Scientists in Israel have developed a groundbreaking method to fold glass sheets into microscopic three-dimensional structures directly on a chip, a process they call “photonic origami,” Tel Aviv University announced. The technique, which could pave the way for new generations of data-processing, sensing, and experimental physics devices, allows glass to be shaped into ultra-smooth, high-performance optical components at a scale previously thought unattainable.

“Existing 3D printers produce rough 3D structures that aren’t optically uniform and thus can’t be used for high-performance optics,” said Professor Tal Carmon, who led the research at the School of Electrical Engineering, Fleischman Faculty of Engineering at Tel Aviv University. “Mimicking the way a pine cone’s scales bend outward to release seeds, our laser-induced technique triggers precise bending in ultra-thin glass sheets and can be used to create highly transparent, ultra-smooth 3D microphotonic devices for a variety of applications.”

According to the study, the team’s laser-induced folding process produced glass structures up to 3 millimeters long and just 0.5 microns thick—about 200 times thinner than a human hair. The researchers successfully shaped the glass into helices as well as concave and convex mirrors, achieving surfaces so smooth—less than one nanometer of variation—that light reflected without distortion. The findings were published in the peer-reviewed journal Optica.