Recently, MantiSpectra's mini-sensor was the focus of BNR. We are happy to share it on our site!
The inspiration for a new mini-sensor that fits into your phone and allows you to analyze food and materials was found in the eyes of the mantis shrimp.
This animal, in fact, can see much more with its eyes than we humans can. Instead of our three photoreceptor cells that allow us to process optical light, it has sixteen. This allows the mantis shrimp to also see ultraviolet light and near-infrared light. A sensor that can do this is again very interesting for applications in industry and precision agriculture. There they already have similar sensors, but they are often much too large and expensive.
The mission of this research team from Eindhoven University of Technology was therefore: to develop a tiny sensor that can also be made cheaply, and they succeeded. They see possibilities for the mini-sensor in the medical sector, where it can measure for example the proportions of a medicine, but also in agriculture, where it can check whether fruit and vegetables are already ripe. Eventually it could even be incorporated into smartphones. Then we can simply go home and measure, for example, whether our food is still good in the fridge. That would also prevent a lot of food waste. In this audio you will hear researcher Kaylee Hakkel from Eindhoven University of Technology. After her PhD on this research, she will continue working on the sensor in the start-up MantiSpectra. Read more here: New mini sensor makes the invisible visible.
