Created by sebastien.popoff on 04/11/2014
A microwave spatial modulator to improve in-home WiFi
[N. Kaina et al., Sci. Rep. (2014)] Wavefront shaping is not limited to optical waves. Similar techniques can be used for any kind of wave for which one can control dynamically the phase over a large number of independent elements. In [N. Kaina et al., Sci. Rep. (2014)], the authors demonstrate the use of their Spatial Microwave Modulator (SMM) to control the propagation of radiofrequency waves inside a room to improve the WiFi signal at any chosen position. The system is passive as there is no energy transfer from the modulator to the WiFi signal, it only controls the local phase of the waves reflected off the modulator. The device is thin and has the typical size of a small poster, it can be conveniently placed on the wall of a typical room without any loss of space. |