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Photoacoustic imaging has gained global attention for capturing images without causing pains or using ionizing radiation. Recently, many researchers have heavily studied on observing deep tissues to apply the photoacoustic imaging to clinical diagnosis and practices.

Prof. Chulhong Kim of Creative IT Engineering from POSTECH and his student, Byullee Park conducted joint research with Prof. Hyungwoo Kim and Kyung Min Lee of Cheonnam National University and proposed a new contrast agent for the photoacoustic imaging of deep tissues. They used a nickel-based nanoparticle as a contrast agent that absorbs light at 1,064 nm wavelength. They obtained images of the tissues penetrated in maximum 3.4 cm depth in live animals which is the deepest image observed using this wavelength compared to the previous studies.