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Femtosecond Lasers Used To Color Metals

Posted by kdawson on from the gold-ring-to-match-her-eyes dept.

Maximum Prophet writes "An optics professor and a postgrad have developed a way to use ultra-short pulses of laser light to etch nano features into the surface of metals so that they can absorb or reflect specific wavelengths of light. This is very similar to the way that butterflies get the color in their wings."

6 of 166 comments (clear)

  1. WOW! by JoshEanes · · Score: 5, Funny

    wow, butterflies use high energy lasers to get the color on their wings!?!? now, we have to worry about lasers in the hands of the insects...

  2. Hmm good bye automotive paint?? by moogied · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Perhaps the end to automotive paint?? Just throw clear coat over the chagned metal...

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    So basically, -1 troll/offtopic is really slashdots way of saying "I hate that you thought of something before me."
  3. I, for one by Malevolent+Tester · · Score: 5, Funny

    Welcome our new femtosecond laser wielding butterfly overlords.

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    If you haven't made a developer cry, you've wasted a day.
  4. Oblig. XKCD by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    What a coincidence http://www.xkcd.com/378/

  5. A novel way to mark items for identification. by TheLazySci-FiAuthor · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I wonder if this will work outside the range of visible light: up into ultraviolet or down to infrared wavelengths.

    It might be a novel way to unobtrusively mark equipment or vehicles with permanent serial numbers or some kind of identification method for recognition by, say, machine vision, but which would not be visible to the unaided eye.

    For robots to begin work in our everyday world, I feel that at first they are going to need some special markers around the house and office to help them recognize important objects more easily - this could be a very efficient and elegant way to accomplish just that.

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    Read my Very Short "Stories"
  6. poll by Thornburg · · Score: 5, Funny

    Quick Poll:

    Did the poster and/or editor intentionally make the ambiguous statement about butterflies, knowing that it would lead to a discussion 80% about laser-wielding butterflies, with real article-related content left to battle with the usual jokes/OT garbage/etc for the remaining 20% of comments?

    Possible Answers:

    () Yes, and it's awesome.

    () Yes, and it sucks.

    () No, but it's awesome.

    () No, and it sucks.

    () CowboyNeal forced them to.