Antennas Small Enough To Fit On A Chip Designed By Cambridge Engineers

With the latest research work coming out of University of Cambridge, their engineers seem to have found a breakthrough in electromagnetism. In the words the Cambridge Professor, Gehan Amaratunga, who led this research work, their findings could be the last missing piece in the puzzle of electronmagnetic theory. Developing antennas this small has been called the last frontier to be explored in the world of semiconductor design. If brought into practical use, this research could be a giant leap ahead for wireless connectivity. The engineering researchers working on this subject, recently published their results in the journal 'Physical Review Letters'. According to their study, they have put forward a concept that says - Electromagnetic waves are generated not only from the acceleration of electrons, but also from a phenomenon known as "symmetry breaking".

Not just in the field of wireless communications, but this discovery can also find implications in identifying the link between Electromagnetism and Quantum Mechanics. More than a 100 years ago, it was found that the radiation generated from electron acceleration resulted in electrons jumping from higher energy state to lower. However, this theory had no counterpart in quantum mechanics. With the latest observations of Cambridge University engineers, some insight about the radiation outputted due to electric field's broken symmetry may come forward.

In the last decade, the modern electronics has only made smaller and smaller devices. The size of these devices is reducing very rapidly and it seems that the antenna has not been able to cope with it. They are still very big in size and incompatible with electronic circuits. If the antennas are reduced in size, after a certain extent, their losses are too big. Engineers find it difficult to compromise wavelength for the transmission frequency of the application for the sake of reducing the antenna's size.


The electromagnetism theory that we know depends on acceleration of electrons. However, when electromagnets have to deal with radio wave emission from a dielectric solid, an insulating material, which doesn't let electrons move around freely. Even though that's the case, these dielectric resonators are already used as antennas in our smartphones. To understand the mystery behind how a dielectric medium results in emission of electromagnetic waves, the Cambridge team exposed thin films of piezoelectric materials to an asymmetric excitation and found that in addition to being efficient resonators, they became efficient radiators too. Therefore, it was found that they can be used as antennas as well.

In physics, 'symmetry' is a word used to signify a constant feature of a particular aspect in a system. When electrons aren't in motion, symmetry of electric field is established. The Cambridge researchers have determined that due to symmetry breaking of the electric field associated with the electron acceleration, their phenomenon exists.

Lastly, the team has shared the thin films of piezoelectric materials can be created using materials like lithium niobate, gallium nitride and gallium arsenide. What are your thoughts on this research work? Share with us in comments below.

Source: New understanding of electromagnetism could enable ‘antennas on a chip’ | University of Cambridge