Thin as paper!

MIT engineers have developed a paper-thin speaker that turns any surface into an active audio source

This membrane speaker uses a fraction of the energy required by conventional speakers, producing sound with minimal distortion

To achieve these properties, the researchers pioneered a deceptively simple fabrication technique that requires only three basic steps and can be scaled up to produce ultra-thin speakers large enough to cover the interior of a car or room

In this way, membrane speakers can provide active noise cancellation in noisy environments, such as aircraft cockpits, by producing sounds of the same amplitude but opposite phases

The new speaker simplifies speaker design by using a film of shaped piezoelectric material that moves when a voltage is applied to it, vibrating the air above it and producing sound

To overcome this problem, the research team rethought the design of the membrane speaker

This energy-efficient device requires only about 100 milliwatts of power per square meter of speaker area

The device also uses ultrasound to detect where a person is standing in a room, much like bats use echolocation, and then shapes the sound waves to follow the person as they move