Search for: All records

Abstract Optoelectronics are crucial for developing energy‐efficient chip technology, with phase‐change materials (PCMs) emerging as promising candidates for reconfigurable components in photonic integrated circuits, such as nonvolatile phase shifters. Antimony sulfide (Sb₂S₃) stands out due to its low optical loss and considerable phase‐shifting properties, along with the non‐volatility of both phases. This study demonstrates that the crystallization kinetics of Sb₂S₃can be switched from growth‐driven to nucleation‐driven by altering the sample dimension from bulk to film. This tuning of the crystallization process is critical for optical switching applications requiring control over partial crystallization. Calorimetric measurements with heating rates spanning over six orders of magnitude, reveal that, unlike conventional PCMs that crystallize below the glass transition, Sb₂S₃exhibits a measurable glass transition prior to crystallization from the undercooled liquid (UCL) phase. The investigation of isothermal crystallization kinetics provides insights into nucleation rates and crystal growth velocities while confirming the shift to nucleation‐driven behavior at reduced film thicknesses—an essential aspect for effective device engineering. A fundamental difference in chemical bonding mechanisms was identified between Sb₂S₃, which exhibits covalent bonding in both material phases, and other PCMs, such as GeTe and Ge₂Sb₂Te₅, which demonstrate pronounced bonding alterations upon crystallization. 

Abstract A newly developed nonlinear ultrasonic (NLU) technique called sideband band peak count-index (or SPC-I) measures the degree of nonlinearity associated with the inspected specimen – larger SPC-I values indicate higher nonlinearity. In various published papers, the SPC-I technique has shown its effectiveness and superiority in comparison to other techniques for nondestructive testing (NDT) and structural health monitoring (SHM) applications. In this work, the performance of SPC-I in non-homogeneous specimens having different topographies is investigated using peridynamics based periultrasound modeling. Three types of topographies – “X” topography, “Y” topography and “XY” topography are introduced by adding thin strips made up of a second material and thus converting the homogeneous plate into a heterogeneous structure. It is observed that “X” and “XY” topographies can help to hide the crack growth, thus making cracks undetectable to the nonlinear SPC-I based monitoring technique. In addition to the SPC-I technique, we investigate the applicability of the emerging method of topological acoustic sensing. This method monitors the changes in the geometric phase; a measure of the changes in linear or nonlinear wave’s spatial behavior during its propagation in plate structures having various topographies. The computed results show that the magnitudes of jumps in geometric phase change plots can be good indicators to distinguish cracks with different thicknesses although these cracks can remain hidden in some topographies during the single point inspection based on the nonlinear SPC-I based monitoring technique. 

Abstract Cryptography is crucial in protecting sensitive information and ensuring secure transactions in a time when data security and privacy are major concerns. Traditional cryptography techniques, which depend on mathematical algorithms and secret keys, have historically protected against data breaches and illegal access. With the advent of quantum computers, traditional cryptography techniques are at risk. In this work, we present a cryptography idea using logical phi-bits, which are classical analogues of quantum bits (qubits) and are supported by driven acoustic metamaterials. The state of phi-bits displays superpositions similar to quantum bits, with complex amplitudes and phases. We present a representation of the state vector of single and multi-phi-bit systems. The state vector of multiple phi-bits system lies in a complex exponentially scaling Hilbert space and is used to encode information or messages. By changing the driving conditions of the metamaterial, the information can be encrypted with exceptional security and efficiency. We illustrate experimentally the practicality and effectiveness of encoding and encryption of a message using a 5 phi-bits system and emphasize the scalability of this approach to anNphi-bits system with the same processing time. 

Traditional structural damage detection methods in aerospace applications face challenges in accuracy and sensitivity, often necessitating multiple sensors to evaluate various measurement paths between the reference and defective states. However, the recently developed topological acoustic (TA) sensing technique can capture shifts in the geometric phase of an acoustic field, enabling the detection of even minor perturbations in the supporting medium. In this study, a diagnostic imaging method for damage detection in plate structures based on the TA sensing technique is presented. The method extracts the geometric phase shift index (GPS-I) from the Lamb wave response signals to indicate the location of the damage. Using Abaqus/CAE, a finite element model of the plate was established to simulate the Lamb wave response signals, which were then used to validate the feasibility of the proposed method. The results indicate that this technique enables rapid and precise identification of damage and its location within the plate structure, requiring response signals from only a few points on the damaged plate, and it is reference-free. 

Topological physics has been driving exciting progress in the area of condensed matter physics, with findings that have recently spilled over into the field of metamaterials research inspiring the design of structured materials that can govern in new ways the flow of light and sound. While so far these advances have been driven by fundamental curiosity-driven explorations, without a focused interest on their technological implications, opportunities to translate these findings into applied research have started to emerge, in particular in the context of sound control. Our team has been leading a highly collaborative research effort on advancing the field of topological acoustics, dubbed ‘New Frontiers of Sound’ and connecting it to technological opportunities for computing, communications, energy and sensing. In this comment, we outline our vision towards the future of topological sound, and its translation towards industry-relevant functionalities and operations based on extreme control of acoustic and phononic waves. 

Defect localization in homogeneous structures using ultrasonic waves is relatively easy to implement. However, locating defects in heterogeneous structures made of different materials can be challenging. This is because complicated reflections, refractions and scatterings occur when ultrasonic waves pass through the interfaces between two dissimilar materials of the heterogeneous structures. To address this issue, a localization methodology based on geometric phase change – index (GPC-I), derived from topological acoustic (TA) sensing, is proposed to adapt to the complicated scenarios when defects are present in heterogeneous plate structures. The GPC-I is adopted as the damage index (DI) to present the possibility of defects appearing on different acoustic sensing paths. A maximum peak value-dependent threshold in GPC-I plots (GPC-I vs. sensor sites) is defined to filter out unreliable sensing paths resulting from the heterogeneity. Different sensing modes (I and II) are combined to comprehensively provide a more reliable and accurate localization framework. Numerical modeling carried out by Abaqus/CAE software verifies the proposed GPC-I based localization technique. Comparison results among GPC-I and other two commonly used acoustic parameters—wave velocity differences (VD) and amplitude ratio (AR) (or wave attenuation) show that the GPC-I has superiority with higher sensitivity and stability for defect localization. This work can provide promising guidance for localizing defects in complex heterogeneous plate structures used in real-world engineering applications. 

This study introduces a framework using acoustic phase bits (phibits) as classical analogs to quantum bits for realizing quantum-like gates. These phibits are realized on a metastructure composed of aluminum rods glued with epoxy. First, we realize a single phibit gate in a general form for a Bloch sphere representation, providing a foundation for implementing arbitrary gate operations on a single phibit. Second, within a single mathematical representation, we achieve either the Hadamard or NOT gate by applying the corresponding distinct physical actions for each. Third, we demonstrate the implementation of a sequence of two quantum-like gates, Hadamard followed by CNOT, using a single physical action. This illustrates the effectiveness of the phibit framework, which has the potential to simplify the implementation of a whole series of sequential gates into a single unified physical operation. Finally, we realize a universal set of gates, including the Hadamard, CNOT, and T gates, within a single mathematical representation with three distinctive actions. This approach addresses prior limitations of phibit-based gates, such as Hadamard and CNOT, which were implemented in separate mathematical representations, by introducing a unified framework that eliminates the need for distinct formulations maintaining computational efficiency. 

Defect localization in homogeneous plate structures is relatively easy with various well-established acoustics-based techniques. However, localizing defects in heterogeneous structures can be challenging due to complicated reflection, refraction and scattering patterns arising from heterogeneous boundaries during wave propagations. This work introduces a topological acoustic (TA) sensing technique for localizing defects in heterogeneous plate structures. The geometric phase change – index (GPC-I) derived from TA sensing is used to detect perturbations caused by defects along the sensing paths between transmitters and receivers. The proposed method identifies the largest GPC-I values for various sensing paths. A higher GPC-I value on a sensing path implies a higher probability of having a defect on that path. A maximum peak value dependent threshold in GPC-I plots (GPC-I vs. sensor sites) is defined to identify and filter out those unreliable sensing paths in the proposed localization method. Finite element based numerical analysis in Abaqus/CAE software verifies the effectiveness of the proposed method. The commonly used methods using velocity differences (VD) and amplitude ratios (AR) are also tried out for defect localization for comparison. The performance comparison of the localization results using GPC-I, VD, and AR reveal that the GPC-I based technique is the most effective technique for defect localization. 

We demonstrate an integrated non-destructive inspection methodology that employs the nonlinear ultrasonics-based sideband peak counting (SPC) technique in conjunction with topological acoustics (TA) sensing to comprehensively characterize the acoustic response of steel plates that contain differing levels of damage. By combining the SPC technique and TA, increased sensitivity to defect/damage detection as well as the ability to spatially resolve the presence of defects was successfully established. Towards this end, using a Rockwell hardness indenter, steel plates were subject to one, three and five centrally located indentations respectively. The acoustic response of the plate as a function of number of indentations was examined at a frequency range between 50 kHz and 800 kHz, from which the change in a global geometric phase was valuated. Here, geometric phase is a measure of the topological acoustic field response to the spatial locations of the indentations within the steel plates. The global geometric phase unambiguously showed an increase with increasing number of indentations. In addition, spatial variations in a ‘local’ geometric phase as well as spatial variations in the PC index (SPC-I) were also determined. Spatial variations in both the local geometric phase as well as the SPC-I were particularly significant across the indentations for frequencies below 300 kHz, and by combining the respective spatial variations in the SPC-I and geometric phase, the locations of the indentations were accurately identified. The developed SPC-TA nondestructive method represents a promising technique for detecting and evaluating defects in structural materials.