Moving an object in a three-dimensional space through a complex system of acoustic levitation scientists move objects using acoustic levitation

Japanese scientists have achieved success in moving an object in a three-dimensional space through a complex system of acoustic levitation, surpassing previous research endeavors that lifted the objects in two dimensions. In order to move expanded polystyrene particles of 0.6 mm and 2 mm in diameter, the Japanese scientists at the University of Tokyo and the Nagoya Institute of Technology had to place the objects inside a complex set-up of four arrays of speakers. “We considered extended acoustic manipulation whereby millimeter-sized particles were levitated and moved three-dimensionally by localized ultrasonic standing waves, which were generated by ultrasonic phased arrays,” the study stated.