Nano-mixed reality: Scientists create world’s smallest video game – Interesting Engineering

This development signifies a major advancement in “nano-mixed reality” (nano-MR). a day agoa day agoa day agoa day ago2 days ago2 days ago2 days ago2 days ago2 days ago2 days ago2 hours ago2 hours ago2 hours ago3 hours ago3 hours ago5 hours ago6 hours ago6 hours ago6 hours ago7 hours agoMrigakshi DixitRepresentational image: Researchers have created world’s smallest game.iStock

 Japanese researchers have created the “world’s smallest shooting game” in which the targets are a billionth of a meter (3.3 billionths of a foot) small.  The Nagoya University team has created this game that operates at the nanoscale. With a standard controller, players pilot a miniature digital ship and launch nanoscale bullets to manipulate a physical ball, measuring only a few microns.This development signifies a major advancement in “nano-mixed reality” (nano-MR), a technology that seamlessly merges the digital and the nanoscopic worlds.“The game is a shooting game in which the player manipulates a ship and shoots bullets at real nanoparticles to repel them. Through this, we successfully demonstrated real-time interaction between digital data and physical nano-objects,” said Professor Takayuki Hoshino, the lead developer. Nano-MR is a process that utilizes high-speed electron beams to achieve real-time digital and nanoscopic physical integration.The high-speed beams are instrumental in creating a dynamic and interactive environment. The beams serve to generate complex, real-time electric fields and optical image patterns on the display.These beams act like invisible hands, controlling the movement of nanoparticles.The researchers can move and manipulate nanoparticles in real-time by controlling the force field. Professor Hoshino, a fan of vintage video games, wanted to create an engaging way to showcase this technology. And thus, the world’s smallest shooting game was born.This nanoscale shooting game allows for direct interaction with objects at the nanometer scale. In the world’s smallest video game, the spaceship and its projectiles are digital overlays, but the targets are actual, physical polystyrene balls at a microscopic scale.In this specific application, the researchers sought to create an environment where digital objects could directly interact with the physical nanoscale environment. To achieve this, they utilized a joystick to manipulate the scanning pattern of a high-speed electron beam.This manipulation, in turn, was translated into the on-screen movement of a virtual triangular spaceship. The players’ objective was to use this virtual spaceship, controlled by the electron beam, to “strike” or repel enemy characters in this microscopic arcade.Using the electron beam, players tried to hit the enemy characters, which were actually nano-sized polystyrene balls.Thus, the players were directly influencing the movement of real physical objects through the manipulation of a digital interface, effectively bridging the gap between the virtual and the real at an incredibly small scale.“The system projects the game ship onto real nanophysical space as an optical image and force field, creating an MR where nanoparticles and digital elements interact,” Hoshino said.While the nanoscale shooting game provides a compelling demonstration of the technology, its implications extend far beyond mere entertainment. This method could help build and move tiny living things, which is useful for nanotechnology and medicine.“We could 3D print the created objects in real time, potentially revolutionizing the world of 3D printing. Or use the same guidance technique to guide toxic agents to virus cells in living organisms and kill them,” Hoshino stated in the press release. The findings were published in the Japanese Journal of Applied Physics.Mrigakshi Dixit Mrigakshi is a science journalist who enjoys writing about space exploration, biology, and technological innovations. Her work has been featured in well-known publications including Nature India, Supercluster, The Weather Channel and Astronomy magazine. If you have pitches in mind, please do not hesitate to email her.Stay up-to-date on engineering, tech, space, and science news with The Blueprint.By clicking sign up, you confirm that you accept this site’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policya day agoa day agoa day agoa day agoPremiumIE PROFollow

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