MIT's piezoelectric fibers can act as speaker or microphone, don't mind auto-tune

Piezoelectric materials work quite simply, in theory -- motion in, electricity out, or vice versa -- and since that's just how speakers and microphones transmit their sound, it's not much of a stretch to imagine someone would figure out audio on a micron scale. That someone is MIT's Yoel Fink, who's reportedly engineered a marvelous process for producing fibers that can detect and emit sound. Following up their famous work on flexible cameras, Fink's team discovered they could keep piezoelectric strands rigid enough to produce audible vibrations by inserting graphite, AKA pencil lead. Better yet, the lab process can apparently make the threads on a fairly large scale, "yielding tens of metres of piezoelectric fibre" at a single draw. The potential for fabric made from such fibers is fantastic, of course -- especially combined with this particular scientist's previous research into camera cloth.

[cloud858rk Posted Jul 13th 2010 7:51AM]

Time to stockpile on clothes while they still don't have sewen in wiretaps.

[Slygathor Posted Jul 13th 2010 8:01AM]

@cloud858rk
Oh man, never thought about. THE GUVMENT'S OUT TO GET MAH BABY!

[grub Posted Jul 13th 2010 8:27AM]

@cloud858rk If they embed this stuff in tinfoil what will I make my hats from?!

[Joe Geronimo Posted Jul 13th 2010 8:36AM]

@grub Bacteria?

[roggit Posted Jul 13th 2010 8:04AM]

ALL speakers can act as microphones (and vice versa). duh duh

[jjeremycai Posted Jul 13th 2010 8:33AM]

@roggit
Actually... not really.

[Smart People Play Tuba Posted Jul 13th 2010 8:36AM]

I could see this being incorporated in Bond's next gadget: a tux that IS the microphone! And Daniel Craig just lifts his arms, a smug smile on his face while they frisk him.

(. . . that is, if they ever get the next Bond film off the ground. Frickin' MGM.)

[Shawn Posted Jul 13th 2010 8:38AM]

I always love reading these stories that come from the guys at MIT. They seriously have some of the smartest people in the world there.

[boxieblue Posted Jul 13th 2010 9:43AM]

now i really wish i was studying in MIT...but i am probably not bright enough :(