US Patent US20110273707 A1, David Labrecque, UMaine Chemistry Dept., davidlab@maine.edu, 581-1195, PhysicsGuy.Org The University of Maine has received a full patent on a new type of optical component invented by David Labrecque called a ring diffraction grating. A ring grating is a bowl-shaped diffraction grating that diffracts and concentrates light into spectral rings for analysis.