New ‘Superlens’ Goes Beyond What Microscopes See

A new “superlens” has enabled researchers to spot microorganisms that are too small for microscopes to see.

The superlens is made up of millions of titanium dioxide nanobeads. The beads, which are only about 15 nanometers wide, will be applied to the object the researcher wants to view. The same nanobeads are often used in sunscreen products and white paint, and are capable of magnifying an object five times the magnification of a regular microscope.

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We could use the superlens to see toxins.

CrazyNeutrino said:

New ‘Superlens’ Goes Beyond What Microscopes See

A new “superlens” has enabled researchers to spot microorganisms that are too small for microscopes to see.

The superlens is made up of millions of titanium dioxide nanobeads. The beads, which are only about 15 nanometers wide, will be applied to the object the researcher wants to view. The same nanobeads are often used in sunscreen products and white paint, and are capable of magnifying an object five times the magnification of a regular microscope.

more…

> “capable of magnifying an object five times the magnification of a regular microscope … Each sphere bends the light to a high magnitude and splits the light beam, creating millions of individual beams of light. It is these tiny light beams which enable us to view previously unseen detail.”

That actually makes sense. It’s not quite in the category of “I should have thought of that”, but if they try it and it works then it has good possibilities.