Military Nano Drones Controlled Remotely Behind Enemy Lines, Made Possible By Nanophotonics-Based Rewritable Chips

Military nano drones that are specifically meant for spying expeditions behind enemy lines can now be remotely controlled by engineers. In case the drone is caught and seized, this can help them to avert disclosure of valuable information stored in the device and also prevent unintended disasters. This can be achieved with the help of the newly developed aluminum nanoparticle-based plasmonic surface nanomaterial, which can be used for the development of rewritable chips.

These nanophotonic chips can function like an etch-a-sketch play toy used for child's play. But instead, in this case, the chips will store information in the form of optical components that may be written, erased and rewritten via optical signals.

Optically Controlled Military Nano Drones

The optically re-writable military nano drones can be manufactured using the innovative nanomaterial, which was developed by Yuebing Zheng, a professor in Mechanical Engineering and Material Sciences, Cockrell School of Engineering. The research findings of his group were published in the Nano Letters Journal in November 2016, reports Science Daily. According to Prof. Zheng, "The molecules in this material are very sensitive to light, so we can use a UV light or specific light wavelengths to erase or create optical components."

This technology will help people develop the James Bond-style nanochips that can be written, erased and rewritten by the application of UV or Visible light o specific wavelengths, according to an article recently published in Azo Nano. Additionally, the nanomaterial can be used to design nanophotonic circuits, which can run entirely on light rather than electrical energy. These circuits can be integrated with LED lights that can emit light of the specific wavelengths for reprogramming the circuit.

The nanophotonics-based military nano drones can be sent behind enemy lines without the risk of leaking information. If caught, the the engineers can send a signal to switch on the integrated LED light, which can automatically erase the information and programs saved in it. Further investigation of the nanomaterial is in ongoing, so that the requisite modifications and fine-tuning of the nanomaterial can be done for military and other applications.