New technology using a one-color laser may drive future generation of high-tech hearing aids. Scientists are testing a new idea, a device that uses a laser to encode sound in the form of light pulses and then transmit them onto tissues in the ear, which absorb the light and vibrate, inducing sound waves.

Originally released by Inside Science, 2017. Streaming video file encoded with permission for digital streaming by Infobase on May 18, 2017.

Speech to Laser to Sound (2:58);.