Is It Possible to Hear Light?
Professor of Physics & Astronomy David Jackson, with an array of equipment.
Faculty physics project attempts to hear light
by Tony Moore
Curiosity drives everything at Dickinson. In labs, studios, archives and communities around the world, students and faculty are asking questions big and small—and often finding surprising answers. Here's a look at a current query.
Department: Physics & Astronomy
Researcher: Professor of Physics David Jackson
Project:
"How to hear light": Is it possible to hear light? At first glance, it’s not clear whether this question even makes sense, but Jackson constructed an apparatus in which you can hear music simply by shining a light into your ear (video below; and for the full experience, check out Jackson's YouTube channel, All Things Physics, where he breaks down this project and many others).
Why it matters:
“Radio transmission is accomplished by modulating the amplitude or frequency of radio waves using an audio signal, such as music. Using the same basic principles, it’s possible to construct an AM radio using visible light by using a solar panel as the antenna. But what’s truly fascinating is that we can also use a photo-acoustic transducer to transform amplitude-modulated light directly into sound. In fact, even your ear can act as a photo-acoustic transducer, making it possible to hear music by shining a light directly into your ear.”
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Published July 7, 2026