This is the first prototype photonic guitar. A photonic guitar works like an acoustic instrument but instead of the resonance of wood and acoustic vibrations it uses the resonance of electricity and electromagnetic waves (light). I first created this guitar as a design tool for electric guitars before I fully recognized the significance of the underlying physics. It wasn't just like a guitar, it is a guitar. I suspect some people reading this don't believe me but that's ok, neither did my old physics grad school at first. Same with the patent office. I've linked an article about me from the Dallas Morning News.
While the photonic guitar produces music it doesn't produce sounds. The waves it creates are electromagnetic (light). While electric guitars match the same frequency as an acoustic guitar, the photonic guitar matches the same physical wave size. So the 20 Hz - 20 kHz audible range is equivalent to 20 MHz - 20 GHz. We can't see those waves either. So I created a guitar plugin, a physics based model for the photonic guitar driven by measurements, to recreate and apply the photonic musical effect to electric guitars.
For years I could only wonder what the photonic guitar was going to sound like. From physics I would argue it would have properties of an acoustic guitar. Both systems satisfy the wave equation and have the same boundary conditions. In practice I'm most surprised by the impact it has on distortion, noise, and feed forward. Feed forward is analogous to feedback but doesn't require holding the guitar up to the amp speaker. That and the fact that the guitar itself can produce a delay effect. I've linked to one of my favorite demos so far.
Looks cool!
Okay, I'll bite. What makes this a guitar rather than a synth or other electric music component?
What makes this an instrument even, if you can't make music using your own body?
Also, would you call a piano a type of guitar? It's just a bunch of strings tied to a resonating body after all.
Forgot to mention that the size and shape of an acoustic guitar dictates its resonances. The same thing with a photonic guitar. By making a photonic guitar the same size and shape as an acoustic the photonic guitar will resonate at the same wavelengths.
Note I can also make a photonic piano. Ideally we’d use coaxial cables for the strings. Photonic instruments use the resonance of electricity in the same way an acoustic piano uses the mechanical resonance of a string.
I started with a guitar since I’m more guitarist than pianist. Also guitars are cheaper and smaller to construct. Incidentally a photonic piano would be easier to play directly than a photonic guitar since the musician string interaction for the piano is mediated by the keys. Conversion between em waves to audio would still be required though so there will always be tech required.
Cool!
Are these resonances in the guitar body itself, or in electric wires inside the body, or some third thing? Would changing the shape of the body necessarily change the resonant frequencies, or is it only certain parts of the body that are involved in that?
The resonances are in the guitar body itself. Either in the metal plates, directly as electric current, or via electromagnetic waves in the guitar cavity.
Changing the shape will change the resonant frequencies.
So the photonic guitar is an acoustic like instrument that uses the resonance of a physical field that we wouldn’t normally have access to. The photonic guitar can be played similar to an acoustic we just aren’t well suited to direct play. The timescale is a million times faster plus we can’t hear the music that is created. The photonic guitar differs from other electronic equipment as electrical instruments make waves at acoustic frequencies (20 Hz - 20 kHz) while the photonic guitar operates in a range a million times higher (20 MHz - 20 GHz) which physically allows for resonant waves in a guitar sized body.
I call this a guitar because it is guitar shaped, and not shaped like a piano.
Interesting.
How would this be done in theory?
We also find that kind of resonances other places, e.g. radio antennae or the optical cavities of lasers. Are those also a type of photonic guitar? Or maybe photonic strings?
Haha, makes sense. Would it be a flute if it was flute shaped?
In theory the photonic guitar would be played like an acoustic. The strings would be a coaxial cable. To excite a resonance we’d need to apply an electrical impulse to the ‘string’, like by using a charged guitar pick. We’d get different notes by changing the effective length of the coax cable. We could probably do this with a standard guitar neck but we’d need to electrically ground the frets. The biggest hurdle is simply that the music for a photonic guitar is a million times faster. Requires a ton of scale practice for speed ;)
I’d say the antenna and laser cavity would be closer to a string.
Yep, if we made a flute shaped photonic instrument it’s response would be flute like.