Acoustophoresis: Acoustic Levitation in Volumetric Displays

R&D in sound-driven object levitation for immersive spaces

Summary

Iterating on the research of Asier Marzo, I developed a device capable of levitating small objects for the purpose of immersive displays. The effect is mesmerizing in person, with objects pinned or rotating in the air without touching anything. This is done through acoustophoresis, or acoustic trapping. Each little black component you see on the surface can be thought of as a tiny speaker, and with involved control over the phase, amplitude, and frequency of the individual speakers, you can control the movement of the little objects hovering between them.  Acoustic nodes are formed by such a configuration- tiny areas of low pressure surrounded by an area of high pressure, keeping objects in the low pressure area.

Key Contribution: Designed and built an acoustic levitation device using phased ultrasonic transducer arrays, enabling precise mid-air trapping and manipulation of small objects through real-time control of phase, amplitude, and frequency for immersive display applications.

Skills

Volumetric and Mid-Air Display R&D ▪︎ Immersive Experience Design ▪︎ Acoustic Levitation & Acoustophoresis ▪︎ Ultrasonic Phased Arrays ▪︎ Phase, Amplitude & Frequency Control ▪︎ Spatial Field Synthesis ▪︎ Beamforming ▪︎ Experimental Acoustics ▪︎ Implementing Academic Research ▪︎ Rapid Prototyping for Physical Experiments

You may also be interested in:

‘Deep Gerchberg-Saxton’: A Physics Informed Neural Network Architecture

A novel deep learning approach to Volumetric Phase Retrieval problems; applied to immersive displays

F.R.I.D.A

A Star Wars-inspired animatronic with face tracking eyes and LLM-enabled communication

Ocean Site One

Lead Engineer for an International Event, Turning a Large Format 360° Video into a Touchscreen-Like Explorable World Using Computer Vision

Fluid Simulation OpenGL Engine

OpenGL volume rendering engine for investigating acoustic fields in density dependent immersive displays.

Life in India

A documentation of my time and life at a university in Bangalore, India.

Pastel and Mixed Media Impressions

A collection of a recent movement in my art: impressionistic and figurative works with oil pastel, ink, and water soluble pastel.

Top

Nathan Gollay Portfolio