metasurface inverse design technology at the forefront of the international field. Leveraging cross-disciplinary expertise, the team has achieved breakthroughs in micro/nano-optical devices and semiconductor manufacturing processes The team has successfully incubated two science and technology enterprises focusing on the industrialization of flexible conductors and structural colors. With 295+ peer-reviewed publications (over 35,000 citations, H-index 93), Professor Guo serves as co-editor-in-chief of Micro and Nano Manufacturing and Editor-in-Chief of Optics and Photonics Research, and associate editor of the IEEE Journal of Photovoltaics.
Read the full article here: https://www.oejournal.org/oet/article/doi/10.29026/oet.2025.250001
END
The research group of Prof. Din Ping Tsai from City University of Hong Kong was invited to publish a review article titled “Progress in Metalenses: From Single to Array” in the first issue of Opto-Electronic Technology in 2025. The article provides a structured overview of recent developments in metalenses, with a focus on the gradual transition from single-device optimization to system-level integration based on increasing structural complexity.
The article first reviews the long-standing challenges in metalens research, such as broadening the achromatic bandwidth and increasing the aperture size, and highlights representative studies and key breakthroughs in these areas. In ...
A new dataset, the Extensible Building Damage (EBD) dataset, offers significant improvements in disaster response mapping by combining satellite imagery and deep learning techniques. This dataset, covering 12 natural disasters, uses semi-supervised fine-tuning (SS-FT) to reduce the time and effort traditionally required for manual damage labeling, speeding up disaster recovery efforts globally.
Building damage assessments (BDA) are crucial for post-disaster recovery, as they help in identifying areas most in need of urgent assistance. However, current BDA methods suffer from slow dataset development, largely ...
Space-based solar panels could enable solar power to be harvested continuously instead of only when sunlight reaches Earth, reducing Europe’s need for Earth-based wind and solar by 80%, finds a study publishing August 21 in the Cell Press journal Joule. Using energy models, researchers estimate that in 2050, space-based solar power could cut the total costs of Europe’s total grid system by 7%–15%. However, these numbers hinge upon the rapid development of two NASA-designed technologies in order to meet Europe’s goal to achieve net-zero by 2050.
“In space, you potentially have the ability to position solar panels to always face ...
A new study led by Mass General Brigham researchers reveals that ambient documentation technologies – generative artificial intelligence scribes that record patient visits and draft clinical notes for physician review before incorporating into electronic health records – led to significant reductions in physician burnout. The findings, published in JAMA Network Open, draw on surveys of more than 1,400 physicians and advanced practice providers at both Mass General Brigham based and Atlanta’s ...
Space-based solar power has the potential to reduce Europe’s need for land-based renewable energy by up to 80% - a potential game-changer for reaching net-zero by 2050.
For the first time, researchers from King’s College London have assessed the possible impact that generating solar energy in space could have for Europe. They found it could cut energy battery storage needs by more than two-thirds.
The study, published in Joule, analysed the potential of a design by NASA for solar generation, ...
For much of the 20th century it was thought that the adult brain was incapable of regeneration. This view has since shifted dramatically and neurogenesis – the birth of new neurons – is now a widely accepted phenomenon in the adult brain, offering promising avenues for treating many neurological conditions. One of the main challenges in the field has been identifying neural stem and progenitor cells (NPCs) responsible for generating these new neurons. NPCs are rare, diverse and difficult to isolate from other brain cells due to overlapping molecular signatures. As a result, understanding their biology – and particularly their role in human brain disorders – ...
About The Study: This retrospective cohort study found that taking glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RAs) was associated with a reduced overall risk of cancer, including lower risks of endometrial, ovarian, and meningioma cancers, among patients with obesity or overweight. However, taking GLP-1RAs may be associated with an increased risk of kidney cancer, highlighting the need for longer-term follow-up to clarify the underlying mechanisms and clinical implications of these findings.
Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, ...
About The Study: In this secondary analysis of a randomized clinical trial, a telephone-based weight loss intervention induced significant weight loss in patients with breast cancer with overweight and obesity across demographic and treatment factors. Further follow-up of the Breast Cancer Weight Loss trial will evaluate whether the weight loss intervention improves disease outcomes.
Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Jennifer A. Ligibel, MD, email jennifer_ligibel@dfci.harvard.edu.
To access the embargoed ...
Researchers developed the first genome-wide CRISPR screening tool for primary human natural killer (NK) cells
Study revealed critical regulators of NK cell activity that can be targeted to improve chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) NK cell therapies
Findings open new avenues for developing more effective CAR NK cell therapies for many cancers
HOUSTON, AUGUST 21, 2025 ― Natural killer (NK) cells became markedly better at killing cancer cells after scientists removed key gene targets identified through a new genome-wide CRISPR screening tool, according to new research from The University of Texas MD Anderson ...
A recent study published in Current Pharmaceutical Analysis introduces a robust and validated reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) method for the analysis of orlistat, a widely used anti-obesity drug. The method, developed by researchers from KIET School of Pharmacy in India, ensures accurate quantification and is fully compliant with International Council for Harmonisation (ICH) guidelines.
The research team, led by Kandasamy Nagarajan, optimized the chromatographic conditions to achieve high sensitivity and precision. "Our method uses an XBridge C8 column and acetonitrile as the mobile phase, providing sharp peaks ...
