NIST tunes 'metasurface' with fluid in new concept for sensing and chemistry
Wednesday, June 8, 2011 - 09:30
in Physics & Chemistry
(PhysOrg.com) -- Like an opera singer hitting a note that shatters a glass, a signal at a particular resonant frequency can concentrate energy in a material and change its properties. And as with 18th century "musical glasses," adding a little water can change the critical pitch. Echoing both phenomena, researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have demonstrated a unique fluid-tuned "metasurface," a concept that may be useful in biomedical sensors and microwave-assisted chemistry.