Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · 1 September 2026 · From issue 30
Experimentally controlling scattering of water waves in correlated disorder
Water waves flowed almost untouched through a specially patterned messy surface instead of scattering.
Angélique Campaniello, Rémi Carminati et al.
A specially arranged messy pattern let long water waves pass through almost untouched, instead of scattering them. Scientists built a flat surface with bumps placed in this special messy but balanced pattern. They tracked water ripples moving across it and measured exactly where waves stayed strong and where they faded. The waves switched cleanly from bouncing all over the place to flowing through smoothly, matching a prediction that had never been directly measured before.
Shows a lab-made transition from scattering waves to smooth, clear wave flow.
Water-wave lab test only, not yet shown for light or sound.
Integrity screen: passed (3 checks) Checked 2 September 2026. Retraction record: none. DOI resolves at doi.org. Metadata record found (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences). Read the source
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