HMN 2026: How light is transforming the future of health care

A research team led by Professor Sei Kwang Hahn (Department of Materials Science and Engineering and Graduate School of Convergence Science and Technology, POSTECH) has published an Editorial for an Advanced Materials Special Issue, in collaboration with Professor Dame Molly Stevens (University of Oxford, UK) and Professor John Rogers (Northwestern University, U.S.). The editorial was recently published online in Advanced Materials and was selected as the cover article. It provides a systematic overview of the latest advances and future directions in photonic nanomaterials and health care devices.

Light can be precisely controlled in terms of wavelength, intensity, and frequency, enabling highly precise manipulation of cells and tissues. A broad range of medical technologies have been developed with light, including fluorescence imaging, photoacoustic imaging, photothermal and photodynamic therapies, photobiomodulation, and optogenetics. Recently, the convergence of miniaturized LEDs, stretchable and flexible electronics, and wireless communication technologies has further expanded the field toward wearable and implantable medical devices.

This Special Issue captures these trends in a comprehensive framework. Across a total of 17 papers, including 1 Perspective, 9 Reviews, and 7 Research Articles, it presents photonics-enabled smart health care through four sub-themes: (i) nanomaterials for diagnosis and therapy, (ii) wearable photonic devices, (iii) implantable photonic devices, and (iv) integration with digital health care. Rather than simply listing individual achievements, the issue emphasizes an integrated view of the field’s technological status and development trajectory, underscoring its academic significance.

The editorial also addresses practical challenges that must be resolved for photonic technologies to be widely adopted in clinical settings. Key cross-cutting issues include long-term stability, immunocompatibility, scale-up, and medical regulatory pathways. For wearable devices, compliance and data security are highlighted as major concerns, whereas for implantable devices, wireless energy transfer and foreign-body responses are identified as critical hurdles.

If these technical challenges are overcome, health care can be changed dramatically. Small devices worn on the body can detect early disease signals, light-based therapies can complement drugs and surgery, and personalized precision medicine would become a part of daily life. This is why photonic technologies are becoming increasingly important for the shift from hospital-centered care to health care embedded in daily life.

Professor Hahn noted, “The convergence of photonic nanomaterials and digital devices is an important trend that blurs the boundary between diagnosis and treatment and advances in human-centered precision medicine. We hope this Special Issue will serve as a meaningful reference point for understanding and accelerating research in photonics-based smart health care.”

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