Flexible photonic contactless human-machine interface based on visible-blind near-infrared organic photodetectors

Chen Geng; Guangkun Song; Wei Lin; Hanzhe Shi; Longyu Li; Zhaochen Suo; Yu Zhu; Hao Qin; Lin Liu; Ruiman Han; Yingjun Xia; Yanqing Yang; Tingting Guo; Xiangjian Wan; Bo Liu; Wangqiao Chen; Jing Zhang; Ting Zhang; Guanghui Li; Yongsheng Chen

doi:10.1093/nsr/nwaf303

Flexible photonic contactless human-machine interface based on visible-blind near-infrared organic photodetectors

Natl Sci Rev. 2025 Jul 26;12(9):nwaf303. doi: 10.1093/nsr/nwaf303. eCollection 2025 Sep.

Authors

Chen Geng¹, Guangkun Song¹, Wei Lin², Hanzhe Shi¹, Longyu Li¹, Zhaochen Suo¹, Yu Zhu¹, Hao Qin¹, Lin Liu³, Ruiman Han⁴, Yingjun Xia¹, Yanqing Yang¹, Tingting Guo¹, Xiangjian Wan¹, Bo Liu², Wangqiao Chen⁴, Jing Zhang¹, Ting Zhang³, Guanghui Li^{1

5}, Yongsheng Chen^{1

6}

Affiliations

¹ The Centre of Nanoscale Science and Technology and Key Laboratory of Functional Polymer Materials, Institute of Polymer Chemistry, Renewable Energy Conversion and Storage Center (RECAST), College of Chemistry, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, China.
² Institute of Modern Optics, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Micro-scale Optical Information Science and Technology, Nankai University, Tianjin 300350, China.
³ i-Lab, Suzhou Institute of Nano-Tech and Nano-Bionics (SINANO), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Suzhou 215123, China.
⁴ Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Optical Information Materials and Technology, South China Academy of Advanced Optoelectronics, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510006, China.
⁵ Academy for Advanced Interdisciplinary Studies, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, China.
⁶ State Key Laboratory of Elemento-Organic Chemistry, Frontiers Science Center for New Organic Matter, College of Chemistry, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, China.

Abstract

Contactless human-machine interfaces (C-HMIs) are revolutionizing artificial intelligence (AI)-driven domains, yet face application limitations due to narrow sensing ranges, environmental fragility, and structural rigidity. To address these obstacles, we developed a flexible photonic C-HMI (Flex-PCI) using flexible visible-blind near-infrared organic photodetectors. In addition to its unprecedented performance across key metrics, including broad detection range (0.5-60.0 cm), high spatial resolution (∼10.0 µm), and fast response speed (1.6 µs), our Flex-PCI could precisely track finger kinematics and human physiological information, including position, velocity, trajectory, heart rate, and respiratory rate. Additionally, the Flex-PCI could stably operate under diverse conditions, such as various temperatures, humidities, ambient light intensities, bending states, and even underwater, addressing the reliability gap in dynamic applications. These combined, unparalleled characteristics have been demonstrated through a high-dimensional security system synergistically featuring tracking of finger kinematics and human physiological information in aerial and aquatic environments. This breakthrough technology opens up numerous possibilities for contactless interactions across diverse AI-powered scenarios, from security systems, social media, and AR/VR, to personal interactions with gaming and entertainment, significantly enhancing the quality of the user experience.

Keywords: contactless human-machine interface; flexible organic photodetector; narrowband non-fullerene acceptor; visible-blind near-infrared photodetector.