Nanoacoustics and Nanophononics: sensing and manipulation at the nanoscale

Introduction:

In solid state physics, mechanical excitations at the nanoscale and their quasiparticles, phonons, are ubiquitous. Very often, they are considered as a bothersome evil and limitation to the material functionalities and devices performance. Phonons however are the unsung heroes in modern information technology and are indispensable for Gigahertz signal processing. Dozens of micro- and nanoacoustic devices are found in your laptop, smartphone or WIFI router and their operation uses the unique properties of phonons for wireless communication.

In this lecture, you will learn that acoustic phonons can be harnessed to sense and manipulate the important material properties. The lecture will begin with an introduction to the basics of phonons and elastic waves in solids and then will go over their excitation, measurement and applications, both in modern technologies and recent research.

Table of content:

• Phonon and elastic waves in solids
• Characterization of elastic waves
• Phononic crystals
• Excitation and detection of elastic waves
• Applications of phonons and acoustic waves

Kurs im HIS-LSF