A team of researchers has developed a detector that converts radio waves to light and reduces background noise better than current methods. The device was created by researchers at the Joint Quantum Institute (JQI) at the University of Maryland, the Niels Bohr Institute at the University of Copenhagen and the Technical University of Denmark.
The mechanical-electric device works when a radio wave strikes an antenna and a silicon-nitride membrane mechanically alters the shape into visible light waves in a consistent manner converting a radio signal into an optical signal. This device offers a new approach to detecting and strengthening signals for communications, navigation, astronomy, medical imaging and other applications.
Read more about the device being developed to convert radio waves into light waves.
