Levitation has been a long-lived human fantasy; a recent demonstration shows we may be on our way to levitating objects in a more maneuverable way.
University of Tokyo researchers were able to levitate and even steer small objects using the power of sound frequencies, Discovery News reported.
This technique has been demonstrated in the past, but up until now researchers were only ever able to move objects across an "up-and-down fixed axis," Discovery News reported. This new method allows the acoustically levitated objects to be steered three-dimensionally.
"Our manipulation system has two original features. One is the direction of the ultrasound beam, which is arbitrary because the force acting toward its centre is also utilised. The other is the manipulation principle by which a localised standing wave is generated at an arbitrary position and moved three-dimensionally by opposed and ultrasonic phased arrays," the researchers wrote in their study, Discovery News reported.
The objects levitated in the project's demonstration video are millimeter-sized white balls made out of polystyrene; the groups has also tested the device using other lightweight objects such as matches and screws, The Verge reported.
The device works using "overlapping ultrasonic beams" that move the objects around a cubic space.
Living things such as ants and small fish have been levitated before, but not using this current method.
Researchers from Swtizerland made a similar breakthrough earlier this year; they were able to move particles around "in midair," the Washington Post reported. The team levitated items such as coffee grind and toothpicks.
"Their levitation device looks something like a chessboard, with each penny-size square emitting its own sound. A large, clear plastic plate is placed a small distance above the chessboard to reflect the sound; if the sounds waves are strong enough, objects can hover and move around within the space," the Washington Post reported.
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