Scientists in China were surprised to discover that if you feed electricity through a thin film of carbon nanotubes, you can produce sound, essentially turning any object into a talking or singing entity by weaving these carbon nanotubes into fabrics or covering an object with thin film. Imagine singing flags, talking shirts and jackets, talking Russian kitch-those nested Putin dolls (horiffic) etc-- combine that with other smart sensors and you have a whole new feedback systems and man-machine interface--talking warrenties that alert you of unwanted conditions, failure or pending damage in a system...the possibilities are endless and so may be the new sources of noise pollution.
Flexible, Stretchable, Transparent Carbon Nanotube Thin Film Loudspeakers
Abstract:
We found that very thin carbon nanotube films, once fed by sound frequency electric currents, could emit loud sounds. This phenomenon could be attributed to a thermoacoustic effect. The ultra small heat capacity per unit area of carbon nanotube thin films leads to a wide frequency response range and a high sound pressure level. On the basis of this finding, we made practical carbon nanotube thin film loudspeakers, which possess the merits of nanometer thickness and are transparent, flexible, stretchable, and magnet-free. Such a single-element thin film loudspeaker can be tailored into any shape and size, freestanding or on any insulating surfaces, which could open up new applications of and approaches to manufacturing loudspeakers and other acoustic devices.
ETA: not stated, maybe 3-5 years?
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