Scientists at the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) have developed a 'light-powered brain' - an optical system that can recognise hidden information within complex patterns of light. The technology could help transform future communications by reading light-based information faster than current methods allow.
This research is published in Nature Communications.
How topology helps light carry information
Light can carry information through specially shaped patterns. The challenge is reading these patterns quickly, especially when their appearance changes during transmission. The Wits team addressed this using topology - the study of properties that remain unchanged when an object is stretched or bent.
The researchers explain this with an analogy: imagine a twisted ribbon. Even if you bend and fold that ribbon into many different shapes, the number of twists stays the same. Similarly, light can carry hidden features that remain identifiable even when the visible pattern changes.
Instead of taking detailed pictures and analysing thousands of points, the new system passes light through specially designed layers that direct it toward detectors. Where the light lands reveals the information it carries. 'We don't need to map every crease in our fabric of light to count the twists,' say the researchers.
After training on just 15 examples, the system recognised 81 different light structures, including patterns it had never seen before. It also continued working when researchers added noise to the detector, suggesting it could operate reliably under imperfect conditions.
This research matters because it combines artificial intelligence and physics to solve a practical problem in communications. Creating complex light patterns for carrying information is only useful if we can read them quickly. This system offers a simpler way to extract information without first taking detailed pictures, which could help turn unusual light structures into practical carriers for future communication systems. The approach may also advance quantum technologies, where extracting information from individual particles of light presents even greater challenges.