Scientists at McGill University in Montreal have built a very small device that can make controlled bursts of quantum vibrations called phonons. These vibrations are like very tiny, high-frequency sound particles that move inside solid materials. The new device gives scientists a better way to create and control phonons, which is hard to do.

The team made this device by using a thin layer of special material and sending a strong electric current through it. The moving electrons lost energy and created phonons inside the crystal, especially at extremely cold temperatures just above absolute zero.

Thanks to this invention, scientists now have a new way to study how energy moves in high-tech materials. This result is important because it could one day help make new types of sound-based lasers for medical tools or future communication devices.