A team of international scientists has made a groundbreaking discovery that allows them to manipulate water waves, enabling the precise movement of floating objects. The technique involves generating and merging complex surface patterns on the water’s surface, which can trap and guide nearby objects.
Researchers at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore conducted computer simulations before experimenting with 3D-printed plastic structures to generate waves. They tested small foam balls and a ping pong ball, observing their movement in response to the waves. By adjusting wave magnitude and frequency, they created complex patterns that trapped the balls, holding them in place or guiding them along precise circular paths.
The breakthrough has huge potential impact, as it could be used to guide boats along specific paths, explore data storage, and even study quantum phenomena. The researchers plan to scale down the technique to the micrometer level to study the movement of cells and particles, and they are also exploring its application in underwater environments.
This discovery is inspired by previous work on light waves that demonstrated how structured light waves could trap and move tiny particles. The team’s findings were published in the scientific journal Nature and open up new possibilities for using water waves in innovative ways.
Source: https://interestingengineering.com/science/scientists-bend-water-waves