People growing up in 90s seen the technological advancement of the world and a little more than the pioneering times of 70s and 80s. When cellular phones became a thing and people could carry them out for public use, we saw a feature used which is called infrared lens. This sensor was there in some of the models of phones to transfer files between two phones. One of these phones belonged to a host and another one to a receiver. This was a massive move forward and this was just one of practical use cases a lot of the 90s’ people had experienced. Yet, how does this infrared “thing” works?
What is infrared radiation?
Before diving into how infrared radiation works, let’s have a look at what this technology is and where it comes from.
Infrared radiation is a wave of radiation coming from the outer space. Yes, fascinating it is. This radiation is coming from various outer space objects floating around in our galaxy or in fact in the distant galaxies. Various objects cooler than stars, which is around 3000 degree Celsius can emit this radiation which comes travelling to our Earth as well. This radiation lies at the end of the visible spectrum where the red zone ends. It is unseen to our naked eye. Our human eyes cannot detect this radiation from space.
Space exploration with infrared radiation
Tuning into this wavelength scientists have discovered the best use case. There are various other daily objects we use come across use infrared as their primary source of power required for operating. One of the breakthroughs was combining optical telescope with infrared detector telescope. This gave scientist a new horizon for the astronomy. Scientists were able to study reach source of other worldly objects from our earth.
Everyday objects based on the infrared radiation technology
There are a lot of other use cases that are practically used on a daily basis. In fact, we use these items or come across one of them so often. Let’s look at some of these gadgets or tools, no matter how you want to call them which are powered by pure infrared radiation.
Remote controllers
Yes, this is one of the gadgets that we use daily and it completely relies on the infrared energy. Remote controls are used in various cases to control something remotely without having to get up and operate it manually. This is certainly one of the most convenient invention for the comfort of humanity and now you know it cannot operate with infrared radiation.
Thermal cameras
These cameras are used to pick up various types of energy emitted by any object or person. This camera can detect heat and temperature and can give out the kind of information needed.
Optical fibres
Optical fibres based on infrared radiation have been the most widely used forms since the very rise of technology. The purpose of optical fibres is mostly telecommunication which includes internet. Optical fibres have edge over cable uses light since infrared radiation have longer waves in direct comparison with the wavelengths of light. This is a highly useful feature for telecommunication as it reduces the chances of distorted signal therefore reduces loses of data.
Electric heaters
An electric heater that we use in cooking or for other reasons. Such appliances are using infrared energy to heat things up.
Infrared Lamps
We see these lamps typically in industrial sectors, roadside and in other locations. As you can imagine, these lamps are powered by infrared radiation.
There are more than we can cover the use case of infrared radiation, albeit, these are just one of many practical use cases of infrared wavelengths.
I remember that there was a lot of controversy about whether radiation was harmful to health, but we are all fine.