Soft optics
June 19th, 2009 by rbanks
A Camera from a Sheet of Fiber
“researchers at MIT have integrated a collection of light sensors into polymer fibers, creating a new type of camera. Yoel Fink, a professor of materials sciences and engineering and the lead researcher on the project, notes that a standard camera requires lenses that are usually rigid and heavy. A camera made from fibers, however, could be lightweight, robust, and even foldable. Although Fink admits that the applications aren’t yet well defined, he suggests that such a fiber-based camera could be used in a large foldable telescope or integrated into soldiers’ uniforms.” 
Technology Review
