FUTURE SMARTPHONES WILL BE THE SIZE OF CREDIT CARDS

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Sat 18 May 2024:

Despite the already impressive miniaturization of cellphones, a recent discovery may revolutionize the wireless communication market by enabling the creation of cellphones smaller than credit cards.

This advancement involves a new class of artificial materials capable of manipulating phonons, which are particles that transmit sound-like high-frequency vibrations, as reported by Interesting Engineering.

Researchers from the University of Arizona Wyant College of Optical Sciences and Sandia National Laboratories are credited with this breakthrough. They believe it could lead to smaller, more powerful, and more energy-efficient wireless devices.

Matt Eichenfield, the senior author of the study, explained that current cellphones use around 30 filters to convert radio waves into sound waves and back. The new research combines advanced materials to create “giant phononic nonlinearities,” allowing phonons (sound waves) to be controlled as precisely as lasers control light.

This precise control over phonons can potentially replace the bulky components in phones that handle signal conversion. The researchers achieved this by layering two special materials: lithium niobate, which efficiently converts electrical signals into sound waves, and a thin layer of indium gallium arsenide semiconductor, which is key to creating “giant phononic nonlinearities.”

By combining these materials in a specific way, the researchers created an environment where sound waves could be manipulated with exceptional precision. Lisa Hackett from Sandia, the lead author, noted that this new regime of phononic nonlinearity could allow devices to mix signals, filter noise, and amplify weak signals all on a single chip, using sound waves instead of electricity.

In addition to reducing size, phononic devices are expected to be more energy-efficient, potentially allowing cellphones to last much longer on a single charge.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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