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A team of UWA scientists who are developing colour vision for enhanced infrared sensing for soldiers has won one of the nation's most prestigious science awards.

The scientists' work in infrared imaging systems will provide dramatically improved threat and target recognition, at longer distances and with higher reliability than with current systems, making it ideal for military and combat applications.

UWA Vice-Chancellor Professor Alan Robson said the Eureka Prize was recognition of the revolutionary research of the team in microspectrometer sensing technology.

"This technology will be fundamental to Australia's defence capability and is evidence of the innovative technology being developed at our University," Professor Robson said.

"It will undoubtedly save lives and it will have broader application to biomedical imaging, agriculture and food science, and other areas.

"These UWA researchers are world leaders in the combination of micro-electromechanical imaging and infrared imaging technologies."

UWA's Microelectronics Research Group, led by Professor Lorenzo Faraone, developed a filter that enables the creation of the equivalence of colour images in the infrared.  The filter allows scanning of smaller areas, requiring less data to generate images and improving real-time use of infrared.  The new technology will be lightweight, robust, compact, fast, accurate and inexpensive.

The group was last night awarded the inaugural Defence Science and Technology Organisation Eureka Prize for Outstanding Science in Support of Defence or National Security.  It includes Professor Faraone, Professor John Dell, Professor Charles Musca, Dr Jarek Antoszewski and Dr Adrian Keating and Dr Kevin Winchester of MRX Technologies.

Media references

Professor Alan Robson  (+61 8)  6488 2809
Janine MacDonald (UWA Public Affairs)  (+61 8)  6488 5563  /  (+61 4) 32 637 716