Mesoporous Thin Films for Acoustic Devices in the Gigahertz Range

The coherent manipulation of acoustic waves on the nanoscale usually requires multilayers with thicknesses and interface roughness defined down to the atomic monolayer. This results in expensive devices with predetermined functionality. Nanoscale mesoporous materials present a high surface-to-volume ratio and tailorable mesopores, which allow the incorporation of chemical functionalization to nanoacoustics. However, the presence of pores with sizes comparable to the acoustic wavelength is intuitively perceived as a major roadblock in nanoacoustics. Here, we present multilayered nanoacoustic resonators based on mesoporous SiO2 thin films showing acoustic resonances in the 5-100 GHz range. We characterize the acoustic response of the system using coherent phonon generation experiments. Despite resonance wavelengths comparable to the pore size, we observe for the first time well-defined acoustic resonances. Our results open the path to a promising platform for nanoacoustic sensing and reconfigurable acoustic nanodevices based on soft, inexpensive fabrication methods.