Subwavelength Nanostructures Research Articles

Mode Controlling of Surface Plasmon Polaritons by Geometric Phases

Metasurfaces are made of two-dimensional arrays of subwavelength nanostructures that form a spatially varying optical response, to control the wave fronts of optical waves. As the feature size of its constituent materials is nanoscale, investigation of the light-nanostructure interactions in the near field is critical for understanding the novel properties of metasurfaces. Here, we used a scanning near-field optical microscope (SNOM) to observe the near-field distribution of surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) from a ring-shaped metasurface under illumination of circularly polarized light. It was found that with an additional degree of freedom of the geometric phase provided by the regularly arranged metamolecules, control over the near-field interference of the SPPs can be achieved, which is governed by the metasurface geometric symmetry that can be tuned by its topological charge. Meanwhile, the planar chiral character of the metamolecules exerts a deep influence on the near-field interference patterns. Our results can pave the way for active control of SPP propagation in near fields and have potential applications in highly integrated optical communication systems.

Enhanced high-harmonic generation from an all-dielectric metasurface

The recent observation of high-harmonic generation from solids creates a new possibility for engineering fundamental strong-field processes by patterning the solid target with subwavelength nanostructures. All-dielectric metasurfaces exhibit high damage thresholds and strong enhancement of the driving field, making them attractive platforms to control high-harmonics and other high-field processes at nanoscales. Here we report enhanced non-perturbative high-harmonic emission from a Si metasurface that possesses a sharp Fano resonance resulting from a classical analogue of electromagnetically induced transparency. Harmonic emission is enhanced by more than two orders of magnitude compared to unpatterned samples. The enhanced high harmonics are highly anisotropic with excitation polarization and are selective to excitation wavelength due to its resonant feature. By combining nanofabrication technology and ultrafast strong-field physics, our work paves the way for designing new compact ultrafast photonic devices that operate under high intensities and short wavelengths.

All-Optical Self-Referenced Transverse Position Sensing with Subnanometer Precision

The emergence of technologies operating at the nanometer scale for applications as varied as nanofabrication and super-resolution microscopy has driven the need for ever more accurate spatial localization. In this context, nanostructures have been used as probes in order to provide a reference to track lateral drifts in the system. Yet nanometer precision remains challenging and usually involves complicated measurement apparatus. In this work we report a simple method based on symmetry considerations to measure the position of a subwavelength nanostructure. For a particular choice of structures, gold nanoparticles, we demonstrate a subnanometer lateral precision of 0.55 nm. The versatility of the method also allows for the use of different structures, offering a promising opportunity for subnanometer positioning accuracy for a wide variety of systems.

Ultra-confined mid-infrared resonant phonon polaritons in van der Waals nanostructures.

Hexagonal boron nitride has been proposed as an excellent candidate to achieve subwavelength infrared light manipulation owing to its polar lattice structure, enabling excitation of low-loss phonon polaritons with hyperbolic dispersion. We show that strongly subwavelength hexagonal boron nitride planar nanostructures can exhibit ultra-confined resonances and local field enhancement. We investigate strong light-matter interaction in these nanoscale structures via photo-induced force microscopy, scattering-type scanning near-field optical microscopy, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, with excellent agreement with numerical simulations. We design optical nano-dipole antennas and directly image the fields when bright- or dark-mode resonances are excited. These modes are deep subwavelength, and strikingly, they can be supported by arbitrarily small structures. We believe that phonon polaritons in hexagonal boron nitride can play for infrared light a role similar to that of plasmons in noble metals at visible frequency, paving the way for a new class of efficient and highly miniaturized nanophotonic devices.

Optically Guided Directional Electrodeposition of Semiconductors Mimicking Natural Phototropism

Template-free photoelectrochemical deposition of semiconducting Se-Te films spontaneously produces highly ordered subwavelength scale 3D nanostructures with significant anisotropy and periodicity. The degree and direction of anisotropy can be tuned by the input polarization and feature size and pitch by the wavelength. The optical control of the resultant physical morphology is a consequence of the material self-optimizing to maximize light collection. Here we investigated the capability of the material to mimic natural phototropism exhibited by sunflowers and palm trees wherein the angle of the illumination incidence controls the direction of the structure growth out of the substrate plane. Additionally, morphological complexity could be generated by varying the polarization vector while utilizing non-normal incidence. The phototropic growth response can be dynamically directed using temporal changes in illumination; for example, zig-zag structures were produced by oscillating the illumination incidence about the surface normal while maintaining a constant polarization. The deposition was simulated using a finite-difference time domain method to model light absorption and a Monte Carlo method for mass addition and the results of the simulation successfully reproduced the experimentally observed morphologies, affirming that the phototropic response was a fully optically-induced phenomenon. The generation of these highly anisotropic light-tracking features demonstrates the ability of this technique to mimic naturally occurring phototropism to optimize the light absorption of the material.

Plasma-Induced, Self-Masking, One-Step Approach to an Ultrabroadband Antireflective and Superhydrophilic Subwavelength Nanostructured Fused Silica Surface.

In this work, antireflective and superhydrophilic subwavelength nanostructured fused silica surfaces have been created by one-step, self-masking reactive ion etching (RIE). Bare fused silica substrates with no mask were placed in a RIE vacuum chamber, and then nanoscale fluorocarbon masks and subwavelength nanostructures (SWSs) automatically formed on these substrate after the appropriate RIE plasma process. The mechanism of plasma-induced self-masking SWS has been proposed in this paper. Plasma parameter effects on the morphology of SWS have been investigated to achieve perfect nanocone-like SWS for excellent antireflection, including process time, reactive gas, and pressure of the chamber. Optical properties, i.e., antireflection and optical scattering, were simulated by the finite difference time domain (FDTD) method. Calculated data agree well with the experiment results. The optimized SWS show ultrabroadband antireflective property (up to 99% from 500 to 1360 nm). An excellent improvement of transmission was achieved for the deep-ultraviolet (DUV) range. The proposed low-cost, highly efficient, and maskless method was applied to achieve ultrabroadband antireflective and superhydrophilic SWSs on a 100 mm optical window, which promises great potential for applications in the automotive industry, goggles, and optical devices.

Onset and evolution of laser induced periodic surface structures on indium tin oxide thin films for clean ablation using a repetitively pulsed picosecond laser at low fluence

The onset and evolution of laser induced periodic surface structures (LIPSS) is of key importance to obtain clean ablated features on indium tin oxide (ITO) thin films at low fluences. The evolution of subwavelength periodic nanostructures on a 175 nm thick ITO film, using 10 ps laser pulses at a wavelength of 1032 nm, operating at 400 kHz, is investigated. Initially nanoblisters are observed when a single pulse is applied below the damage threshold fluence (0.45 J cm−2); the size and distribution of nanoblisters are found to depend on fluence. Finite difference time domain (FDTD) simulations support the hypothesis that conductive nanoblisters can enhance the local intensity of the applied electromagnetic field. The LIPSS are observed to evolve from regions where the electric field enhancement has occurred; LIPSS has a perpendicular orientation relative to the laser polarization for a small number (<5) of applied pulses. The LIPSS periodicity depends on nanoblister size and distribution; a periodicity down to 100 nm is observed at the lower fluence periphery of the Gaussian irradiated area where nanoblisters are smallest and more closely arranged. Upon irradiation with successive (>5) pulses, the orientation of the periodic structures appears to rotate and evolve to become aligned in parallel with the laser polarization at approximately the same periodicity. These orientation effects are not observed at higher fluence—due to the absence of the nanoblister-like structures; this apparent rotation is interpreted to be due to stress-induced fragmentation of the LIPSS structure. The application of subsequent pulses leads to clean ablation. LIPSS are further modified into features of a shorter period when laser scanning is used. Results provide evidence that the formation of conductive nanoblisters leads to the enhancement of the applied electromagnetic field and thereby can be used to precisely control laser ablation on ITO thin films.

Terahertz wave interaction with metallic nanostructures

AbstractUnderstanding light interaction with metallic structures provides opportunities of manipulation of light, and is at the core of various research areas including terahertz (THz) optics from which diverse applications are now emerging. For instance, THz waves take full advantage of the interaction to have strong field enhancement that compensates their relatively low photon energy. As the THz field enhancement have boosted THz nonlinear studies and relevant applications, further understanding of light interaction with metallic structures is essential for advanced manipulation of light that will bring about subsequent development of THz optics. In this review, we discuss THz wave interaction with deep sub-wavelength nano structures. With focusing on the THz field enhancement by nano structures, we review fundamentals of giant field enhancement that emerges from non-resonant and resonant interactions of THz waves with nano structures in both sub- and super- skin-depth thicknesses. From that, we introduce surprisingly simple description of the field enhancement valid over many orders of magnitudes of conductivity of metal as well as many orders of magnitudes of the metal thickness. We also discuss THz interaction with structures in angstrom scale, by reviewing plasmonic quantum effect and electron tunneling with consequent nonlinear behaviors. Finally, as applications of THz interaction with nano structures, we introduce new types of THz molecule sensors, exhibiting ultrasensitive and highly selective functionalities.

Fill factor controlled nanoimprinted ZnO nanowires based on atomic layer deposition

Enhanced diffraction by sub-wavelength nanostructures to convert incident electromagnetic radiation into waveguide modes has applications in anti-reflective coatings for optoelectronic devices. We propose a metal oxide (ZnO) nanowire grid polarizer as such a nanostructure, fabricated by ultraviolet nanoimprint lithography and whose fill factor (FF) is controlled by atomic layer deposition. Using finite difference time domain simulations, we investigated the polarization-dependent optical transmittance of the structures and calculated the polarizing efficiency. Optical profiles such as electric and magnetic field intensity and current density distributions of specific FF nanopatterns were determined for the transverse magnetic and transverse electric modes. The effects of geometrical parameters including the wire-grid period, fill ratio, and spacing between the wire-grid layers on diffraction wavelength were characterized. Respective FF-controlled ZnO nanowire structures were fabricated and their experimental optical transmittances were measured for nanowire grid polarizer applications.

High-Efficiency All-Dielectric Huygens Metasurfaces from the Ultraviolet to the Infrared

Conventional optics depend on the gradual accumulation of spatially dependent phase shifts imparted on light propagating through a medium to modify the wavefront of an incident beam. A similar effect may be obtained by the imposition of abrupt, discrete phase changes on a propagating wavefront over a subwavelength scale using photonic metasurfaces. Highly efficient metasurfaces have applications ranging from conventional optics to high-efficiency solar energy conversion, optical communications, and more. We present here the design, computational modeling, and experimental demonstration of all-dielectric transmissive Huygens metasurfaces exhibiting anomalous refraction, defined as the controlled deflection of light at an interface as a function of subwavelength nanostructures. These metasurfaces are composed of dielectric, cylindrical elements, characterized by balanced electric and magnetic dipole resonances. For infrared wavelengths, optical efficiency of 91.3% is demonstrated computationally, and experi...

Multispectral and polarimetric photodetection using a plasmonic metasurface

We present a metasurface-integrated Si 2-D CMOS sensor array for multispectral and polarimetric photodetection applications. The demonstrated sensor is based on the polarization selective extraordinary optical transmission from periodic subwavelength nanostructures, acting as artificial atoms, known as meta-atoms. The meta-atoms were created by patterning periodic rectangular apertures that support optical resonance at the designed spectral bands. By spatially separating meta-atom clusters with different lattice constants and orientations, the demonstrated metasurface can convert the polarization and spectral information of an optical input into a 2-D intensity pattern. As a proof-of-concept experiment, we measured the linear components of the Stokes parameters directly from captured images using a CMOS camera at four spectral bands. Compared to existing multispectral polarimetric sensors, the demonstrated metasurface-integrated CMOS system is compact and does not require any moving components, offering great potential for advanced photodetection applications.

Broad-band anti-reflective pore-like sub-wavelength surface nanostructures on sapphire for optical windows

Compared with conventional anti-reflective film, an anti-reflective sub-wavelength surface structure provides an ideal choice for a sapphire optical window especially in harsh environments. However, it is still a challenge to obtain a sapphire anti-reflective surface microstructure because of its high hardness and chemical inertness. In this paper, combined with optical simulation, we proposed a facile method based on the anodic oxidation of aluminum film and following epitaxial annealing. Al thin film was deposited on a sapphire substrate by magnetron sputtering, and anodic oxidation was then performed to prepare surface pore-like structures on the Al film. Followed by two-step annealing, both the anodic oxidized coating and underlying unoxidized Al film were transformed totally into alumina. The parameters of anodic oxidation were analyzed to obtain the optimal pore-like structures for the antireflection in the mid-infrared and visible spectrum regions, respectively. Finally, the optimized surface sub-wavelength nanostructure on sapphire can increase the transmittance by 7% in the wavelength range of 3000–5000 nm and can increase 13.2% significantly for visible spectrum region, respectively. Meanwhile, the surface wettability can be also manipulated effectively. The preparation of surface pore-like sub-wavelength structure by the annealing of anodic oxidized aluminum film on sapphire is a feasible, economical and convenient approach and can find the applications for various optoelectronic fields.

Model-assisted measuring method for periodical sub-wavelength nanostructures.

This paper describes a scatterometry approach designed by simulations for the in-line characterization of sub-wavelength sinusoidal gratings, which are formed on a transparent foil in a roll-to-roll procedure. Currently used methods are based on series of in situ measurements of the specular optical response at different incident angles or wavelengths for acquiring dimensional information on the gratings. The capability of single measurements of the first diffraction maxima at a fixed incident angle and wavelength to accurately measure the height of the sub-wavelength sinusoidal gratings is investigated in this work. The relation between the scattered powers of the diffraction maxima and the grating height is extracted from light scattering simulations, i.e., the inverse problem is solved. Optimal setup parameters for the measurement of grating heights ranging from 100nm to 300nm are derived from simulations. Limits of measurability and the measurement uncertainty are evaluated for different instrumentation and simulation parameters. When using laser light in the visible wavelength range, the measurement uncertainty is physically limited by the photon shot noise to the picometer range, but the systematic contributions dominate the uncertainty. As a result, the measurement uncertainty for the grating height is estimated to ≤12 nm, with a potential for <4 nm. Large-area scanning measurements performed offline and reference atomic force microscopy measurements verify the sensitivity of the presented measurement approach for identifying local variations of the spatial surface properties. Depending on the chosen detection system, sampling rates up to the MHz range are feasible, meeting the requirements of in-line process control of the roll-to-roll production process.

Selective area epitaxy of AlGaN nanowire arrays across nearly the entire compositional range for deep ultraviolet photonics.

Semiconductor light sources operating in the ultraviolet (UV)-C band (100-280 nm) are in demand for a broad range of applications but suffer from extremely low efficiency. AlGaN nanowire photonic crystals promise to break the efficiency bottleneck of deep UV photonics. We report, for the first time, site-controlled epitaxy of AlGaN nanowire arrays with Al incorporation controllably varied across nearly the entire compositional range. It is also observed that an Al-rich AlGaN shell structure is spontaneously formed, significantly suppressing nonradiative surface recombination. An internal quantum efficiency up to 45% was measured at room-temperature. We have further demonstrated large area AlGaN nanowire LEDs operating in the UV-C band on sapphire substrate, which exhibit excellent optical and electrical performance, including a small turn-on voltage of ~4.4 V and an output power of ~0.93 W/cm2 at a current density of 252 A/cm2. The controlled synthesis of AlGaN subwavelength nanostructures with well-defined size, spacing, and spatial arrangement and tunable emission opens up new opportunities for developing high efficiency LEDs and lasers and promises to break the efficiency bottleneck of deep UV photonics.

FIB-fabricated complex-shaped 3D chiral photonic silicon nanostructures.

Technologies capable of fabricating complex shaped silicon metasurfaces attract increasing attention. The focused ion beam fabrication technique is considered traditionally as causing thick damaged layers in silicon resulting in a significant rise of the optical absorption loss. We examine the structure of the FIB-fabricated nanostructures on the silicon-on-sapphire (SOS) platform and its optical characteristics before and after thermal oxidation. We show that being thermally oxidised the FIB-patterned silicon subwavelength nanostructure tends to regain its chiral optical features. The impact of the oxidation process on the silicon nanostructure optical behaviour is discussed.

Magneto-Optical Response Enhanced by Mie Resonances in Nanoantennas

We demonstrate both experimentally and numerically multifold enhancement of magneto-optical effects in subwavelength dielectric nanostructures with a magnetic surrounding exhibiting localized magnetic Mie resonances. We employ amorphous silicon nanodisks covered with a thin nickel film and achieve the 5-fold enhancement of the magneto-optical response of the hybrid magnetophotonic array of nanodisks in comparison with a thin nickel film deposited on a flat silica substrate. Our findings allow for a new basis for active and nonreciprocal photonic nanostructures and metadevices, which could be tuned by an external magnetic field.

Fully Integrated Fluorescence Biosensors On-Chip Employing Multi-Functional Nanoplasmonic Optical Structures in CMOS

Integrated optical system-on-chip in silicon operating in the visible range can have a tremendous impact on enabling new applications in sensing and imaging through the ultra-miniaturization of complex optical instrumentation. CMOS technology has allowed an integration of optical detection circuitry for image sensors with massively large number of pixels. In this paper, we focus on techniques to realize complex optical-field processing elements inside CMOS by exploiting optical interaction with sub-wavelength metal nanostructures realized in the electrical interconnects layers, whose feature sizes are now in the sub-100-nm range. In particular, we present a fully integrated fluorescence-based bio-molecular sensor in 65-nm CMOS with integrated nanoplasmonic waveguide-based filters capable of more than 50 dB of rejection ratio across a wide range of incident angles. Co-designed with the integrated photo-detection circuitry, capacitive TIAs, and correlated double-sampling circuitry, the sensor is capable of detecting 48 zeptomoles of quantum dots on the surface with 52 fA of photodetector current with a fluorescence/excitation ratio of nearly −62 dB without any post-fabrication, external optical filters, lenses, or collimators. The ability to integrate complex nanoplasmonic metal structures with unique optical properties in CMOS with no post-processing creates the opportunity to enable large multiplexed assays on a single chip and a wide variety of applications, from in vitro to in vivo .

Interband transitions in semi-metals, semiconductors, and topological insulators: a new driving force for plasmonics and nanophotonics [Invited

Plasmonic and dielectric Mie resonances in subwavelength nanostructures provide an efficient way to manipulate light below the diffraction limit that has fostered the growth of plasmonics and nanophotonics. Plasmonic resonances have been mainly related with the excitation of free charge carriers, initially in metals, and dielectric Mie resonances have been identified in Si nanostructures. Remarkably, although much less studied, semi-metals, semiconductors and topological insulators of the p-block enable plasmonic resonances without free charge carriers and dielectric Mie resonances with enhanced properties compared with Si. In this review, we explain how interband transitions in these materials show a major role in this duality. We evaluate the plasmonic and Mie performance of nanostructures made of relevant p-block elements and compounds, especially Bi, and discuss their promising potential for applications ranging from switchable plasmonics and nanophotonics to energy conversion, especially photocatalysis.

Enhanced Optical Transmittance by Reduced Reflectance of Curved Polymer Surfaces

Subwavelength nanostructure arrays on surfaces improve their optical transmittance by reducing the reflection of light over a wide range of wavelengths and angles of incidence. A method to imprint a sub‐100 nm nanostructure array on a large surface (Ø 20 mm) made from thermoplastic materials is reported. Transmittance through the flat polymer is improved by ≈6.5%, reaching values of up to 97.5%, after imprinting. The optical properties of the nanostructured samples are highly reproducible. After eight repeated imprinting operations with the same stamp, the transmittance of the nanostructured surface is decreased by less than 0.2%. Moreover, the nanostructures can also be imprinted on curved polymethylmethacrylate surfaces, achieving a maximum transmittance of 97%. This method to prepare large‐scale antireflective nanostructures on flat and flexible curved polymer surfaces is of interest for the production of antireflective screens, optical devices, and biomedical devices such as contact lenses and intraocular lenses. image

Resonant thermoelectric nanophotonics.

Photodetectors are typically based either on photocurrent generation from electron-hole pairs in semiconductor structures or on bolometry for wavelengths that are below bandgap absorption. In both cases, resonant plasmonic and nanophotonic structures have been successfully used to enhance performance. Here, we show subwavelength thermoelectric nanostructures designed for resonant spectrally selective absorption, which creates large localized temperature gradients even with unfocused, spatially uniform illumination to generate a thermoelectric voltage. We show that such structures are tunable and are capable of wavelength-specific detection, with an input power responsivity of up to 38 V W-1, referenced to incident illumination, and bandwidth of nearly 3 kHz. This is obtained by combining resonant absorption and thermoelectric junctions within a single suspended membrane nanostructure, yielding a bandgap-independent photodetection mechanism. We report results for both bismuth telluride/antimony telluride and chromel/alumel structures as examples of a potentially broader class of resonant nanophotonic thermoelectric materials for optoelectronic applications such as non-bandgap-limited hyperspectral and broadband photodetectors.