Researchers say tracking and analyzing these waves can not only help spot submarines, but also collect important information such as noise signatures and submarine models.
The project team at the National Defense Technology University said the technology has “great potential for applications in underwater ship detection and other fields.” Their study was published in the Chinese-language peer-reviewed journal Journal of Radars on August 11.
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Terahertz is a frequency range between microwave and infrared radiation. Terahertz technology has been proposed as a potential solution to enable high data rates and low latency in next generation communication technology (6G).
Electromagnetic signals in this range not only carry more information than existing communication methods, but can also gather information about the environment. For example, some airports in China use terahertz screening equipment to detect illegal items hidden under passengers’ clothes.
Generating strong terahertz signals used to be difficult, but thanks to increased investment in 6G in recent years, scientists in China and other countries are making breakthrough advances that will enable mass applications of this technology. I accomplished that.
Chinese scientists discover ‘new solution’ that could track US submarines
Chinese scientists discover ‘new solution’ that could track US submarines
Advances could allow terahertz undersea probes to be small enough to be mounted on drones, the Chinese team says.
“Small unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) platforms have the advantages of superior maneuverability, low cost, and flexible deployment,” they wrote in their paper.
It also has the potential to work in conjunction with other submarine detection methods such as magnetic anomaly detectors (MAD), microwave radar, and lasers.
“As a complement to existing detection methods, it can provide critical information for submarine detection and identification,” they added.
The paper did not say when the test took place, but said it took place at an unspecified location off the coast of the city of Dalian in the northeastern Yellow Sea. According to their paper, the weather at the time of the test was clear, but the crashing waves created a lot of foam.
Military scientists used artificial sound sources to simulate the noise made by submarines. To mimic the flight of a drone, the submarine probe was carried by the research vessel’s extended arm.
When a submarine travels at high speed, it “generates significant radiated noise, which is transmitted to the water surface and causes surface vibrations,” the researchers said.
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However, by the time the disturbance reaches the surface, it has become extremely weak. It was previously thought impossible to separate it from the natural waves of the sea.
In this test, the terahertz sensor detected man-made ripples with amplitudes ranging from 10 to 100 nanometers, depending on ocean conditions.
The team said this result was a miracle of both hardware and software.
The high frequency of terahertz waves makes it extremely sensitive. Chinese scientists say they have also developed the world’s first algorithm that can effectively identify nanometer-sized ripples in rolling oceans.
The same technology could also be used for undersea communications.
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Submarines may need to establish contact with friendly aircraft to coordinate their movements in large-scale military operations. The captain was able to encode messages into surface vibrations that were too small for enemy forces to detect.
“By detecting acoustically induced surface vibration signals, it is possible to reverse the information conveyed by underwater sound sources,” the researchers said.
Results from sea trials suggest that terahertz technology “has high signal resolution” in cross-medium communications, which remains a challenge for the Navy, they said.
6G technology has also been used in other short-range communication experiments between water and air, which have also been successful.
