Any gamer and military movie enthusiast will tell you that few things compare to the thrill of being able to see through a pair of goggles at night in the pursuit of the enemy. Since the concept of these visual devices were established in the 60s people have been dreaming about the reality of being able to do this in their daily lives.
The Problem With the Idea
Even though many different sectors such as security and emergency services have now added these devices to their arsenal, there is still a ways to go before Joe Public will be able to use them at night.
Reason being that this wearable tech is still in its infancy phase. With these teething problems consumers are currently faced with the prospect of donning a device that is heavy, very bulky to wear on your head and over your eyes, it is only able to work in cooler temperatures, and is even known to disrupt normal vision.
The Solution to The Problem
Enter the metasurfaces, otherwise known as nanocrystals! Manufacturers and designers are now aiming to utilize these ultra-light and ultra-thin components as an all-optical alternative to the current material being used.
The beauty of nanocrystals is that they are dynamic enough to be manipulated and tweaked to optimize light frequency.
The Future of Night Vision
The idea is to produce and commercialize the technology for agriculture and every day use beyond just night vision. This includes the capability of detecting food quality issues using a range of remote sensing methods.
Making use of the metasurfaces or nanocrystals if you will, will provide a solid platform that will bring us that much closer to making holographic displays, and even faster light-based wifi become a reality.
Think about all of the possibilities in aiding law enforcement officers to find a criminal or detect a house full of victims of human trafficking and what that can mean for us. Another exciting way in which this tech can be used is for hunting purposes and game counting at night!
Image by Lynn Greyling via Public Domain Pictures.net
Article Source: The Conversation
