Observation of mechanical bound states in the continuum
type: CreativeWork
description: Phonon trapping has raised widespread attention among researchers for its potential of various applications, such as microwave signal processing, interferometric gravitational wave detection and quantum mechanical oscillators. A common way to realize phonon trapping is through suspended structures as phonon transportation relies on medium and cannot permeate through the vacuum, yet it is mostly limited as complete isolation of the system from the environment is not achievable and detection of such systems is typically lagged by thermal capacity and excess noise. To circumvent these limitations, we propose a new cavity-less system based on bound states in the continuum (BICs), which are non-radiative states that can coexist with radiation waves inside the continuum region can oﬀer a platform for realizing phonon trapping without mechanical suspension. In-depth characterization of the acoustic loss mechanisms has been performed both at room temperature and cryogenic temperature. This new paradigm for phonon trapping, combining the macroscopic structure device and microwave frequency, has the potential for realizing the mechanical oscillators in both classical and quantum regimes, as well as the potential for high sensitivity sensing for rare-event searches and the exploration of the foundations of quantum mechanics in unreached parameter spaces.
abstract: Phonon trapping has raised widespread attention among researchers for its potential of various applications, such as microwave signal processing, interferometric gravitational wave detection and quantum mechanical oscillators. A common way to realize phonon trapping is through suspended structures as phonon transportation relies on medium and cannot permeate through the vacuum, yet it is mostly limited as complete isolation of the system from the environment is not achievable and detection of such systems is typically lagged by thermal capacity and excess noise. To circumvent these limitations, we propose a new cavity-less system based on bound states in the continuum (BICs), which are non-radiative states that can coexist with radiation waves inside the continuum region can oﬀer a platform for realizing phonon trapping without mechanical suspension. In-depth characterization of the acoustic loss mechanisms has been performed both at room temperature and cryogenic temperature. This new paradigm for phonon trapping, combining the macroscopic structure device and microwave frequency, has the potential for realizing the mechanical oscillators in both classical and quantum regimes, as well as the potential for high sensitivity sensing for rare-event searches and the exploration of the foundations of quantum mechanics in unreached parameter spaces.
author: Tong, Hao
language: en
keywords: Bound state in the continuum, Phononic crystal
date published: 2021-03-05T21:40:46Z
date modified: 2026-07-22T22:24:50Z
provider: University of Illinois - Urbana-Champaign
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

PropertyValue
property ID: Handle
value: http://hdl.handle.net/2142/109501