Scientists have moved a step closer to producing electrically-powered plastic laser diodes that could be used in Blu-ray players.
Currently the laser diodes in such consumer optical storage devices are made out of inorganic semiconductors like gallium arsenide, gallium nitride and other semiconductor alloys related to them.
Now, researchers at Imperial College in London have demonstrated a class of plastic semiconductor materials that may allow the low-cost manufacture of electrically-powered plastic laser diodes.
As well as reducing the cost of devices such as Blu-ray players the development could allow plastic laser diodes to operate across a much more substantial wavelength range.