Acoustic Chip Uses Sound Waves to Lift Objects Like Tiny Hands

Acoustic waves are often recognized as the invisible carriers that bring sounds like voices, car horns, or music to our ears. However, these waves have another remarkable ability: they can move physical objects. For example, an object placed on a concert speaker can vibrate and move, demonstrating how sound can be transformed into a powerful tool.

A team of researchers led by Virginia Tech Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering Zhenhua Tian has been exploring how to use acoustic waves as invisible grabbers to manipulate fluid flows and tiny particles on electronic chips. This innovative approach could have significant implications in the medical field, where acoustic wave chips might assist in noninvasive surgeries or perform tasks similar to a centrifuge by extracting particles from blood.

One major challenge in this area has been the limitations of traditional technology used to produce acoustic waves on electronic chips. The standard device for this purpose is called an interdigital transducer (IDT), but it doesn't generate the highly customizable curved and overlapping waves that Tian's team requires for trapping objects, routing wave information, or transporting fluids. To overcome this, the team developed a new wave-producing technology that is entirely contained on a chip.

The research behind this breakthrough was published in Nature Communications.

Making the Chip

Tian's team uses acoustic waves to manipulate small objects such as blood clots in the body or tiny cells in a petri dish. However, the planar acoustic waves generated by an IDT were not sufficient for this task. Imagine trying to move a ping pong ball with the flat of your hand—you can roll it along a surface, but you can't lift it and move it freely. Tian's team needed something more versatile—acoustic wave fingers capable of complex movement and manipulation at the microscale.

To create crisscrossing acoustic waves that work together, the team had to rethink not only the shape of the acoustic transmitter but also the electrodes that generate the energy patterns. They developed several versions of their new tool, each designed to operate at different scales, carry varying levels of power, and produce on-chip waves with distinct energy profiles. These tools were encoded with a highly customizable phase distribution, allowing for new ways to tilt, curve, and harmonize acoustic waves. This collection of mechanisms came together on an electronic chip, creating an all-in-one instrument that, with minor adjustments, could generate long jets of acoustic energy with greater range and power than a traditional IDT.

The Metamaterial Difference

Tian's team didn't just create a new tool—they developed a new metamaterial for the job. Their chip is more than just a novel material or a unique product; it is engineered with specific materials and acoustics that can reshape acoustic energy to change its function.

The key to this innovation is adaptability. The team designed the chips to precisely control the flow of acoustic waves for various purposes, such as wave routing or the manipulation of fluids and particles. This opens up potential applications in noninvasive surgery, biosensors, microfabrication, and even semiconductor cooling.

Tian's team plans to continue exploring the use of these tools in new applications. Early results have shown promise when the new technology was deployed for controlling acoustic waves in both liquids and solids, suggesting a broad future for this advancement.

For more information: Nature Communications (2025). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-66488-z. www.nature.com/articles/s41467-025-66488-z