Excellent giveaway Melhelix! Thanks and +1!
I'm in for Shadowrun Returns!
So let's first see what is a classical pressure sensor =>
MEMS Pressure sensor explained by Bosch. As you already found, the key component is the membrane, because it registers the pressure. The 'absurd tech gadget thing' that I want to explain you could be found here
Pressure-sensing technology and more specifically the last sentence of the Optical way of sensing pressure: "Another analogous technique utilizes an elastic film constructed in layers that can change reflected wavelengths according to the applied pressure (strain)." Basically the hologram is a multilayered structure that when viewed from different angles, reflect the light in a
different wavelength and that way we see it as different colors. So the quoted PhD student Juan Leonardo Martinez-Hurtado researched elastic holograms that you can imagine like a
transparent or semi transparent hologram sticker, like in this
video (omg what a manicure) that could be used to replace the membrane in the classical mems (micro-electro-mechanical-semiconductor) design. The whole sensor/device will look like this Elastic hologram membrane that when in rest will let thru let say violet light at 420nm and when pressured will let thru blue light at 470nm, below you'll have a
photo sensor or else photodiode that converts the colored light passing thru the holo-membrane in electrical current proportional to the wavelength of the light - in other not so mathematical words, for the violet light you have 0.2 A current at the end and for blue light (stressed membrane) you have more = 0.3 amperes current coming out from the photodiode, this photodiode selectivity is represented by his
spectral responsivity. And from there you have some signal processing circuitry like in the Bosch video. :)