July 02, 2026
Trine University’s Allen School of Engineering and Computing hosted a seminar by Hideki Arahari, Ph.D., of Basic Research Laboratories at NTT, Inc. in Japan, on Monday, June 29.
NTT is one of the world’s largest telecommunications companies.
Dr. Arahari’s seminar was followed by presentations of research by Trine University mechanical engineering majors Maranda Padfield of Kokomo, Indiana, Janna Wilson of Kokomo, Indiana, Nicholas Ewing of Wabash, Indiana, and Nathan Stefanski of Almont, Michigan.
The students have been conducting research, guided by James Miller, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Wade Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, and funded by the National Science Foundation, into microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) resonators, vibrating silicon structures that are smaller than the width of a human hair.
The research seeks to develop techniques to make the resonance frequencies of MEMS resonators more stable by utilizing controlled mechanical tension, nonlinear operation and amplifier circuit design to improve their performance.
One technique investigates whether tuning the tension on the resonators — similar to tightening a guitar string to tune it — will make their frequencies more stable. This work has applications for improved timekeeping devices, which are ubiquitous in modern technology such as smartphones, computers and data centers.
Dr. Arahari has conducted related research in the field, studying microscale optomechanical resonators that introduce coupling between laser light and mechanical vibrations to control the nonlinear damping — a kind of energy loss in vibrating systems that depends on how large the vibrations are.
Controlling nonlinear damping will accelerate fundamental studies of nonlinear dynamics and also has applications for stabilizing the vibration amplitude of next-generation timekeeping devices.
Dr. Arahari discussed his recent experimental and theoretical research at NTT, which showed that carefully controlling the coupling between coupled optical and mechanical modes, and between coupled mechanical modes, can tune the nonlinear damping of the mechanical vibrations.
The seminars were attended by Trine University faculty from multiple departments.
A Trine University civil engineering graduate was part of a team that developed a project that earned top honors from the Indiana Section of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) this spring.
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As we prepare to celebrate the 250th anniversary of our great nation’s independence, it’s helpful to look at the role higher education played in our founding and reaffirm how it helps us continue to thrive as a nation.