December 8 – Researchers from the University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara) have demonstrated a new display technology in a recent study published in the journal Science Robotics: the dynamic images it presents are not only visible but also physically perceptible. The study introduces an ultrathin optoelectronic haptic surface covered with millimeter-scale pixels; when irradiated by short pulses of projected light, these pixels bulge to form tactile bumps that can be felt by touch.
The project originated in 2021 from a simple question posed by UC Santa Barbara Professor Yon Visell: Can light used to render images also generate a mechanical response strong enough to be perceived by human hands? After a year of modeling and multiple failed prototype attempts, Max Linnander, a researcher at the university, successfully developed the first proof-of-concept device at the end of 2022. Driven solely by flashes of light from a small diode laser and containing no embedded electronic components, the device can produce distinct, perceptible tactile pulses when touched.
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It is understood that the complete display architecture described in this study is built on this achievement. Each pixel consists of a thin surface film, a small air cavity beneath it, and a suspended graphite film. When exposed to light, the graphite film absorbs light energy and rapidly converts it into heat, causing the air under the film to expand and push the surface upward by up to one millimeter. This displacement amplitude is sufficient for users to precisely locate individual pixels with their fingertips.
Since the same laser beam provides both energy and pixel addressing, the entire panel requires no internal wiring. A high-speed scanning system can quickly sweep across the pixel array, activating pixels one by one to generate continuous visual and tactile animations.
The research team has currently successfully fabricated an array containing more than 1,500 independently addressable pixels, a significant breakthrough compared to previous haptic displays that struggled to balance pixel density, response speed, and displacement amplitude. Its response time ranges from 2 to 100 milliseconds, sufficient to reproduce smooth contours, shapes, and character patterns. In user tests, participants were able to accurately track moving stimuli, distinguish spatial layouts, and perceive temporal information formed by the sequential activation of pixels.
Researchers note that thanks to the optical addressing scheme, the technology offers excellent scalability. Larger arrays can be driven by compact scanning lasers commonly used in modern projectors. They also envision a range of potential applications, such as automotive human-machine interfaces that simulate physical controls, and electronic texts or diagrams that dynamically reshape under the reader’s palm.
Although still in the prototype stage, this study marks the first time light energy has been directly converted into mechanical deformation with high resolution. The UC Santa Barbara team has thus paved a new path: future haptic displays will behave more like traditional visual displays, presenting information in a format that can be simultaneously observed by the eyes and explored by the fingers.
Post time: Dec-10-2025