Communications of the ACM
Yale Scientists Amplify Light sing Sound on a Silicon Chip
Yale University scientists have found a way to boost the intensity of light waves on a silicon chip using the power of sound.
Credit: Yale News
Yale University scientists have used the power of sound to significantly boost the intensity of light waves on a silicon microchip.
The new waveguide system can harness the ability to precisely control the interaction of light and sound waves, and solves the problem of how to utilize this interaction in a robust manner on a silicon chip as the basis for powerful new signal-processing technologies.
"The ability to combine both light and sound in silicon permits us to control and process information in new ways that weren't otherwise possible," says Yale professor Peter Rakich.
He notes progress in this field has been held back because such hybrid technologies were not efficient enough for practical applications. Rakich says the research overcomes this hurdle using new device designs that prevent light and sound from escaping the circuits.
"With precise control over the light-sound interaction, we will be able to create devices with immediate practical uses, including new types of lasers," says Yale researcher Eric Kittlaus.
The system is part of a larger body of research the researchers have conducted over the past five years focused on designing new microchip technologies for light.
From Yale News
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