A new chip developed by MIT researchers could make infrared cameras smaller, smarter, and more versatile by allowing them to adjust how they capture infrared light without using moving parts. The technology could improve thermal imaging, gas leak detection, pollution monitoring, and future optical computing systems.
The device acts as a programmable infrared lens built on a semiconductor chip. Unlike conventional infrared systems that rely on bulky mechanical components to change focus, the new design controls light electronically at the level of individual microscopic pixels.
Each pixel can independently change how it interacts with incoming mid-infrared light. This allows the lens to dynamically adjust its optical properties, helping cameras collect different types of information from the same scene.
The researchers built a laboratory-scale prototype using manufacturing processes already common in semiconductor chip fabrication, suggesting the design could eventually be produced at industrial scale.
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