Smaller, Cheaper, Better Lasers. Affordable HD-DVD players are one potential payoff from a simpler process for making semiconductor lasers.

Anyone thinking of buying an HD-DVD player will confront sticker shock: the gadgets cost around $500. But a new design for semiconductor lasers could ultimately cut costs not just for these players but for any device that uses the ubiquitous components.

By Kate Greene

Full Story: http://www.technologyreview.com/Infotech/18209/