RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS
379
NYCU
Number of Academic Papers
Published by Students or Exhibition
Activities Organized by Students
- Update Date：2025-04-01
- Units：Office of International Promotion and Outreach
NYCU Develops Hair-Thin Fiber-Optic Microphone for Clear, Interference-Free Sound Transmission
Professor Cheng-Yang Liu of NYCU unveils a groundbreaking fiber-optic microphone as thin as a human hair, capable of capturing clear sound signals while resisting electromagnetic interference—paving the way for advancements in mobile and medical applications.
Translated by Szu-Yung Huang
Edited by Hsiu-Cheng Faina Chang
______
Edited by Hsiu-Cheng Faina Chang
______
National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University (NYCU) has showcased a fiber-optic microphone as thin as a human hair. Despite its minimal size, this microphone can accurately capture sound signals, making it highly valuable for use in mobile phones, wearable devices, cochlear implants, hearing aids, and various other electronic products.
Traditional microphones are highly susceptible to electromagnetic interference, which leads to unclear sound signals due to added noise. To address this issue, Professor Cheng-Yang Liu's research team from the Department of Biomedical Engineering at NYCU, in collaboration with Dr. Po-Hung Li, the director of the Otolaryngology at Cheng Hsin General Hospital, and the Taiwan Instrument Research Institute (TIRI), has successfully developed a fiber-optic microphone.
Unlike traditional microphones, this innovative microphone utilizes optical fibers to transmit signals, effectively avoiding electromagnetic interference from mental components. It maintains stable and precise sound transmission, even in environments with strong electromagnetic fields.
The research team integrated cut single-mode optical fibers with capillaries and hydrogel films to fabricate and evaluate thin films composed of polyethylene glycol diacrylate (PEGDA) and graphene oxide. They evaluated the effects of various hydrogel concentrations on the thickness and mechanical properties of the microphone, leading to the development of this fiber-optic microphone.
Traditional microphones are highly susceptible to electromagnetic interference, which leads to unclear sound signals due to added noise. To address this issue, Professor Cheng-Yang Liu's research team from the Department of Biomedical Engineering at NYCU, in collaboration with Dr. Po-Hung Li, the director of the Otolaryngology at Cheng Hsin General Hospital, and the Taiwan Instrument Research Institute (TIRI), has successfully developed a fiber-optic microphone.
Unlike traditional microphones, this innovative microphone utilizes optical fibers to transmit signals, effectively avoiding electromagnetic interference from mental components. It maintains stable and precise sound transmission, even in environments with strong electromagnetic fields.
The research team integrated cut single-mode optical fibers with capillaries and hydrogel films to fabricate and evaluate thin films composed of polyethylene glycol diacrylate (PEGDA) and graphene oxide. They evaluated the effects of various hydrogel concentrations on the thickness and mechanical properties of the microphone, leading to the development of this fiber-optic microphone.
NYCU's fiber-optic microphone eliminates electromagnetic interference, ensuring clear and stable sound transmission.
Due to its tiny size, this microphone is ideal for use in hearing aids, cochlear implants, mobile phones, and other medical and consumer electronics. It has significant commercial potential in fields such as photoacoustic imaging, health monitoring, nondestructive testing, and medical clinical applications.
Professor Liu stated that this microphone effectively covers a wide range of human hearing frequencies, accurately capturing sounds between 100 to 10,000 Hz while minimizing background noise—almost completely eliminating the "hiss" often heard with traditional headphones. Even after continuous eight-hour signal measurements, the deviation remained stable. He emphasized that the primary advantages of the fiber-optic microphone are its simple structure, low cost, and reliable signal transmission. Additionally, since it contains no metal components, it is immune to electromagnetic interference, making it suitable for mass production.
The fiber-optic microphone represents a technological breakthrough and offers a new solution to the issue of electromagnetic interference found in traditional microphones. The research findings have been published in the prestigious optics journal Optics & Laser Technology.
The research findings have been published in the journal Optics & Laser Technology, presenting a breakthrough solution to electromagnetic interference and ensuring clear, stable sound for medical and consumer applications.
Related Image(s)：
-
Cover image
-
NYCU's fiber-optic microphone eliminates electromagnetic interference, ensuring clear and stable sound transmission.
-
The research findings have been published in the journal Optics & Laser Technology, presenting a breakthrough solution to electromagnetic interference and ensuring clear, stable sound for medical and consumer applications.
