Researchers at the University of Michigan have refined mobile, infrared technology (for seeing in the dark, among other things) so it can work at room temperature, Product Design and Development reported.

Devices using older technology are bulkier and require special cooling devices to operate. The material designed by Zhaohui Zhong, assistant professor of electrical engineer and computer science at Michigan, overcomes that constraint by manipulating graphene -- a chemical compound able to sense the entire infrared spectrum.

Previously, graphene was thought too thin and not powerful enough to work.

"The challenge for the current generation of graphene-based detectors is that their sensitivity is typically very poor," Zhong told PDD. "It's a hundred to a thousand times lower than what a commercial device would require."

Zhong and researchers used graphene in new ways to create material able to project infrared by a simpler process using less substance.

"Our work pioneered a new way to detect light," he said. "We envision that people will be able to adopt this same mechanism in other material and device platforms."

Though Zhong and his fellow researchers haven't integrated their material into any specific devices, such as contact lenses or cell phones, they're confident it can be done.

"If we integrate it with a contact lens or other wearable electronics, it expands your vision," Zhong said. "It provides you another way of interacting with your environment."

As Product Design and Development pointed out, the technology will likely be used in the military, while its applications among the general public remain to be seen.