Optical manipulation of the magnetic anisotropy is demonstrated for bilayered manganites, La2-2xSr1+2xMn2O7, by means of femtosecond Kerr-rotation measurements. Upon the photoexcitation on the x=0.32 crystal, the magnetization exhibits the precessional motion for about 1 ns, revealing the directional change of the magnetocrystalline anisotropy from the c axis to the ab plane. This change of the...

This paper describes high-resolution autocollimator calibration system in NMIJ. A goniometer system with nano-radian resolution provides precision rotation angles of a mirror attached on the rotation axis and rotation angles read by an autocollimator are compared to the set angles. The rotation angle is detected by a highprecision angle interferometer that observes motions of corner reflectors ...

We present synoptic optical photometry of HD 189733, the chromospherically active parent star of one of the most intensively studied exoplanets. We have significantly extended the timespan of our previously reported observations and refined the estimate of the stellar rotation period by more than an order of magnitude: P = 11.953± 0.009 days. We derive a lower limit on the inclination of the st...

We performed an in vivo three-dimensional analysis of anisotropic changes in the dermal birefringence of mechanically deformed human skin using polarization-sensitive optical coherence tomography (PS-OCT). The papillary-dermal birefringence of the forehead increased significantly when the skin was shrunk parallel to the body axis, and decreased significantly when the skin was shrunk perpendicul...

The enhancement of bendability of flexible nanoelectronics is critically important to realize future portable and wearable nanoelectronics for personal and military purposes. Because there is an enormous variety of materials and structures that are used for flexible nanoelectronic devices, a governing design rule for optimizing the bendability of these nanodevices is required. In this article, ...

Using a conventional BCS – Fermi liquid model we calculate the c-axis optical reflectivity of the layered high temperature cuprate superconductors by obtaining the finite temperature dynamical dielectric function in a microscopic self-consistent gauge invariant formalism. We get good semi-quantitative agreement with all the existing experimental data by using the measured normal state dc resist...

This article presents a new optical, multi-functional, high-resolution 3-axis sensor which serves to navigate and can, for example, replace standard joysticks in medical devices such as electric wheelchairs, surgical robots or medical diagnosis devices. A light source, e.g., a laser diode, is affixed to a movable axis and projects a random geometric shape on an image sensor (CMOS or CCD). The d...

A new method for simultaneously measuring the phase retardation and optic axis of a uniaxial compensation film is demonstrated using an axially-symmetric sheared polymer network liquid crystal (SPNLC). By overlaying a tested compensation film with a calibrated SPNLC cell between crossed polarizers, two dark spots are clearly observed in a CCD image. From the orientation direction and distance o...

We decipher intrinsic three-dimensional shape distributions of molecular clouds, cloud cores, Bok globules, and condensations using recently compiled catalogues of observed axis ratios for these objects mapped in carbon monoxide, ammonia, through optical selection, or in continuum dust emission. We apply statistical techniques to compare assumed intrinsic axis ratio distributions with observed ...

Owing to the dramatic evolution of telescopes as well as optical detectors in the last 20 yrs, we are now able to measure anew the proper motion of the Crab pulsar, after the classical result of Wyckoff and Murray (1977) in a time span 40 times shorter. The proper motion is aligned with the axis of symmetry of the inner Crab nebula and, presumably, with the pulsar spin axis.