19 March 2014

Could "night vision contact lenses" become a reality?


Theoretically, yes.  Researchers at the University of Michigan have created a graphene-based material that detects infrared light.
"We can make the entire design super-thin," said Zhaohui Zhong, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering. "It can be stacked on a contact lens or integrated with a cell phone."  The material worked at room temperature, which is another accomplishment.
More information at Popular Science.  Graphene image from Nokia.

1 comment:

  1. Answer: No.
    the bit about contact lenses is a red herring. The sensors don't upconvert the light to the visible so you won't see it. And the light hitting the contact lens is not an image in itself. Moreover even if you put a lens in from of your eye to form an image on the contact, you could not see it any more than you can "see" the front of your eyeball. So the idea of infrared vision by contacts is rubbish.

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