Metamaterial Lets Light-Sheet Microscopes See in Superresolution

A hyperbolic metamaterial developed at the University of California, San Diego enables ordinary light-sheet microscopes to observe subcellular structures — in other words, enabling an ordinary light microscope to see in superresolution. The material, made up of nanometers-thin alternating layers of silver and silica glass, shortens the wavelength of light as the sample is illuminated, which allows the microscope to see beyond the diffraction limit. In the application, the light-shrinking material converts low-resolution light to high-resolution light, said Zhaowei Liu, a professor of electrical and computer engineering at UC San Diego. “It’s very simple and easy to use. Just place a sample on the material, then put...