Night Vision Technology Contact Lenses

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Night vision technology has been around for a while, but it is only really used by professionals.  Night vision is the ability to see in low light conditions. Whether by biological or technological means. The most effective night vision technology works by capturing the infrared portion of the light spectrum; this is the part that is emitted as heat by objects, instead of reflected as light. This technology makes it possible to see light that is gradual to our eyes, and also to see heat that radiates from the bodies of people and animals in the dark.  Humans have poor night vision compared to many animals, in part because the human eye lacks a tapetum lucidum.

The assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering at the university, Dr. Zhaohui Zhong, said in a written statement “We can make the entire design super-thin,” small enough that “It can be stacked on a contact lens or integrated with a cell phone,” according to the Huffington Post.

  

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The engineering researchers of University of Michigan, Zhaohui Zong and Ted Norris have developed a device that can integrate infrared light sensors with contact lenses, wearable devices, and cell phones.

It’s all thanks to graphene, According to Escapist Magazine. It is one single layer of carbon atoms. For any kind of graphene optical device to work, it has to get a strong signal from its graphene detector. Graphene can be used with a sensor to capture visible and infrared light, and it’s so small that it could be integrated into the contact lenses. On March 16 the journal Nature Nanotechnology published a paper describing the research.

Zhaohui Zong says, “If we integrate it with a contact lens or other wearable electronics, it expands your vision. It provides you another way of interacting with your environment.” Wearable night-vision contacts are just one possible application of the new technology.

Image credit: www.kitup.military.com