Dalhousie University, Metamaterial Technologies Inc. (MTI) and Mitacs have partnered on a $1.62 million collaboration to explore a new area of light manipulation. The project, which is the largest-ever Mitacs-supported project in Atlantic Canada, will build the research partnership between Dalhousie and MTI, while attracting the best new researchers and inventors in metamaterials science. It will also provide opportunities to carry out basic research and development in this relatively new area of science. Advances and discoveries in electricity, electromagnetic technology, wireless communication, lasers and computers have all been driven by an understanding about the nature of light and what is possible to do with it. Now, a relatively new science called metamaterials has made it possible to manipulate light in ways that have never been achievable in nature before. This project will span different areas of the application of metamaterials, including: Absorption enhancement of ultra-thin solar cells using metamaterials; MetaSOLAR, a highly efficient solar panel to be used for solar powered aerial vehicles, will collect solar light from all angles and absorb it across the most useful spectral parts. The technology will be ideal for lightweight aircraft and vehicles, where efficiency and weight are of prime importance. Light emission enhancement for LEDs; This project will investigate and optimize an LED emission enhancer that can be mounted on existing LED sources to substantially improve their brightness. Development of optical filters based on metamaterials; This project will include the development of next-generation optics for augmented reality applications. It will bring together experts from the fields of materials science, chemical engineering, nanotechnology, photonics and metamaterials. Improvement of medical diagnostics using metamaterials; The goal of this project is to develop a wearable thin-film glucose sensor, that will allow for more precise blood glucose measurements. Support for this collaboration is made possible through Mitacs' research internship program that helps businesses to solve innovation challenges with academic expertise and matched funding.