Post by Susieg on Aug 10, 2004 21:31:00 GMT
Here is a piece of news which may be of interest to our resident musician............BHK
Rock'n'roll researchers at Cornell University have created the world's smallest playable guitar. It looks like a Gibson Flying V, but you'll need a microscope to see it because it's only 0.025 millimetres long.
The strings are made from silicon bars, 150 by 200 nanometers in cross section - a nanometre is a billionth of a metre.
Seven years ago, scientists made a miniature guitar in the shape of the legendary Fender Stratocaster©. But the new nanoguitar is the first one that can be played.
"On average it can take about a day to make the guitar but it took us a couple of months from the concept to playing." Lidija Sekaric, from Cornell University advised.
Scientists make tiny instruments like the nanoguitar using electron-beam lithography, a technique for creating extremely fine patterns in metal. A fine beam of electrons etches patterns in the silicon. Scientists wash away unwanted material with acid, leaving miniature mechanical devices.
The guitars usually sit on a chip and the chip is large enough to be handled. If you were to detach the guitar from the chip it could easily get lost.
The nanoguitar is one of many nanodevices, some of which are designed to replace larger, more conventional, electronic components. The researchers hope that circuits containing nanodevices will be smaller, cheaper and more energy-efficient.
Most of the nanodevices don't look like ordinary instruments, but some of the funkier ones are shaped like harps, bells, xylophones, drums and guitars.
The silicon strings are too small to be plucked with a plectrum - they're strummed using a laser beam. The vibrating strings emit patterns of light, which are electronically converted into sound. The notes are 17 octaves higher than a normal guitar, so can't be heard by human ears. Computer editing turns the screeching high-pitched riffs to audible easy listening tones.
"It was thrilling to hear the downconverted sounds and, for the first time, physically experience something I had been working on for a long time but could not see or touch." said Lidija Sekaric.
Experts predict many uses for nanodevices. They can emit radio waves, so could be used in mobile phones to transmit signals, needing much less space and power than today's devices.
Nanodevices like the guitar give us a fundamental understanding of materials on a tiny scale.
Taken from the World Wide Web
Susieg
Rock'n'roll researchers at Cornell University have created the world's smallest playable guitar. It looks like a Gibson Flying V, but you'll need a microscope to see it because it's only 0.025 millimetres long.
The strings are made from silicon bars, 150 by 200 nanometers in cross section - a nanometre is a billionth of a metre.
Seven years ago, scientists made a miniature guitar in the shape of the legendary Fender Stratocaster©. But the new nanoguitar is the first one that can be played.
"On average it can take about a day to make the guitar but it took us a couple of months from the concept to playing." Lidija Sekaric, from Cornell University advised.
Scientists make tiny instruments like the nanoguitar using electron-beam lithography, a technique for creating extremely fine patterns in metal. A fine beam of electrons etches patterns in the silicon. Scientists wash away unwanted material with acid, leaving miniature mechanical devices.
The guitars usually sit on a chip and the chip is large enough to be handled. If you were to detach the guitar from the chip it could easily get lost.
The nanoguitar is one of many nanodevices, some of which are designed to replace larger, more conventional, electronic components. The researchers hope that circuits containing nanodevices will be smaller, cheaper and more energy-efficient.
Most of the nanodevices don't look like ordinary instruments, but some of the funkier ones are shaped like harps, bells, xylophones, drums and guitars.
The silicon strings are too small to be plucked with a plectrum - they're strummed using a laser beam. The vibrating strings emit patterns of light, which are electronically converted into sound. The notes are 17 octaves higher than a normal guitar, so can't be heard by human ears. Computer editing turns the screeching high-pitched riffs to audible easy listening tones.
"It was thrilling to hear the downconverted sounds and, for the first time, physically experience something I had been working on for a long time but could not see or touch." said Lidija Sekaric.
Experts predict many uses for nanodevices. They can emit radio waves, so could be used in mobile phones to transmit signals, needing much less space and power than today's devices.
Nanodevices like the guitar give us a fundamental understanding of materials on a tiny scale.
Taken from the World Wide Web
Susieg
