Tapping hidden visual information: An all-in-one detector for thousands of colors

It is possible to detect and analyze light with the help of a microscope. The spectrum of light, like the colors in a rainbow, can be measured with a spectrometry. Quality inspection platforms, security sensors, health care systems, environmental monitoring tools, and space telescopes are some of the technologies that would benefit from integrated on-chip spectrometers.

An international research team led by researchers at Aalto University has developed high-sensitivity spectrometers with high wavelength accuracy, highspectral resolution, and broad operation bandwidth. The research was published in the journal Science.

All-in-one device, our single-detector spectrometer. The optoelectronic-lab-on-a-chip is made with artificial intelligence. Our computational spectrometer does not have to have separate designs for light dispersal and light filters. The researcher says that it can achieve a high resolution in a smaller package.

Light intensity can be measured using a device at our fingertips. The device is completely controllable, so it can be scaled up and down. It is possible to integrate it directly into portable devices. He suggests that the next generation of smartphones could have hyperspectral cameras that are better than color cameras.

Computational spectrometers are used in chips and implants. The head of the research team says that conventional spectrometers are bulky because they need optical and mechanical components. There is a growing demand to improve the performance of the instruments. High performance and new functions are important to offer from this point of view.

Professor Hakonen says that "Finland and Aalto have invested in research in the field of lasers." The Academy of Finland's Center of excellence on quantum technology is one example. The success of these collaborative efforts is demonstrated by the new spectrometer. New tools for quantum information processing could be provided with further improvements in resolution and efficiency.

More information: Hoon Hahn Yoon et al, Miniaturized spectrometers with a tunable van der Waals junction, Science (2022). DOI: 10.1126/science.add8544. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.add8544 Journal information: Science