Researchers from Yale University have developed a nanodevice which combines both mechanical and optical forces at the nanoscale. Scientists have used lasers to control molecular vibrations since the 1980’s with the purpose of observing molecules “undisturbed” in their environment. The device that the Yale researchers developed is called a light-driven nanoresonator, and in the future it could also be used as a sensitive chemical detector.

The nanodevice uses the same laser technique that stops molecular vibrations, only that it uses its nanoscale optical force to control integrated circuits. This could have serious implications in the world of electronics as it could lead to fast and low-power optical chips, and as you probably noticed, it could replace transistors in electronic circuits.

Optical chips use light, not electrons, to transport data therefore it should be faster and more power-efficient than conventional integrated circuits. However, these chips also have integrated electrical elements called modulators which convert light into electrons and then back again. Due to their “actions”, the modulators make optical chips slower and less power-efficient.

According to Hong Tang, leader of the team from Yale University, they have developed a nanodevice which uses light and not electrons to encode data. The researchers built a simple optical chip, then they pickled a small part of the waveguide (a thin silicon road which allows the photon to travel on it) into a 500nm wide bar. The resulting silicon wave has two functions, to carry and modulate the optical signal.

In order to test it, the researchers sent a light-signal into the integrated circuit, then they exposed the nano-optical modulator to laser-light that caused vertical and horizontal oscillations. These oscillations are responsible for modulating the speed of the light which travels through the beam, which is a clear proof that there is optical force in an integrated circuit. The Yale researchers are the first to demonstrate and to apply it on a working device. Also, the team showed that arrays of hundreds of resonators can be created on a single optical chip.

“The light force can be put to real use,” said Tang.

The circuit that the Yale researchers discovered was welcomed by other scientists, and James Hone, a mechanical-engineering professor at the Columbia University, said that this “represents a technical breakthrough.”

“It opens up a new way to make opto-mechanical switches that can reroute one optical signal using another,” added Hone.

Also, according to Hone, these technology could lead to “very sensitive chemical sensors,” however, the Yale researchers didn’t demonstrate this yet. This is only the beginning and this type of nanodevice is years away. There is still needed to prove its mechanical properties, and these chips have to be compatible with conventional semiconductor processing. Well, it’s a great start and it would be great to have faster and more efficient optical chips.