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January 17, 2026, 3:12 PM EST. Engineers have created a surface acoustic waves (SAWs)-based phonon laser that could shrink seismic-style vibrations to a single microchip. The device generates controlled vibrations at high frequencies by directing waves along a surface. Led by Matt Eichenfield at the University of Colorado Boulder with colleagues from the University of Arizona and Sandia National Laboratories, the work was published January 14 in Nature. Unlike prior SAW systems that require two chips and an external power source, the new design fits on one chip and could run on a battery, enabling smaller, faster, and more energy-efficient smartphone electronics. Lead author Alexander Wendt describes the approach as a miniature earthquake on a chip, illustrating the potential for future chips to manage vibrations directly.