A collaboration between researchers from Virginia Tech and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) in the US has built a chip-scale device that can trap and control sound waves in a way that mimics the behavior of real atoms. Sound waves can be used to process and route signals, paving the way for new technologies that are compact and efficient. 

The world of electronics has been shrinking and will continue to do so in the years to come. As chips become smaller, computations move from the realm of classical physics to that of quantum physics. Assumptions from classical physics do not work in this realm and to control these systems, scientists and engineers need to first understand how they work. 

In the long term, these chips will be everywhere from medical devices to telecommunication systems, in our cars and as part of artificial intelligence (AI) systems. Since factors like heat, vibration or electromagnetic noise impact quantum states, scientists needed a different solution to be able to control quantum-scale systems. 

Why build an acoustic atom? 

Scientists at the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Department of Physics, and Center for Quantum Information Science and Engineering at Virigina Tech teamed up with those at ORNL to find a way to control quantum-scale systems. 

Since acoustic waves or sound waves can be used to process and route signals in a sustainable way, the researchers decided to pursue this further. The built an acoustic atom, a chip-scale device that can trap and control sound waves. 

“In nature, an atom has distinct energy levels that electrons can jump between,” said Linbo Shao, assistant professor at the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Virginia Tech, in a press release. 

“Our acoustic atom is a device with distinct energy levels for acoustic waves. Using electrical fields, we can drive transitions between these acoustic energy levels, mimicking real atoms.”

Building pathways for the future

The acoustic atom is a like a simulation of atomic-sized systems and lets researchers control their behavior. This helps them understand how signal processing works within quantum systems and how to control it for future applications. 

According to the researchers, their device will help in the development of highly sensitive sensing technologies, interfaces for quantum hardware, and analog computing systems. Additionally, it will help build smaller components for microwave communications and improve signal routing and filtering. 

Unlike electromagnetic waves, acoustic waves can be used over extremely small footprints while also retaining energy or information for much longer. 

““Right now, we’re using classical, coherent microwave sources to drive the acoustic waves. There’s a long way to get this down to the single phonon level, but we’re optimistic that all those will happen soon,” added Shao in the press release. 

“Ultimately, we hope this platform provides a new, highly compact way to process signals and perform analog acoustic computing directly on a chip.” 

The research findings were published in the journal Physical Review Letters today.

Big Carl, the world’s largest crane, lifted a 551-ton reactor pressure vessel (RPV) into place at Hinkley Point C in southwest England during construction of Unit 2 of the nuclear reactor. The lifting and installation operation took two days to complete and has already outpaced the construction of Unit 1, which began a year earlier. 

Even though nuclear energy is making a comeback in nations seeking to balance energy demand with carbon emissions, the Hinkley Point C nuclear power station has been in the works for over two decades.  The UK government had plans to expand nuclear power stations at the site way back in 1981. 

However, opposition to these plans delayed any major activity on the ground till the the late 2000s. French energy major EDF then partnered with China General Nuclear Power Group (CGN) in July 2016, with the project expected to be completed by 2025. Delays due to the COVID pandemic and Brexit have pushed the project completion to 2030, as engineers work on innovative ways to meet the deadline. 

Big Carl

On Thursday, 27th May, engineers began lifting the 500-tonne reactor pressure vessel (RPV) with the world’s largest land-based crane. Called Big Carl, the crane is a Sarens SGC-250, which can soar over 800 feet (250 m) high while lifting up to 5,000 tonnes. 

The RPV manufactured by Framatome’s Saint Marcel factory in France was shipped to the site in January this year. Deploying Big Carl, the engineers lifted the 42-foot (13 m) RPV inside the reactor building, where it was rotated to a vertical position by a large internal polar crane and then lowered onto a support ring. 

The operation lasted two days and involved clearances as little as 1.5 inches (40 mm) on either side. While Units 1 and 2 at Hinkley Point C are identical, engineers used a large temporary overhead lifting system to install the RPV for Unit 1. Deploying Big Carl on this occasion saved space, time, and money for the project.

Faster than Unit-1

Engineers at Hinkley Point C are using their first-hand experience from Unit 1 installations to speed up construction of Unit 2. Although construction for Unit 1 began in December 2018 and for Unit 2 in December 2019, Unit 2 is being built at up to 30 percent the speed of Unit 1. 

For instance, the Unit-2 reactor building now has three heat exchangers installed, whereas Unit-1 has none. The RPV is designed to generate steam and heat for the world’s largest turbines, which will eventually power six million homes. 

“This marks a tremendous achievement by the entire team and one that has taken months of planning and close coordination between the 10 main contractors involved,” said Simon Parsons, Hinkley Point C’s delivery director, in a statement. 

“We’ve also seen strong innovation to achieve not just a ‘cut and paste’ from the first reactor’s installation, but using our experience to save time, money and disruption to the site.”

The innovations at Hinkley Point C will also be used during the construction phase at Sizewell C, another nuclear power plant being built with EDF. Both Hinkley Point C and Sizewell C will feature EDF’s 3rd-generation 1,630-MW pressurized water reactors. 

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