Efficient Excitation Research Articles

Efficient excitation and control of integrated photonic circuits with virtual critical coupling

Critical coupling in integrated photonic devices enables the efficient transfer of energy from a waveguide to a resonator, a key operation for many applications. This condition is achieved when the resonator loss rate is equal to the coupling rate to the bus waveguide. Carefully matching these quantities is challenging in practice, due to variations in the resonator properties resulting from fabrication and external conditions. Here, we demonstrate that efficient energy transfer to a non-critically coupled resonator can be achieved by tailoring the excitation signal in time. We rely on excitations oscillating at complex frequencies to load an otherwise overcoupled resonator, demonstrating that a virtual critical coupling condition is achieved if the imaginary part of the complex frequency equals the mismatch between loss and coupling rate. We probe a microring resonator with tailored pulses and observe a minimum intensity transmission T=0.11\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$T=0.11$$\\end{document} in contrast to a continuous-wave transmission T=0.58\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$T=0.58$$\\end{document}, corresponding to 8 times enhancement of intracavity intensity. Our technique opens opportunities for enhancing and controlling on-demand light-matter interactions for linear and nonlinear photonic platforms.

H2 chirped-probe-pulse femtosecond coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering thermometry at high temperature and pressure

This article describes the development and application of hydrogen (H2) chirped-probe-pulse femtosecond coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (CPP fs CARS) in high-temperature and high-pressure conditions. H2 fs CARS thermometry was performed in Hencken burner flames up to 2300 K, as well as in a heated gas-cell at temperatures up to 1000 K. It was observed that the H2 fs CARS spectra are highly sensitive to the pump and Stokes chirp. Chirp typically originates from optical components or systems such as windows, polarizers, and the optical parametric amplifier. As a result, the pump delay is modeled to provide a shift to the Raman excitation efficiency curve. With the updated theoretical model, excellent agreement was found between the simulated and experimental spectra. The mean error and precision are 2.8% and 2.3%, respectively. In addition, the spectral phase of the input pulses and the pump time delay determined from the experimental spectra closely align with the theoretical predictions. It is also found that pressure does not have significant effects on the H2 fs CARS spectra up to 5 MPa at 1000 K. The collision model provides excellent agreement with the experiment. This allows the use of low-pressure laser parameters for high-pressure thermometry measurements.

Saliency enhancement method for photoacoustic molecular imaging based on Grüneisen relaxation nonlinear effect.

Photoacoustic molecular imaging technology has a wide range of applications in biomedical research. In practical scenarios, both the probes and blood generate signals, resulting in the saliency of the probes in the blood environment being diminished, impacting imaging quality. Although several methods have been proposed for saliency enhancement, they inevitably suffer from moderate generality and detection speed. The Grüneisen relaxation (GR) nonlinear effect offers an alternative for enhancing saliency and can improve generality and speed. In this article, the excitation and detection efficiencies are optimized to enhance the GR signal amplitude. Experimental studies show that the saliency of the probe is enhanced. Moreover, the issue of signal aliasing is studied to ensure the accuracy of enhancement results in the tissues. In a word, the feasibility of the GR-based imaging method in saliency enhancement is successfully demonstrated in the study, showing the superiorities of good generality and detection speed.

Fluorescence modulation of quantum dots in subsurface defects of optical elements by a linearly polarized light.

The limited excitation efficiency of quantum dots in the detection of subsurface defects in optical elements by quantum dot fluorescence gives rise to insufficient accuracy. To enhance the excitation efficiency of quantum dots, we studied the modulation of the polarization direction of linearly polarized incident light on quantum dot fluorescence. We first apply density matrix evolution theory to study the quantum dots interacting with linearly polarized incident light and emitting fluorescence. The fluorescence intensity exhibits cosine oscillations versus modulated laser polarization. It reaches a maximum value at the polarization angle zero, and then decreases as the angle becomes larger until π/2. The experimental results for the quantum dot in both solutions and subsurface defect of optical elements confirmed these results. For optical elements tagged with CdSe/ZnS quantum dots, the fluorescence intensity increases by 61.7%, and the area for the detected subsurface defects increases by 142.9%. Similarly, for C and InP/ZnS quantum dots, there are also increases in both the fluorescence intensity and the area of subsurface defects. Our study suggests that the subsurface defect detection in optical elements by the linearly polarized incident light could enhance the detection accuracy of subsurface defects in optical elements, and potentially achieve super-resolution imaging of subsurface defects.

Tailoring coupled topological corner states in photonic crystals via symmetry breaking induced by defects

In this paper, we present an effective approach to tailor the optical properties of coupled corner states in photonic crystal (PhC) supercell arrays by symmetry breaking. Defects are strategically introduced into unit cells to break the in-plane C4v symmetry, and numerical simulations confirm the preservation of the band gap and two-dimensional Zak phases, in spite of the presence of defects. Notably, the size of defects is demonstrated to play a significant role in tuning the eigenfrequencies, quality (Q) factors, and band structures of the coupled corner states. Furthermore, these defects exhibit the ability to transform topological dark states into bright states, enabling efficient excitation by external plane waves and polarization-dependent Q factors. The resonant origin of the coupled corner states is comprehensively elucidated using a multipole decomposition analysis. This study further releases the potential of the topological light-matter interaction, holding significant implications for the design and advancement of topological photonic devices with on-demand tunability and multifrequency regions for various applications such as lasing, sensing, and quantum information processing. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Influence of laser pulse shape and cleanliness on two-photon microscopy

Nonlinear microscopy, including two-photon microscopy, requires pulsed lasers as light source. Typically, when choosing the appropriate pulsed laser for two-photon microscopy, the pulse repetition rate, pulse width, total power output, and output beam diameter are among the critical parameters which are often emphasised. Here, we demonstrate that the pulse shape, often overlooked, can have significant impact on the two-photon microscopy excitation efficiency and the effective signal brightness. We provide metrics to ease practical selection of pulsed laser sources for two-photon microscopy.

Architecture of symbiotic dinoflagellate photosystem I–light-harvesting supercomplex in Symbiodinium

Symbiodinium are the photosynthetic endosymbionts for corals and play a vital role in supplying their coral hosts with photosynthetic products, forming the nutritional foundation for high-yield coral reef ecosystems. Here, we determine the cryo-electron microscopy structure of Symbiodinium photosystem I (PSI) supercomplex with a PSI core composed of 13 subunits including 2 previously unidentified subunits, PsaT and PsaU, as well as 13 peridinin-Chl a/c-binding light-harvesting antenna proteins (AcpPCIs). The PSI–AcpPCI supercomplex exhibits distinctive structural features compared to their red lineage counterparts, including extended termini of PsaD/E/I/J/L/M/R and AcpPCI-1/3/5/7/8/11 subunits, conformational changes in the surface loops of PsaA and PsaB subunits, facilitating the association between the PSI core and peripheral antennae. Structural analysis and computational calculation of excitation energy transfer rates unravel specific pigment networks in Symbiodinium PSI–AcpPCI for efficient excitation energy transfer. Overall, this study provides a structural basis for deciphering the mechanisms governing light harvesting and energy transfer in Symbiodinium PSI–AcpPCI supercomplexes adapted to their symbiotic ecosystem, as well as insights into the evolutionary diversity of PSI–LHCI among various photosynthetic organisms.

Efficient two-step excitation energy transfer in artificial light-harvesting antenna based on bacteriochlorophyll aggregates

Chlorosomes of green photosynthetic bacteria are large light-harvesting complexes enabling these organisms to survive at extremely low-light conditions. Bacteriochlorophylls found in chlorosomes self-organize and are ideal candidates for use in biomimetic light-harvesting in artificial photosynthesis and other applications for solar energy utilization. Here we report on the construction and characterization of an artificial antenna consisting of bacteriochlorophyll c co-aggregated with β-carotene, which is used to extend the light-harvesting spectral range, and bacteriochlorophyll a, which acts as a final acceptor for excitation energy. Efficient energy transfer between all three components was observed by means of fluorescence spectroscopy. The efficiency varies with the β-carotene content, which increases the average distance between the donor and acceptor in both energy transfer steps. The efficiency ranges from 89 to 37% for the transfer from β-carotene to bacteriochlorophyll c, and from 93 to 69% for the bacteriochlorophyll c to bacteriochlorophyll a step. A significant part of this study was dedicated to a development of methods for determination of energy transfer efficiency. These methods may be applied also for study of chlorosomes and other pigment complexes.

Subwavelength dielectric waveguide for efficient travelling-wave magnetic resonance imaging

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has diverse applications in physics, biology, and medicine. Uniform excitation of nuclei spins through circular-polarized transverse magnetic component of electromagnetic field is vital for obtaining unbiased tissue contrasts. However, achieving this in the electrically large human body poses a significant challenge, especially at ultra-high fields (UHF) with increased working frequencies (≥297 MHz). Canonical volume resonators struggle to meet this challenge, while radiative excitation methods like travelling-wave (TW) show promise but often suffer from inadequate excitation efficiency. Here, we introduce a new technique using a subwavelength dielectric waveguide insert that enhances both efficiency and homogeneity at 7 T. Through TE11-to-TM11 mode conversion, power focusing, wave impedance matching, and phase velocity matching, we achieved a 114% improvement in TW efficiency and mitigated the center-brightening effect. This fundamental advancement in TW MRI through effective wave manipulation could promote the electromagnetic design of UHF MRI systems.

Performance of Ce:YAG-MgO composite ceramics as high-power LED phosphor densified by non-reactive sintering

A novel white light converter has been successfully synthesized using a non-reactive sintering process to afford a fully densified Ce:YAG-MgO composite ceramic phosphor with high wavelength conversion efficiency under excitation at 450 nm. The composite obtained by HIP (hot isostatic pressing) treatment at 1080 ºC has no residual pores and the XRD (X-ray diffraction) analysis shows that there are no secondary phases other than Ce:YAG and MgO, moreover, the EDS (Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy) analysis indicates no interdiffusion at the Ce:YAG-MgO contact interface. The thermal conductivity of 5–7.5 wt% Ce:YAG-added MgO composites is over 40 W/mK, nearly reaching the theoretical value. Due to the synergetic effect of “the difference in refractive index between MgO and Ce:YAG” and “MgO matrix with strong birefringence”, the excitation light (450 nm) is multiply scattered inside the composite medium, which provides efficient excitation even in a thin medium, resulting in the photoluminescence intensity that is 2.6 times higher than that of transparent Ce:YAG ceramics. This innovative white light converter combines a highly thermal conductive MgO matrix and Ce:YAG phosphor with high emission intensity.

Collisional-radiative modeling of shock-heated nitrogen mixtures

A three-temperature collisional-radiative model for shock-heated nitrogen–argon mixtures is developed to facilitate the study of nonequilibrium electronic excitation and ionization behind strong shock waves. Model predictions accurately reproduce measurements of N2 dissociation for mixtures of 2%–10% N2 in argon, with some discrepancies observed for 20% N2 mixtures. Potential causes of the discrepancies are discussed. Net dissociation in mixtures containing 20% N2 is significantly impacted by the dissociation of N2(A), the first excited electronic state of N2, indicating that molecular electronic excitation can affect net dissociation in shock-heated nitrogen flows. The collisional-radiative model successfully predicts the three-stage behavior and induction time observed in concentration measurements of atomic nitrogen in its fourth excited state, the 3s4P level, behind reflected shocks. Mechanisms for the observed behavior are discussed, which deviate from those inferred using a simpler kinetic model. Excited state number density predictions are strongly influenced by the modeling of radiation self-absorption and the inclusion of the measured non-ideal pressure rise. At higher N2 concentrations, the measured data indicate increased efficiency of atomic nitrogen electronic excitation in collisions with N as compared to collisions with N2 and Ar. A global sensitivity analysis of the excited state predictions is then performed, identifying the processes in the kinetic model that most sensitively influence the predicted excited state time history and further clarifying the dominant mechanisms affecting the experimental observables.

Refractive index sensing of spoof surface plasmon polaritons excited on graphene strips based on cylindrical dielectric metasurface coupling

In this paper, we present a novel terahertz plasmonic sensing concept that utilizes a metasurface coupler to excite spoof surface plasmon polaritons (SSPs) modes on graphene strips. The dielectric metasurface unit cell consists of two silicon cylindrical rods with different radii on a quartz substrate. Vertically incident terahertz waves are deflected by the metasurface, resulting in a transverse wave-vector within the substrate that matches the SSPs wave-vector supported by the graphene strips. This enables efficient excitation of SSPs modes on the graphene strips surface, leading to absorption resonances in the range of 0.420–0.430 THz with a high quality (Q) factor of 152. We then applied this device for refractive index sensing, and the investigation results indicate that the high Q resonances in the absorption spectrum experience shifts with changes in the refractive index of the target substance, with a sensitivity of 110 GHz/RIU. The designed structure in this study exhibits significant potential for applications in trace substance absorption spectrum detection.

Parallel compensation of anisoplanatic aberrations in patterned photostimulation for two-photon optogenetics

Two-photon optogenetics becomes an indispensable technique in deciphering neural circuits recently, in which patterned photostimulation is generally adopted due to its low time delay and jitter, as well as its finely sculpting ability in space. However, optical aberrations in light propagation often deteriorates patterned photostimulation, leading to decreased intensity of patterns and thus reduced excitation efficiency. Considering anisoplanatic aberrations at different positions, only correcting aberrations at one position may aggravate aberrations at other positions. Here we propose a parallel aberration compensation based Gerchberg–Saxton (PAC-GS) algorithm for generating multiple holographic extended patterns with anisoplanatic aberrations compensated simultaneously. As an example, we demonstrate that PAC-GS is able to parallelly compensate anisoplanatic aberrations of multiple holographic patterns under gradient index (GRIN) lens, thus effectively improving the intensity of each pattern, promising for two-photon optogenetics in deep biological tissues with GRIN lens.

Development of calculation model for designing temperature characteristics of double-layered thickness-shear resonator

A calculation model for predicting the temperature characteristics of the double-layered resonator (DRL) was developed by using the total strain ratio including the influence of the waves reflected at the bonding boundary. The validity of the model proposed was examined from the comparison between the measured and calculated results for a DRL specimen consisting of 129.55°Y- and 0°Y-quartz substrates. The calculation results of the model proposed demonstrated that it is possible to predict the trends of changes in experimental values of temperature characteristics not only in the 1st-order mode but also in the higher-order modes. In addition, the changes in the particle displacement distribution and temperature characteristics of the DLR obtained by the model proposed were also in good agreement with the results of finite element method analysis. The proposed model is expected to greatly contribute to the design of DLRs with high excitation efficiency and excellent temperature characteristics.

Structural Diversity in Eukaryotic Photosynthetic Light Harvesting.

Photosynthesis has been using energy from sunlight to assimilate atmospheric CO2 for at least 3.5 billion years. Through evolution and natural selection, photosynthetic organisms have flourished in almost all aquatic and terrestrial environments. This is partly due to the diversity of light-harvesting complex (LHC) proteins, which facilitate photosystem assembly, efficient excitation energy transfer, and photoprotection. Structural advances have provided angstrom-level structures of many of these proteins and have expanded our understanding of the pigments, lipids, and residues that drive LHC function. In this review, we compare and contrast recently observed cryo-electron microscopy structures across photosynthetic eukaryotes to identify structural motifs that underlie various light-harvesting strategies. We discuss subtle monomer changes that result in macroscale reorganization of LHC oligomers. Additionally, we find recurring patterns across diverse LHCs that may serve as evolutionary stepping stones for functional diversification. Advancing our understanding of LHC protein-environment interactions will improve our capacity to engineer more productive crops.

Multiline molecular tagging velocimetry of nitric oxide at 100 kHz using an injection-seeded burst-mode OPO.

An injection-seeded, burst-mode optical parametric oscillator (OPO) operating at a repetition rate of 100 kHz is used to demonstrate the multiline molecular tagging velocimetry of an underexpanded jet using nitric oxide fluorescence. The very narrow linewidth of the OPO system, along with the relatively high pulse energies of the burst-mode system, enables efficient single-photon excitation of nitric oxide along multiple laser beam lines at a high repetition rate. Simultaneous one-dimensional velocity profile measurements were obtained of an underexpanded jet system at six different locations using a reference initial image and single-shot delayed images. A methodology for calculating the uncertainty of single-shot velocity is also described. Mean and root-mean-square velocity profiles are obtained at multiple locations simultaneously over a sampling time of 1 ms. The high-repetition-rate velocity measurements also appear to capture the onset of velocity oscillations and has the potential to reveal velocity frequency content occurring in the tens of kHz. The demonstrated velocimetry technique could be paired with other emerging burst-mode laser capabilities for a quantitative multiparameter gas property or multicomponent gas velocity measurements for supersonic and hypersonic flows, especially within ground test facilities that are limited to very short run durations.

Photo‐Induced Active Ion Transport‐Assisted Efficient Ionic Power Harvesting from Bioinspired Janus Dual‐Field Heterostructures

AbstractNatural organisms have developed various biological ion channels/transporters to maintain normal life activities to adapt to changing environments. Significantly, ion transporters with active ion transport property show much more controllability on these activities due to a variety of external stimuli, giving guidance to construct artificial counterparts for overcoming the issues in simple nanofluidic systems restricted by self‐diffusive ion transport. Herein, a 2D nanofluidic system based on a Janus membrane (i.e., JM) is constructed, which can achieve light‐driven active ion transport and do favor for ionic power harvesting in electrolyte systems with equal concentrations. The JM is obtained through sequentially assembled montmorillonite (MMT) decorated with photoelectric molecules (i.e., PMMT) and MXene nanosheets. Due to the formed intramembrane electric field and temperature gradient caused by the efficient charge separation and localized thermal excitation under light illumination, a photovoltaic‐driven force and thermo‐osmotic are generated for preferential ion transport. In addition, the unidirectional active transport is employed to harvest ionic power, showing an output power density of 2.0 mW m−2 and a high‐performance energy conversion efficiency of 8.3 × 10−4%. The effects of the light intensity, electrolyte concentration and species on energy conversion performance are investigated, showing the university for ionic power harvesting.

An efficiently excited Eu3+ luminescent site formed in Eu,O-codoped GaN

For the development of III-nitride-semiconductor-based monolithic micro-light-emitting diode (LED) displays, Eu,O-codoped GaN (GaN:Eu,O) is a promising material candidate for the red LEDs. The luminescence efficiency of Eu-related emission strongly depends on the local atomic structure of Eu ions. Our previous research has revealed that post-growth thermal annealing is an effective method for reconfiguring luminescent sites, leading to a significant increase in light output. We observed the preferential formation of a site with a peak at ∼2.004 eV by the annealing process. In this study, we demonstrate that it is a previously unidentified independent site (OMVPE-X) using combined excitation–emission spectroscopy and time-resolved photoluminescence measurements. In addition, we perform excitation power-dependent photoluminescence measurements and show that this OMVPE-X site dominates the emission at a low excitation power region despite its small relative abundance, suggesting a high excitation efficiency. Most importantly, applying our annealing technique to an LED exhibits a reasonably increased electroluminescence intensity associated with OMVPE-X, confirming that this site has a high excitation efficiency also under current injection. These results demonstrate the importance of OMVPE-X as a notable luminescent site for brighter and more efficient GaN:Eu,O-based LEDs.

Electronic excitation of high-order spoof surface plasmons on metallic grating at terahertz frequencies

High-order spoof surface plasmon (SSP) mode on corrugated metallic surfaces can find many interesting applications, such as in imaging, sensing, transmission and enhanced radiation source, etc. In this paper, an efficient excitation method of the high-order SSP mode by using an injected electron beam on the uniform rectangular metallic grating is proposed and investigated numerically. Based on the matched wave momentum between the SSP mode and the electron beam, both the fundamental and high-order SSP modes can be excited on the structure by using a single injected electron beam. Numerical simulation results indicate that the maximum electric field intensity of the generated high-order SSP mode is about two orders higher than that of the fundamental SSP mode. In addition, the peak power of the excited high-order SSP mode is almost two times that of the fundamental SSP mode power by the same energy electron beam, which demonstrates the obvious advantage of the high-order SSP electronic excitation approach compared to the previous fundamental SSP mode excitation on the structure. The central working frequency of high-order SSP power spectrum is about three times that of the fundamental SSP power spectrum. Moreover, the influences of the injected electron beam energy on the excited SSP power spectrum are analyzed specifically. It is shown that the generated SSP power spectrum demonstrates a blue shift with the decreased working voltage of the electron beam simultaneously, with its peak power increasing. However, the working bandwidth is narrowed with decreased beam voltage, which further reveals its working mechanism of presented electronic excitation of the SSP mode. The presented studies provide a new method to excite a high-order SSP mode on the metallic grating, which can find some potential applications in high-sensitivity sensing, deep sub-wavelength waveguide, and many others in terahertz spectra.

Spatially inhomogeneous inverse Faraday effect provides tunable nonthermal excitation of exchange dominated spin waves

Abstract We demonstrate optical nonthermal excitation of exchange dominated spin waves of different orders in a magnetophotonic crystal. The magnetophotonic structure consists of a thin magnetic film and a Bragg stack of nonmagnetic layers to provide a proper nonuniform interference pattern of the inverse Faraday effect induced by light in the magnetic layer. We found a phenomenon of the pronounced phase slippage of the inverse Faraday effect distribution when the pump wavelength is within the photonic band gap of the structure. It allows to tune the interference pattern by a slight variation of light wavelength which results in the modification of excitation efficiency of the different order spin waves. The approach can be applied for different magnetic dielectrics expanding their application horizons for spin-wave based devices.