Thin film may lead to phone-size cancer detector
University of Michigan chemical engineers developed a thin, stretchable film that may be used for smaller, even phone-sized cancer detectors.
The film produces circularly polarized light that is invisible to the naked eye. This type of light is a key component of a new cancer-detecting technology. The current process uses big, bulky machines to produce the same light.
“More frequent monitoring could enable doctors to catch cancer recurrence earlier, to more effectively monitor the effectiveness of medications and to give patients better peace of mind. This new film may help make that happen,” said Nicholas Kotov, the Joseph B. and Florence V. Cejka Professor of Engineering.
Kotov envisions that the film could be used to make a portable smartphone-sized device that could quickly analyze blood samples. The devices could be used by doctors, or potentially even at home.
“This film is light, flexible and easy to manufacture,” he said. “It creates many new possible applications for circularly polarized light, of which cancer detection is just one.”
A commercially available device is likely several years away. Kotov also envisions the use of circularly polarized light for data transmission and even devices that can bend light around objects, making them partially invisible. U-M is pursuing patent protection for the technology.
The study, “Reconfigurable chiroptical nanocomposites with chirality transfer from the macro- to the nanoscale,” was published online in Nature Materials.
Category: Features, Technology & Devices
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