IISc Scientists Create Brain-Inspired Camera To Observe Miniscule Particles
Researchers from the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) have demonstrated how an image sensor inspired by the human brain can break boundaries.
The camera is able to go beyond the diffraction limit of light to find miniscule objects like cellular components or nanoparticles that are invisible to most microscopes, TOI reported.
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What can this camera do?
To create this camera, researchers found inspiration in how the human brain processes stuff and how it is structured. Their technique essentially combines machine learning with a neuromorphic camera to better understand objects that may be smaller than 50 nanometres in size, IISc said.
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According to IISc, scientists have struggled to go beyond a microscopic barrier known as diffraction limit. When objects are smaller than 200-300 nanometres, microscopes cannot distinguish between two objects.
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Based on this, most scientists have largely focused on modifying the molecules that are being imaged, or to come up with better techniques. But even then, no scientists have tried to “use the detector itself to try and surpass this detection limit,” said Deepak Nair, associate professor at the Centre for Neuroscience (CNS), IISc, and author of the study.
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The neuromorphic camera used in the study measures 40mm x 60 mm x 25 mm and weighs around 100 grams. It essentially mimics the way the human retina converts light into electrical impulses.
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The neuromorphic camera is similar to how the human retina works. According to TOI, this allows it to “sample” the environment in higher resolution. In turn, this allowed IISc scientists to see the movement of a fluorescent bead moving in a water-based solution.
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Results from the study have been published in Nature Nanotechnology and scientists think it will help in studying processes across various disciplines.
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