<p>Israeli and German researchers have developed an affordable and portable detection technology to meet everyday security needs using small, radiation-enabled chips that can see through packaging and clothing.<br /><br />Dr Eran Socher of Tel Aviv University’s Faculty of Engineering is reconfiguring existing complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) chips designed for computers and turning them into high frequency circuits. “The existing advanced security technology is massive in size and comes with a massive price tag. Such scanning systems are often developed for selected airports or used by Nasa for space exploration.</p>.<p> Our concept is different. For everyday use, security technology needs to be both small and cheap,” Socher said in a statement. By adding new capabilities to existing CMOS technology, already mass-produced for computers and other mobile devices, the researchers are producing new integrated circuits at an affordable price in a collaboration between teams at TAU and Frankfurt University.<br /><br />“The chip can also produce a more accurate depiction of concealed objects, an advantage over common metal detectors which aren’t very specific or sensitive,” Socher said.<br />The chip, which measures a miniature 0.5 mm by 0.5 mm, newly integrates antennae, giving it the ability to receive and transmit millimetre wave or terahertz radiation.<br /><br />When combined with either mechanical or electronic scanning technology, the resulting radiation can produce an image. Unlike X-ray technology which penetrates the body, the chip is designed to see only through materials such as envelopes, clothing, or luggage, stopping at the human skin.<br /><br />The research has been published in IEEE Microwave and Wireless Components Letters and will be presented at the International Conference on Infrared, Millimetre, and Terahertz Waves in Australia this September. <br /></p>
<p>Israeli and German researchers have developed an affordable and portable detection technology to meet everyday security needs using small, radiation-enabled chips that can see through packaging and clothing.<br /><br />Dr Eran Socher of Tel Aviv University’s Faculty of Engineering is reconfiguring existing complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) chips designed for computers and turning them into high frequency circuits. “The existing advanced security technology is massive in size and comes with a massive price tag. Such scanning systems are often developed for selected airports or used by Nasa for space exploration.</p>.<p> Our concept is different. For everyday use, security technology needs to be both small and cheap,” Socher said in a statement. By adding new capabilities to existing CMOS technology, already mass-produced for computers and other mobile devices, the researchers are producing new integrated circuits at an affordable price in a collaboration between teams at TAU and Frankfurt University.<br /><br />“The chip can also produce a more accurate depiction of concealed objects, an advantage over common metal detectors which aren’t very specific or sensitive,” Socher said.<br />The chip, which measures a miniature 0.5 mm by 0.5 mm, newly integrates antennae, giving it the ability to receive and transmit millimetre wave or terahertz radiation.<br /><br />When combined with either mechanical or electronic scanning technology, the resulting radiation can produce an image. Unlike X-ray technology which penetrates the body, the chip is designed to see only through materials such as envelopes, clothing, or luggage, stopping at the human skin.<br /><br />The research has been published in IEEE Microwave and Wireless Components Letters and will be presented at the International Conference on Infrared, Millimetre, and Terahertz Waves in Australia this September. <br /></p>