back to article Boffins build nanowire lasers from nappy-rash cream

A new breakthrough in zinc oxide–based semiconductor nanowire lasers may support applications that range from killing viruses to stuffing more stuff on a DVD. "People in the zinc oxide research community throughout the world have been trying hard to achieve this for the past decade," the leader of the research team, Jianlin …

COMMENTS

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  1. Terry Kiely
    Megaphone

    Gotta be said

    Well!!!

    Shine a light!

  2. Eddy Ito
    Coat

    All they're missing

    are really tiny sharks to mount the lasers to.

    1. SadBloke
      Happy

      Goldfish

      This could be the chance for the humble goldfish to take it's rightful place as the arch villain's most terrifying weapon

      1. Tom Maddox Silver badge
        Happy

        Heck with that

        Laser-bearing piranha!

  3. frank ly
    Pint

    An outreach programme is needed

    "change its function from a bad cell to a good cell."

    They need to go out and have a few beers with the international cellular pathology research community, to expand their vocabulary in this area.

  4. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    No moving parts?

    Since when did other types of laser have moving parts??? Maybe the author is suffering from Googleitis and, having found articles relating to laser printers vs. LED printers, thought this was in some way related.

    1. Peter Gathercole Silver badge

      Moving parts misnomer

      I think that what was meant was "discrete components" rather than moving parts.

      If you go back to the '60s, a laser was made up of several components, including an exciter, a lasing element, and a collimator. They tended to be about the same size as brick, very power inefficient, and cost thousands of pounds.

      They also had quite short operational lifetimes.

      You can still buy lasers like this, but they are mainly used for high power applications.

      Solid state lasers changed all of this. We would not have CD/DVD/BlueRay, optical communications, laser pointers, or a whole raft of gadgets and toys if they had not been invented.

      Not bad for a "solution looking for a problem to solve".

  5. Some Beggar
    Thumb Down

    "Pardon our provincialism"

    Why should we? You work for a techie news site.

  6. Nigel 11
    Joke

    News?

    "existence of a zinc oxide research community was news to us"

    Shouldn't have been. "Where would we be without Zinc Oxide?" Kentucky Fried Movie - remember?

  7. Alfie
    Coat

    title

    Never mind dogfish or goldfish - Midges with tiny frikking laser beams!

    Thousands of them!

    Mwahahahahahahaha!

  8. SadBloke
    Thumb Up

    Genius

    You sir are a genius, I take my hat off to you

  9. Stratman

    title

    "People in the zinc oxide research community "

    Those long winter nights must fly by ..........

  10. Charlie van Becelaere

    Water Soluble?

    One has to ask, will this spreadable, high SPF lasing cream wash off the sharks and goldfish (or even frogs, one might hazard), or will it be water resistant?

    Should it not resist solution, clearly midges and other flying creatures would be better prospects. Better still: "Ignore my laser vole army at your peril!"

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