High spatial resolution tactile sensing imager using optical exceptional point structures

使用光学异常点结构的高空间分辨率触觉传感成像仪

• 批准号: 1811393
• 负责人: Liang Feng
• 金额: $ 12.92万
• 依托单位: University of Pennsylvania
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2017
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2017-09-01 至 2019-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1811393&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: spatial; resolution; tactile; sensing; imager; spatial; resolution; tactile; sensing; imager

Title: High Spatial Resolution Tactile Sensing Imager Using Optical Exceptional Point StructuresNon-technical description:Tactile sensors have been widely used in touch screens of smart phones to respond to touching force. Such force sensing, monitoring, and mapping are of great interest in smart system-driven healthcare, robotics and military applications. A variety of electronic and optical tactile sensors have been developed to approach the desirable tactile sensing imager with high spatial resolution and great flexibility. However, the major drawback of the state-of-the-art tactile sensors is low spatial resolutions due to their fundamental limitations on the sensor pixel size on the order of sub-centimeter/millimeter. In this work, the investigators will leverage recent advances in quantum-inspired photonics to develop a high spatial resolution tactile sensing system with highly scalable sensor pixels that can monitor strain response at a microscale. Its integration with smart phones can create a compact and portable tactile sensor platform overcoming barriers in low spatial resolution, high cost, and high instrumental complexity of the state-of-the-art tactile sensors. This research is closely integrated with the existing educational activities, providing both undergraduate and graduate students with the opportunity to participate in cutting-edge science and technology in an innovative way. The investigators also provide educational outreach activities to promote the interests and participations of K-12 students and broaden the participations from underrepresented groups. Technical description: The primary focus of this research project is to develop novel planar optical systems with optical exceptional points and arrange them on a flexible plastic platform in a chessboard configuration for high spatial resolution tactile sensing and imaging. The optical exceptional point structures, due to their planar nature, can support highly scalable fabrication using the widely used photolithography technique with spatial resolution down to even the microscale in a large area. Based upon a flexible plastic platform, this microscale tactile sensing imager can not only perform high-throughput real-time microscopic strain detection, but also enable simultaneous strain and temperature measurement with a microscopic resolution. The tactile sensor platform can be further integrated with portable electronic devices (e.g. hand-held smart phones), which would create a compact and portable tactile sensor imager platform for real-time detection in microbiology and healthcare, for example, the detection of mechanical properties of biomolecules. The principal investigators have highly complementary expertise in optics theory, advanced micro/nanofabrication technology, and device integration to design and fabricate the unique portable high spatial resolution tactile sensing platform based on novel optical exceptional point structures. The realized tactile sensing systems are expected to represent an important technological breakthrough in strain sensing, mapping and monitoring at a microscale with sensitivities orders of magnitude better than the state-of-the-art tactile sensors.

标题：使用光学特殊点结构的高空间分辨率触觉传感成像仪不技术描述：触觉传感器已被广泛用于智能手机的触摸屏中，以响应接触力。这种力传感，监视和映射对智能系统驱动的医疗保健，机器人技术和军事应用非常有意义。已经开发了各种电子和光学触觉传感器，以接近具有高空间分辨率和良好灵活性的理想触觉传感成像仪。但是，最先进的触觉传感器的主要缺点是空间分辨率低，因为它们对次级/毫米的传感器像素大小的基本限制。在这项工作中，研究人员将利用量子启发的光子学的最新进展来开发具有高度可扩展的传感器像素的高空间分辨率触觉传感系统，该系统可以在微观上监测菌株响应。它与智能手机的集成可以创建一个紧凑而便携式的触觉传感器平台，以低空间分辨率，高成本和最先进的触觉传感器的高器械复杂性来克服障碍物。这项研究与现有的教育活动紧密融合，为本科和研究生提供了以创新的方式参与尖端科学和技术的机会。调查人员还提供教育外展活动，以促进K-12学生的利益和参与，并扩大代表性不足的团体的参与。技术描述：该研究项目的主要重点是开发具有光学特殊点的新型平面光学系统，并将其安排在棋盘配置的灵活塑料平台上，以进行高空间分辨率触觉感应和成像。光学特殊点结构由于其平面性质，可以使用广泛使用的光刻技术来支持高度可扩展的制造，并在大面积的空间分辨率上降低到微观的空间分辨率。基于灵活的塑料平台，此显微镜触觉传感成像仪不仅可以执行高通量实时微观应变检测，而且还可以通过微分辨率同时进行应变和温度测量。触觉传感器平台可以与便携式电子设备（例如手持智能手机）进一步集成，该设备将创建一个紧凑而便携式的触觉传感器成像仪平台，用于微生物和医疗保健中的实时检测，例如，检测生物分子的机械性能。首席研究人员在光学理论，高级微/纳米型技术和设备集成方面具有高度互补的专业知识，以设计和制造基于新颖的光学特殊点结构的独特便携式高空间分辨率传感平台。预计实现的触觉传感系统将代表与最先进的触觉传感器更好的敏感性数量级的应变感应，映射和监测的重要技术突破。