A research team led by The Australian National University (ANU) has invented a device that could be developed into ultra-sensitive cameras for security screening that would not require people to queue at airports. The device is made with metasurfaces, which are ultra-compact complex structures that can control the direction of electromagnetic waves to perform highly advanced sensing functions.
“This device can sense the entire environment surrounding it with unprecedented precision – previously, multiple fixed sensors pointing towards different directions would be required to achieve this,” said lead researcher, Dr Liu from the Nonlinear Physics Centre at the ANU Research School of Physics and Engineering.
Dr Liu said the concept could benefit the development of super-sensitive cameras for security systems at airports. “These future cameras could identify hazardous devices or dangerous chemicals in people’s carry-on baggage when they walk through an airport, without needing them to queue up and go through the various procedures that are necessary now,” he said.