Planar Microphone Based on Piezoelectric Electrospun Poly(gamma-benzyl-alpha, L-glutamate) Nanofibers

Unmet Need
Modern velocity and pressure microphones are highly sensitive instruments. Exposure to extreme heat, pressure, water, or detritus can cause the instruments to fail. Although specialized microphones for use in extreme conditions do exist, they are expensive to manufacture, difficult to produce, and single purpose (i.e. water proof or heat resistant but not both). Despite their high costs these specialized microphones are still prone to distortion, phantom sounds, and low quality registers.

Technology Overview
By adhering a single layer of piezoelectric poly(γ-benzyl-a, L-glutamate) nanofiber film to a Mylar diaphragm, researchers at Johns Hopkins have developed a new microphone transducer that is substantially more durable in extreme conditions. These transducers are simple to fabricate, relatively cheap, and highly stable and wear-resistant. Additionally, even in extreme conditions these microphones produce clear, high quality recordings with a response of +3 dB between 200Hz and 4 kHz. These could present a viable alternative to expensive and difficult to fabricate microphones currently in use.

Stage of Development
Functional prototype, initial testing

Publications
Planar microphone based on piezoelectric electrospun poly(γ-benzyl-?,L-glutamate) nanofibers
 

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