The Problem:
Ultra high-speed cameras are used in research and development in areas such as defense, automotive, materials testing, fluid dynamics, and combustion. The ability to capture an event is limited by the speed, resolution, and cost of cameras currently on the market.
The Solution:
Researchers at the University of Tennessee have developed a cost-effective approach to capture images at gigahertz speeds with greater spatial resolution and an extended field of view. The apparatus leverages multiplexed structured detection, absent the use of lasers. The light from the image is split and offset by a mirror, recombined, and imaged by a camera. The split modulations can be separated, restored, and stitched together using basic image analysis software. The apparatus can be used as an add-on to existing cameras or integrated with a camera in a single unit.
Benefits:
The Inventor:
Dr. Zhili Zhang is an associate professor in the Department of Mechanical, Aerospace, and Biomedical Engineering at UT. He received his PhD in mechanical and aerospace engineering from Princeton University in 2008, and his research interests include combustion and plasma diagnostics and nanoenergetics.