--- title: "Scientists Invent Smartphone Chip That Peers Through Barriers With Electromagnetic Waves" description: "A group of scientists have created a chip that can fit into smartphone and \"see\" through barriers using electromagnetic waves." date: "2024-06-22" modified: "2024-06-22" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/smartphone-imaging-chip-waves" categories: - "Science & Energy" tags: - "chips" - "electromagnetic waves" - "Imaging" - "smartphone chip" --- # Scientists Invent Smartphone Chip That Peers Through Barriers With Electromagnetic Waves ![A group of scientists have created a chip that can fit into smartphone and "see" through barriers using electromagnetic waves.]() *\Image: Jaap Arriens / NurPhoto via Getty / Futurism\* For more than 15 years, a group of scientists in Texas have been hard at work creating smaller and smaller devices to "see" through barriers using medium-frequency electromagnetic waves — and now, they seem closer than ever to cracking the code. In an interview with *Futurism,* electrical engineering professor Kenneth O of the University of Texas explained that the tiny new imager chip he made with the help of his research team, which can detect the outlines of items through barriers like cardboard, was the result of repeat advances and breakthroughs in microprocessor technology over the better half of the last two decades. "This is actually similar technology as what they're using at the airport for security inspection," O told us. The chip is similar to the large screening devices that we've all had to [walk through at airport gates]() for the [past 15 years or so]() — though those operate at much lower frequents than this device, which uses electromagnetic frequencies between microwave and infrared, which are invisible to the eye and "considered safe for humans," per the university's [press release](). As a nod to his colleagues in the electrical engineering field, O credited "the whole community" for its "phenomenal progress" in improving the underlying technology behind the imager chip — though of course, it was his team that "happen\[ed\] to be the first to put it all together." As [*New Atlas* recently explained](), the chip is powered by complementary metal-oxide semiconductors (CMOS), an affordable technology used in computer processing and memory chips. While CMOS tech is often used in tandem with lenses to [power smartphone cameras](), in this case the researchers are using it to *detect* objects without actually seeing them. "This technology is like Superman’s X-ray vision," enthused O in the [university's press release]() about the imager. "Of course, we use signals at 200 gigahertz to 400 gigahertz instead of X-rays, which can be harmful." Indeed, the Man of Steel came up multiple times in our discussion with the electrical engineer, who indicated that safety was priority number one when it came to developing this still-experimental technology. For instance, as *New Atlas* noted, the chip's wave-reading capabilities have been deliberately curtailed so that it can only detect objects through barriers from a few centimeters away, assuaging concerns that a thief might try to use it to look through someone's bags or packages. When we asked O whether the imager had been tested on anything living, or perhaps even human skin, he said that it had not — but that's mostly because the water content in human skin tissues would absorb the terahertz waves it uses. This comes as something of a relief, given that the idea of someone using their smartphone to look at your bones or organs without your knowledge is pretty terrifying. And speaking of security, the engineer iterated that rather than seeking swift commercialization, keeping the imager chip's capabilities as hemmed in as possible to make sure it's not used for nefarious purposes is far more important — though he acknowledges it's impossible to entirely prevent inventive bad actors from figuring out their own versions. "Trying to make technologies so that people do not use it in unintended ways, it's a very important aspect of developing technologies," O told *Futurism*. "At the end, you have to do your best. But if somebody really wants to do something... yeah, it's really hard to prevent." While it's good news that this imager technology is, for now, limited to seeing through boxes and more insubstantial mediums like [dust or smoke](), the researcher said that it should be able to see through walls too — though, admittedly, he and his team haven't tried to yet. **More on wave-reading:** *[The Earth May Be Swimming Through Dark Matter, Scientists Say]()* ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()