Earthquake on a chip: How scientists harnessed sound waves on the surface of a microchip

Lead author Dr Chun-Kung Lai (left), research leader Dr Moritz Merkelen and Professor Ben Eggleton with the new chip at the Sydney Nanoscience Center laboratories.

A team of researchers has succeeded for the first time in using a laser to generate guided sound waves on the surface of a microelectronic chip. These sound waves, similar to surface waves generated during an earthquake, travel through the foil at frequencies about a billion times higher than those found in earthquakes.

By containing the sound wave to the surface of the chip, it can more easily interact with the environment, making it an ideal candidate for advanced sensing technologies.

The results were published today in the American Institute of Physics' journal APL Photonics.

“Using acoustic waves on the surface of a microchip has applications in sensing, signal processing and advanced communications technology,” said lead researcher and project leader Dr Moritz Merkelen from the Nano Institute and School of Physics at the University of Sydney. “We can now start thinking about new chip designs that use light and sound instead of electricity.

“Normally, surface sound waves are excited using electronics,” said lead author Jovert Nijts, a student from the University of Twente in the Netherlands who spent nine months in the University of Sydney laboratories. “Here we use photonics, or light energy, to produce the sound wave. This approach has several advantages,” The most important is that the light does not produce heat in the chip caused by electronic excitation.

Using a special glass made of germanium, arsenic and selenide known as GeAsSe, scientists were able to achieve remarkable results, including measurements indicating strong interactions between light and sound.

This innovative research demonstrates how lasers can be used to create and detect high-frequency surface sound waves using new materials as a 'waveguide'.

“The material is a soft glass. This means that unlike many materials, it acts as a guide for high-frequency sound waves and allows them to interact more freely with the light waves that we put into the chip,” Dr. Merklin said.

The ability to generate and process these high-frequency sound waves opens a world of possibilities for new applications in sensing and signal processing.

“Imagine sensors that can detect subtle changes in the environment or advanced signal processing techniques that enhance communication technologies,” said co-author Dr Chun-Kong Lai, a postdoctoral researcher at the Institute of Photonics and Optical Sciences at the University of Sydney. “Our innovative approach only paves the way for more sensitive and efficient devices.” Not only does it expand the possibility of integrating audio and visual technologies on a single chip.

The team has previously demonstrated the “capture” of optical information within acoustics, or sound waves, within the chip. The “lightning within thunder” innovation was the first of its kind in the world at the time.

“We have developed this work to be able to manage and direct high-frequency sound wave information onto the surface of the chip. This is an important contribution to the development of emerging sensor technologies,” said co-author and leader of the research team, Professor Ben Eagleton, Vice-Chancellor (Research) at the University of Sydney. .

The technique the researchers are using is known as stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS). This is created through an enhanced feedback loop between photons (light) and phonons (sound).

When light moves around the chip or optical fiber, it creates sound vibrations. Previously seen as a nuisance in optical communications, scientists then realized they could incorporate and enhance this vibration as a new means of transmitting and processing information.

The feedback process allows light waves (usually produced by a laser) and sound waves to couple, enhancing the strength of this feedback effect. The researchers expect stimulated Brillouin scattering to have applications in 5G/6G and broadband networks, sensors, satellite communications, radar systems, defense systems, and even radio astronomy.

research

Neijts, G. et al “Simulated Brillouin scattering via surface acoustic waves” (APL Photonics 2024). doi: 10.1063/5.0220496

a permit

Professor Ben Eagleton is Editor-in-Chief of APL Photonics and Dr Moritz Merklin is Guest Editor, but neither played a role in handling the submission of this paper. The researchers declare no other competing interests. They acknowledge the support of the Australian National Fabrication Facility (ANFF) OptoFab ACT Node at the Australian National University in conducting this research.

This work was supported by a European Research Council and Australian Research Council (ARC) consolidation grant. This work was supported by the ARC Center of Excellence for Advanced Science Micro-Optical Combs (COMBS).

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