With the arrival of fifth-generation (5G) wireless technology, which is set to provide massive, ultra-high speed connectivity in the next five to 10 years, the development of sixth-generation (6G) technology is already on its way. A team of multi-disciplinary experts, led by Professor Chi-hou Chan, Chair Professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering (EE) and Director of the State Key Laboratory of Terahertz and Millimeter Waves (SKLTMW) at CityU, has been working on advancing the development of terahertz (THz) technology for 6G communications, imaging and spectroscopy.
THz waves exist in the electromagnetic spectrum between the conventional microwave and infrared regions. This is a broad frequency band with a wide range of applications. For example, THz technologies have been used to detect melamine in milk powder, antibiotics in food matrices, pesticides in vegetables, and foreign objects in drugs.
Spectroscopy and imaging for cancer drug development
The team is also exploring THz applications in spectroscopy and imaging for addressing health-related issues. “Many studies have shown that the absorption of THz radiation by cancer and normal tissues is different. So we are interested in finding out how we can apply THz in cancer studies,” said Professor Kenneth Kam-wing Lo, in the Department of Chemistry, who is also one of the members of the multi-disciplinary team.
In particular, he is investigating whether THz imaging can reveal the cancerous parts of tissues more precisely and the changes of the tumour cells for drug testing; and whether THz can be used as a spectroscopic tool for tracing compounds inside tissues for cancer drug development, as a supplemental approach to fluorescent biological probes to stain tissues.
This research article originated from CityU RESEARCH.