SBIR Phase I: Development of A Novel Visible-Light Phase Shifter and Intraocular Lens to Improve Vision for Those With Age-Related Macular Degeneration

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project is a novel implantable lens for shifting the phase of visible-light phase to mitigate vision loss due to age related macular degeneration and damaged retinal regions. Age-related macular degeneration is a chronic and progressive eye disease affecting more than 20 million people in the US and 200 million people worldwide and often results in irreversible blindness. No permanent solution currently exists for treating age-related macular degeneration and mitigating vision loss until surgical interventions may be required. This proposed system aims to provide a permanent means for shifting the area of focus of visible light onto a viable region of the retina for restoring vision to help patients complete common everyday activities, reduce costs of care associated with vision loss and reduce the resulting emotional or health-related burden of macular degeneration. This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project aims to complete the development of an electronic implantable intraocular lens through a novel implantable low power rechargeable visible-light phase shifter and subsequent optical phased arrays. Current optical phased arrays require high-power consumption with a large footprint, impeding their effectiveness in a commercializable, fully implantable biocompatible device. This project aims to address several critical technical hurdles by developing an energy-efficient metal-oxide-semiconductor capacitor, small-form factor optical phased array in an intraocular implantable device capable of electronically adjusting and shifting visible light frequencies to alternative viable regions of the retina. The study team will conduct systematic modeling to map the performance of key functions and determine the optimal waveguide geometry. Once finalized, the study team will fabricate the devices and measure their performance using standard optical benchmarking measurements relative to a reference waveguide. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.