Laser-based Hearing Aids

A University of Utah group is working on a way to use lasers to create a new kind of hearing aid. Led by biomedical engineering professor Richard Rabbitt, researchers say exposing hair cells to low-power infrared light (like those used in laser pointers) causes them release neurotransmitters and activate adjacent neurons. This could lead to the development of new optical hearing aids. These laser-based ear implants could stimulate cells with thousands of sound wavelengths.