Abstract
We present an approach for achieving large Kerr χ(3)-mediated thermal energy transfer at the nanoscale that exploits a general coupled-mode description of triply resonant, four-wave mixing processes. We analyze the efficiency of thermal upconversion and energy transfer from mid- to near-infrared wavelengths in planar geometries involving two slabs supporting far-apart surface plasmon polaritons and separated by a nonlinear χ(3) medium that is irradiated by externally incident light. We study multiple geometric and material configurations and different classes of intervening mediums-either bulk or nanostructured lattices of nanoparticles embedded in nonlinear materials-designed to resonantly enhance the interaction of the incident light with thermal slab resonances. We find that even when the entire system is in thermodynamic equilibrium (at room temperature) and under typical drive intensities ~ W/μm2, the resulting upconversion rates can approach and even exceed thermal flux rates achieved in typical symmetric and non-equilibrium configurations of vacuum-separated slabs. The proposed nonlinear scheme could potentially be exploited to achieve thermal cooling and refrigeration at the nanoscale, and to actively control heat transfer between materials with dramatically different resonant responses.
Highlights
The field of nonlinear optics has experienced unprecedented growth in the last several decades, leading to advances in a wide range of optical technologies with applications for signal processing [1, 2], detectors [3, 4], spectroscopy [5], among others
We consider multiple interveening-gap designs—either bulk nonlinear thin films or nanostructured media consisting of lattices of nanoparticles embedded in a nonlinear medium—and find that even when the entire system is in thermodynamic equilibrium, the energy flux rate of mid-infrared photons which get upconverted and subsequently absorbed at near-infrared or visible wavelengths can be as large as 104 W/m2 for relatively low pump intensities ∼ W/μm2, approaching and even exceeding typical flux rates observed in more commonly studied, nonequilibrium scenarios in which the slabs are held at a large temperature differential
We have presented a scheme for achieving large near-field thermal energy transfer at the nanoscale based on the nonlinear χ(3)-mediated interaction of thermal modes with externally incident light
Summary
The field of nonlinear optics has experienced unprecedented growth in the last several decades, leading to advances in a wide range of optical technologies with applications for signal processing [1, 2], detectors [3, 4], spectroscopy [5], among others. We consider multiple interveening-gap designs—either bulk nonlinear thin films or nanostructured media consisting of lattices of nanoparticles embedded in a nonlinear medium—and find that even when the entire system is in thermodynamic equilibrium (at room temperature), the energy flux rate of mid-infrared photons which get upconverted and subsequently absorbed at near-infrared or visible wavelengths can be as large as 104 W/m2 for relatively low pump intensities ∼ W/μm, approaching and even exceeding typical flux rates observed in more commonly studied, nonequilibrium (passive) scenarios in which the slabs are held at a large temperature differential This scheme allows significant thermal extraction and absorption of thermal radiation at short wavelengths (otherwise inaccessible under purely passive scenarios) and between very different (such as non-resonant) materials.
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