- Editors' Suggestion
Coupling of a Nuclear Transition to a Surface Acoustic Wave
Phys. Rev. Lett. 136, 183801 – Published 5 May, 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/tc97-98f7
Abstract
Mechanical modulation of recoilless nuclear transitions allows the dynamic control of -ray emission and absorption. Accessing modulation frequencies well above the nuclear linewidth enables coherent manipulation of the nuclear response. Here we demonstrate high-frequency control via efficient coupling of a film of enriched to a 97.9 MHz surface acoustic wave, nearly 2 orders of magnitude higher than the nuclear linewidth. The mechanical drive produces a comb of absorption sidebands in the Mössbauer spectrum, reflecting the periodic time modulation of the nuclear transitions. This constitutes the highest frequency mechanically driven Mössbauer resonance to date. Our solid-state, monolithic platform establishes a new interface between nuclear transitions and high-frequency acoustics, with applications in -ray quantum optics and precision nuclear spectroscopy.