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Nanoscale Horizons Jul 2022Different from the traditional concept that binary photonic crystals can only reproduce mixed colors due to the simple superposition of the photonic band gaps, precisely...
Different from the traditional concept that binary photonic crystals can only reproduce mixed colors due to the simple superposition of the photonic band gaps, precisely addressable "true colors" obtained from volume fraction deviation of binary photonic crystals with metastable structures are reported here. Inspired by the mussels' adhesion and longhorn beetles' photonic scales, a binary metastable amorphous photonic crystal was obtained by enhancing the driving forces and customizing the surface roughness of building blocks to regulate the thermodynamic and dynamic factors simultaneously. By controlling the volume fraction of two building blocks, the tunable photonic bandgap varies linearly in the visible region. Furthermore, the "true violet" that cannot be obtained by conventional color mixing is reproduced with the particular ultraviolet characteristics of red photonic pigment's metastable structures, which complement the palette effect of "true colors". Meanwhile, due to the self-adhesion and post-modification of building blocks, the stability of photonic pigments is further improved. The binary photonic pigments not only solve the dilemma of mixed colors, but also realize the tunability and multiplicity of "true colors", offering a new choice for the color palette of the world.
Topics: Animals; Coleoptera; Optics and Photonics; Photons; Pigmentation
PubMed: 35815919
DOI: 10.1039/d2nh00232a -
Optics Express Jun 2015Single-photon (SP) sources are important for a number of optical quantum information processing applications. We study the possibility to integrate triggered solid-state...
Single-photon (SP) sources are important for a number of optical quantum information processing applications. We study the possibility to integrate triggered solid-state SP emitters directly on a photonic chip. A major challenge consists in efficiently extracting their emission into a single guided mode. Using 3D finite-difference time-domain simulations, we investigate the SP emission from dipole-like nanometer-sized inclusions embedded into different silicon nitride (SiNx) photonic nanowire waveguide designs. We elucidate the effect of the geometry on the emission lifetime and the polarization of the emitted SP. The results show that highly efficient and polarized SP sources can be realized using suspended SiNx slot-waveguides. Combining this with the well-established CMOS-compatible processing technology, fully integrated and complex optical circuits for quantum optics experiments can be developed.
Topics: Computer Simulation; Optics and Photonics; Photons; Silicon Compounds
PubMed: 26072744
DOI: 10.1364/OE.23.013713 -
Physical Review Letters Aug 2007We show numerically that vector antenna arrays can generate radio beams that exhibit spin and orbital angular momentum characteristics similar to those of helical...
We show numerically that vector antenna arrays can generate radio beams that exhibit spin and orbital angular momentum characteristics similar to those of helical Laguerre-Gauss laser beams in paraxial optics. For low frequencies (< or = 1 GHz), digital techniques can be used to coherently measure the instantaneous, local field vectors and to manipulate them in software. This enables new types of experiments that go beyond what is possible in optics. It allows information-rich radio astronomy and paves the way for novel wireless communication concepts.
Topics: Light; Motion; Optics and Photonics; Photons
PubMed: 17930983
DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.99.087701 -
Nano Letters Feb 2022Nanoparticle-on-mirror plasmonic nanocavities, capable of extreme optical confinement and enhancement, have triggered state-of-the-art progress in nanophotonics and...
Nanoparticle-on-mirror plasmonic nanocavities, capable of extreme optical confinement and enhancement, have triggered state-of-the-art progress in nanophotonics and development of applications in enhanced spectroscopies. However, the optical quality factor and thus performance of these nanoconstructs are undermined by the granular polycrystalline metal films (especially when they are optically thin) used as a mirror. Here, we report an atomically smooth single-crystalline platform for low-loss nanocavities using chemically synthesized gold microflakes as a mirror. Nanocavities constructed using gold nanorods on such microflakes exhibit a rich structure of plasmonic modes, which are highly sensitive to the thickness of optically thin (down to ∼15 nm) microflakes. The microflakes endow nanocavities with significantly improved quality factor (∼2 times) and scattering intensity (∼3 times) compared with their counterparts based on deposited films. The developed low-loss nanocavities further allow for the integration with a mature platform of fiber optics, opening opportunities for realizing nanocavity-based miniaturized photonic devices for practical applications.
Topics: Gold; Nanoparticles; Nanotubes; Optics and Photonics; Photons
PubMed: 35129980
DOI: 10.1021/acs.nanolett.2c00095 -
Macromolecular Rapid Communications Jul 2022Living organisms have evolved fascinating structural colors to survive in complex natural environments. Artificial photonic composites developed by imitating the... (Review)
Review
Living organisms have evolved fascinating structural colors to survive in complex natural environments. Artificial photonic composites developed by imitating the structural colors of organisms are applied in displaying, sensing, biomedicine, and many other fields. As emerging materials, photonic composites mediated by supramolecular chemistry, namely, supramolecular photonic composites, are designed and constructed to meet emerging application needs and challenges. This review mainly introduces the constructive strategies, properties, and applications of supramolecular photonic composites. First, constructive strategies of supramolecular photonic composites are summarized, including the introduction of supramolecular polymers into colloidal photonic array templates, coassembly of colloidal particles (CPs) with supramolecular polymers, self-assembly of soft CPs, and compounding photonic elastomers with functional substances via supramolecular interactions. Supramolecular interactions endow photonic composites with attractive properties, such as stimuli-responsiveness and healability. Subsequently, the unique optical and mechanical properties of supramolecular photonic composites are summarized, and their applications in emerging fields, such as colorful coatings, real-time and visual motion monitoring, and biochemical sensors, are introduced. Finally, challenges and perspectives in supramolecular photonic composites are discussed. This article provides general strategies and considerations for the design of photonic materials based on supramolecular chemistry.
Topics: Elastomers; Optics and Photonics; Photons
PubMed: 35255176
DOI: 10.1002/marc.202100867 -
Journal of the Optical Society of... Jun 2022Anomalous radiative transfer (ART) theory represents a generalization of classical radiative transfer theory. The present tutorial aims to show how Monte Carlo (MC)...
Anomalous radiative transfer (ART) theory represents a generalization of classical radiative transfer theory. The present tutorial aims to show how Monte Carlo (MC) codes describing the transport of photons in anomalous media can be implemented. We show that the heart of the method involves suitably describing, in a "non-classical" manner, photon steps starting from fixed light sources or from boundaries separating regions of the medium with different optical properties. To give a better sense of the importance of these particular photon step lengths, we also show numerically that the described approach is essential in preserving the invariance property for light propagation. An interesting byproduct of the MC method for ART is that it allows us to simplify the structure of "classical" MC codes, utilized, for example, in biomedical optics.
Topics: Computer Simulation; Monte Carlo Method; Optics and Photonics; Photons; Scattering, Radiation
PubMed: 36215535
DOI: 10.1364/JOSAA.454463 -
Optics Express Jul 2008Acousto-optic deflectors (AOD) are promising ultrafast scanners for non-linear microscopy. Their use has been limited until now by their small scanning range and by the...
Acousto-optic deflectors (AOD) are promising ultrafast scanners for non-linear microscopy. Their use has been limited until now by their small scanning range and by the spatial and temporal dispersions of the laser beam going through the deflectors. We show that the use of AOD of large aperture (13mm) compared to standard deflectors allows accessing much larger field of view while minimizing spatio-temporal distortions. An acousto-optic modulator (AOM) placed at distance of the AOD is used to compensate spatial and temporal dispersions. Fine tuning of the AOM-AOD setup using a frequency-resolved optical gating (GRENOUILLE) allows elimination of pulse front tilt whereas spatial chirp is minimized thanks to the large aperture AOD.
Topics: Acoustics; Equipment Design; Lasers; Microscopy; Optics and Photonics; Photons; Refractometry; Time Factors
PubMed: 18607414
DOI: 10.1364/oe.16.010066 -
Optics Letters Sep 2022Conventional total internal reflection fluorescence (TIRF) microscopy requires either an oil-immersed objective with high numerical aperture or a bulky prism with high...
Conventional total internal reflection fluorescence (TIRF) microscopy requires either an oil-immersed objective with high numerical aperture or a bulky prism with high refractive index to generate the evanescent waves that work as the illumination source for fluorophores. Precise alignment of the optical path is necessary for optimizing the imaging performance of TIRF microscopy, which increases the operation complexity. In this Letter, a planar photonic chip composed of a dielectric multilayer and a scattering layer is proposed to replace the TIRF objective or the prism. The uniform evanescent waves can be excited under uncollimated incidence through this chip, which simplifies the alignment of the optical configurations and provides shadowless illumination. Due to the separation of the illumination and detection light paths, TIRF microscopy can have a large field-of-view (FOV).
Topics: Lighting; Microscopy, Fluorescence; Optics and Photonics; Photons; Refractometry
PubMed: 36048639
DOI: 10.1364/OL.460496 -
Nano Letters Aug 2022Hybrid integration of van der Waals materials on a photonic platform enables diverse exploration of novel active functions and significant improvement in device...
Hybrid integration of van der Waals materials on a photonic platform enables diverse exploration of novel active functions and significant improvement in device performance for next-generation integrated photonic circuits, but developing waveguide-integrated photodetectors based on conventionally investigated transition metal dichalcogenide materials at the full optical telecommunication bands and mid-infrared range is still a challenge. Here, we integrate PdSe with silicon waveguide for on-chip photodetection with a high responsivity from 1260 to 1565 nm, a low noise-equivalent power of 4.0 pW·Hz, a 3-dB bandwidth of 1.5 GHz, and a measured data rate of 2.5 Gbit·s. The achieved PdSe photodetectors provide new insights to explore the integration of novel van der Waals materials with integrated photonic platforms and exhibit great potential for diverse applications over a broad infrared range of wavelengths, such as on-chip sensing and spectroscopy.
Topics: Equipment Design; Optics and Photonics; Photons; Silicon; Telecommunications
PubMed: 35787028
DOI: 10.1021/acs.nanolett.2c02099 -
The Analyst Jan 2018Modern quantum technology currently experiences extensive advances in applicability in communications, cryptography, computing, metrology and lithography. Harnessing... (Review)
Review
Modern quantum technology currently experiences extensive advances in applicability in communications, cryptography, computing, metrology and lithography. Harnessing this technology platform for chem/bio sensing scenarios is an appealing opportunity enabling ultra-sensitive detection schemes. This is further facilliated by the progress in fabrication, miniaturization and integration of visible and infrared quantum photonics. Especially, the combination of efficient single-photon sources together with waveguiding/sensing structures, serving as active optical transducer, as well as advanced detector materials is promising integrated quantum photonic chem/bio sensors. Besides the intrinsic molecular selectivity and non-destructive character of visible and infrared light based sensing schemes, chem/bio sensors taking advantage of non-classical light sources promise sensitivities beyond the standard quantum limit. In the present review, recent achievements towards on-chip chem/bio quantum photonic sensing platforms based on N00N states are discussed along with appropriate recognition chemistries, facilitating the detection of relevant (bio)analytes at ultra-trace concentration levels. After evaluating recent developments in this field, a perspective for a potentially promising sensor testbed is discussed for reaching integrated quantum sensing with two fiber-coupled GaAs chips together with semiconductor quantum dots serving as single-photon sources.
Topics: Biosensing Techniques; Infrared Rays; Light; Optics and Photonics; Photons; Quantum Dots; Semiconductors
PubMed: 29260151
DOI: 10.1039/c7an01011g