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Nothing spells out ‘Science Lab’ better than the image of a microscope. Together with the white lab coat, these are the stereotypical tools of a scientist’s trade.

But microscopes have come a long way since the days of our high school biology class. At CUHK, Prof. Zhou Renjie has invented a 3D light microscope that is so quick, precise and higher in resolution that it can image the movements of individual cells in real time, in three dimensions.

The world’s first “AI-enabled Portable Quantitative Phase Microscope for Blood Testing” is one of the five innovative projects to be showcased by The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) in the coming Hong Kong Electronics Fair (Autumn Edition) 2019 at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre from 13 to 16 October. This project is able to provide low-cost, fast and high efficiency blood testing technology in general clinics and underdeveloped areas.

Body check-ups routinely include blood tests, a key component of which is an inspection of the white blood cells. Traditional blood tests involve staining and labelling, which are time-consuming and labour-intensive. While newer automated machines speed up the process, the difficulty of moving them around and the high costs remain an issue.

These problems are going to be solved by CUHK’s AI-enabled portable quantitative phase microscope. Being the first of its kind, this microscope will make blood tests cheaper, faster and readily available at general clinics and even in underdeveloped regions.