Tunable Bandwidth Research Articles

Selective active resonance tuning for multi-mode nonlinear photonic cavities

Resonant enhancement of nonlinear photonic processes is critical for the scalability of applications such as long-distance entanglement generation. To implement nonlinear resonant enhancement, multiple resonator modes must be individually tuned onto a precise set of process wavelengths, which requires multiple linearly-independent tuning methods. Using coupled auxiliary resonators to indirectly tune modes in a multi-resonant nonlinear cavity is particularly attractive because it allows the extension of a single physical tuning mechanism, such as thermal tuning, to provide the required independent controls. Here we model and simulate the performance and tradeoffs of a coupled-resonator tuning scheme which uses auxiliary resonators to tune specific modes of a multi-resonant nonlinear process. Our analysis determines the tuning bandwidth for steady-state mode field intensity can significantly exceed the inter-cavity coupling rate g if the total quality factor of the auxiliary resonator is higher than the multi-mode main resonator. Consequently, over-coupling a nonlinear resonator mode to improve the maximum efficiency of a frequency conversion process will simultaneously expand the auxiliary resonator tuning bandwidth for that mode, indicating a natural compatibility with this tuning scheme. We apply the model to an existing small-diameter triply-resonant ring resonator design and find that a tuning bandwidth of 136 GHz ≈ 1.1 nm can be attained for a mode in the telecom band while limiting excess scattering losses to a quality factor of 106. Such range would span the distribution of inhomogeneously broadened quantum emitter ensembles as well as resonator fabrication variations, indicating the potential for the auxiliary resonators to enable not only low-loss telecom conversion but also the generation of indistinguishable photons in a quantum network.

Voltage control of electromagnetic properties in antiferromagnetic materials

Dynamic modulation of electromagnetic responses is theoretically examined in dielectric antiferromagnets (AFMs). While both magneto-electric and magneto-elastic coupling can achieve robust electrical control of magnetic anisotropy, the latter is considered in a bilayer structure with a piezoelectric material. Numerical calculations based on the frequency-dependent permeability tensor clearly illustrate that the anisotropy profile in the typical dielectric AFMs such as NiO and Cr2O3 can be modified sufficiently to induce a shift in the resonance frequency by as much as tens of percent in the sub-mm wavelength range (thus, an electrically tunable bandwidth over 10’s of GHz). The polarization of the electromagnetic response is also affected due to the anisotropic nature of the effect, offering a possibility to encode the signal. The intrinsic delay in switching may be minimized to the ns level by using a sufficiently thin AFM. Application to specific devices such as a bandpass filter further illustrates the validity of the concept.

Ultra-broadband tunable terahertz metasurface absorber with multi-mode regulation based on artificial neural network

The multi-window tunable absorption of terahertz (THz) waves faces challenges such as a small tunable bandwidth, discontinuous tuning windows, and a complex design process. This study addresses these issues by employing inverse design based on artificial neural networks (ANN) to achieve an ultra-broadband tunable THz metasurface absorber (UTTMA). Leveraging the electrically tunable property of graphene and the phase transition property of vanadium dioxide (VO2), the UTTMA achieves multi-domain dynamic operation across a large frequency band. The design allows for arbitrary switching between multiple windows by transforming between graphene surface-localized plasmon resonance (LSPR), fundamental order surface plasmon polaritons (SPP) resonance, and graphene surface plasmon resonance (SPR), and second order SPP resonance. The tunable windows cover the range between 1.90 and 10.00 THz, encompassing four-fifths of the entire THz band, surpassing previously reported absorbers. The accuracy of the ANN inverse design is verified, and a systematic analysis of the optical performance of the UTTMA is conducted. These findings offer a viable and effective method for expanding the tunable bandwidth and simplifying the design process for THz metasurfaces.

Electric and magnetic metal-insulator-metal metasurfaces in the mid-infrared based on Babinet’s, Lorentz’s, and Kirchhoff’s principles

Metasurfaces can extend the optical properties of conventional materials by structuring surfaces at a subwavelength scale. These artificial subwavelength surfaces mimic the physics of conventional materials and can, in principle, be designed to provide novel optical material properties. Metal-insulator-metal (MIM) antenna metasurfaces are among the most widely used as ideal absorbers and emitters. In this work, we present MIM metasurfaces in the mid-infrared that comply in the electric and magnetic forms of Babinet’s, Lorentz’s, and Kirchhoff’s principles. To verify the validity of Babinet's, Lorentz's, and Kirchhoff's MIM metasurfaces, we computed their reflection and absorption spectra as well as electric and magnetic field maps. We found that even in the presence of graphene on top of the electric and magnetic MIM metasurfaces, these principles still hold qualitatively. However, the excitation of gap surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) and graphene SPPs fails to comply quantitatively. Additionally, we fabricated the MIM metasurfaces and used imaging Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy in the mid infrared spectrum to validate them. Finally, we explore the potentials and limits of the use of graphene as tunability material, with a tunability bandwidth up to 0.6 µm. Our findings can be applied to the development of electric and magnetic frequency selectivity metasurfaces, polarizers, coherent thermal sources, and detectors.

Ultrashort large-bandwidth X-ray free-electron laser generation with a dielectric-lined waveguide.

Large-bandwidth pulses produced by cutting-edge X-ray free-electron lasers (FELs) are of great importance in research fields like material science and biology. In this paper, a new method to generate high-power ultrashort FEL pulses with tunable spectral bandwidth with spectral coherence using a dielectric-lined waveguide without interfering operation of linacs is proposed. By exploiting the passive and dephasingless wakefield at terahertz frequency excited by the beam, stable energy modulation can be achieved in the electron beam and large-bandwidth high-intensity soft X-ray radiation can be generated. Three-dimensional start-to-end simulations have been carried out and the results show that coherent radiation pulses with duration of a few femtoseconds and bandwidths ranging from 1.01% to 2.16% can be achieved by changing the undulator taper profile.

A Microwave Photonic Frequency-Doubling Phase Shifter Based on Dual-Parallel Mach–Zehnder Modulators

A microwave photonic frequency-doubling phase shifter with a broad bandwidth and large tuning range is proposed in this paper. Frequency doubling and phase shifting are realized by processing the input microwave signal in the optical domain at a dual-drive dual-parallel Mach–Zehnder modulator (DD-DPMZM) and a dual-parallel Mach–Zehnder modulator (DPMZM). The input signal is split into two branches through a 90-degree hybrid splitter. One signal is sent to the DD-DPMZM to achieve a phase-shifted carrier-suppressed up-sideband by tuning the bias voltage, and the other is sent to the DPMZM to realize a carrier-suppressed down-sideband. By beating the phase-shifted up-sideband and the down-sideband at a photodetector (PD), the input signal is frequency doubled and phase shifted. The proposed frequency-doubling phase shifter is simulated. The results show that the frequency-doubled signal has a phase-tuning range from 0 to 360 degrees. In addition, the influence of the amplitude and phase unbalance of the 90-degree hybrid splitter on the magnitude variation and phase deviation of the frequency-doubling phase shifter is studied.

All optical tunable RF filter using elemental antimony.

In the past decade, the proliferation of modern telecommunication technologies, including 5G, and the widespread adoption of the Internet-of-things (IoT) have led to an unprecedented surge in data generation and transmission. This surge has created an escalating demand for advanced signal processing capabilities. Microwave photonic (MWP) processors offer a promising solution to satisfy this unprecedented demand for data processing by capitalising on the high bandwidth and low latency achievable by optical systems. In this work, we introduce an integrated MWP processing unit for all-optical RF filtering using elemental antimony. We exploit the crystallisation dynamics of antimony to demonstrate a photonic leaky integrator, which is configured to operate as a first-order low-pass filter with a bandwidth of 300 kHz and ultra-compact footprint of 16 × 16 μm2. We experimentally demonstrate the implementation of such a filter as an envelope detector to demodulate an amplitude-modulated signal. Finally, a discussion on achieving bandwidth tunability is presented.

Bandwidth tunability of graphene absorption enhancement by hybridization of delocalized surface plasmon polaritons and localized magnetic plasmons

The bandwidth-tunable absorption enhancement of monolayer graphene is theoretically studied in the near-infrared wavelengths. The monolayer graphene is placed on the silver substrate surface with a periodic array of one-dimensional slits. Two absorption peaks are found to result from the hybridization of delocalized surface plasmon polaritons and localized magnetic plasmons. The positions of absorption peaks are accurately predicted by a coupling model of double oscillators. The full width at half maximum of absorption peaks is largely tuned from about 1–200 nm by changing the array period of slits. The effect of the slit size on absorption peaks is also investigated in detail. Our work is promising in applications for photoelectric devices.

Tunable low-frequency wideband acoustic metamaterials with negative Poisson’s ratio and pre-compression

Tunable low-frequency wideband acoustic metamaterials with negative Poisson’s ratio and pre-compression

A Rotatable Frequency- and Pattern-Reconfigurable Antenna with a Wide Tunable Bandwidth

ABSTRACT The proposed design introduces a novel rotatable frequency- and pattern-reconfigurable antenna, characterised by its wide tunable bandwidth. The proposed design contains a fixed feeding part and a rotatable part. The rotatable part consists of three array antennas. Each of the three array antennas is formed of two elements loaded with varactors. The working frequency of the design is able to be changed through adjusting the varactors’ value and employing the rotatable action within the circular configuration. Design benefits from both independent bias voltages, offering pattern reconfigurability. To attain this function, a phase shift is introduced between the two elements of the operating array antenna. Utilizing the quasi-Yagi antenna mechanism enhances the gain. In the proposed configuration, a measured continuously tunable frequency bandwidth of 37.4% is observed, spanning from 2.65 GHz to 3.87 GHz. Additionally, it achieves maximum beam-tunable angles ranging from −40° to +44° covering the broadside. The scanning gain variation of the proposed design is within 4 dB over the entire band. To validate the proposed method, we present both simulated and measured results.

Energy attenuation of seismic metamaterials composed of a periodic array of coated elliptical cylinders

Abstract We present a numerical study on energy attenuation of seismic metamaterials consisting of a periodic array of coated elliptical cylinders. The aim is to perceive the effect of aspect ratio for different wave modes so that the metamaterials can interact with the incoming wave causing them to interfere with each other destructively, especially for low-frequency seismic waves with relatively wide bandgap. Previous studies mainly focused on the configuration of coated circular cylinders or spheres, in which the metamaterial is composed of a hard inclusion surrounded by a soft coating layer and dispersed within a hard matrix. Here we utilize numerical simulations based on finite element calculation to analyze the local fields within the unit cell. Effective mass density, mass moment of inertia and shear modulus are analyzed through a homogenization procedure to characterize the macroscopic behavior of the effective medium. The effective behavior will be dependent for different aspect ratios and for different types of wave motions. To verify the effectiveness of energy attenuation, a full-scale model is adopted. Specifically, to identify optimal energy attenuation configurations, we illustrate the attenuation effects of elliptical metamaterials under longitudinal and shear horizontal types of waves. The present study demonstrates that elliptical metamaterials will have more reflexibilities to tune with the aspect ratio of the elliptical geometry as well as the directionality of incidence waves. Based on our simulations, we show the ability of the designed configuration in tuning local resonance frequencies and bandwidths for real implementations and applications of seismic metamaterials.

Polarization independent tunable bandwidth absorber based on single-layer graphene

As the demand for cognitive understanding of the THz band continues to grow, there is significant potential for practical applications in designing optical devices operating in this frequency range. This paper proposes a polarization-independent tunable bandwidth absorber based on a monolayer graphene, capable of achieving an absorption rate higher than 0.9 in the 3–6 THz band. The absorber exhibits polarization incoherence due to the structural symmetry. Analysis of the electric field distribution indicates that the strong absorption effect of the absorber primarily arises from the coupling of localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR). The absorber also demonstrates excellent tunability, both in terms of physical and chemical properties, while maintaining optimal absorption performance at a 45° incidence angle. This implies that the absorber holds significant potential for applications in fields such as biomedicine and communications.

A reconfigurable RF front-end for 5G direct sampling receivers with an optimized calibration scheme

This paper presents a reconfigurable radio frequency front-end (RFFE) tailored for direct RF sampling receivers operating within Frequency Range 1 (FR-1) of the 5G spectrum. It consists of a balun-LNA, a noise-cancelling, current-reuse, Q-enhanced filter, and a programmable gain amplifier (PGA). Fabricated in 22-nm FD-SOI technology, the RFFE covers the entire frequency range from 1.7 to 6.4 GHz with a tunable bandwidth ranging from 50 MHz to 1.2 GHz. The experimental results confirm that the RFFE achieves 3.9 dB NF, 55 dB ultimate OOB rejection, −4 dBm IB-IIP3, and 23 dBm OOB-IIP3. Furthermore, a digital calibration scheme is proposed to compensate for process, voltage, and temperature (PVT) variations, achieving lower than 2 % error in 6.61 µs on average. Subsequently, a proximal policy optimization (PPO) agent is employed to choose the optimal policy for the successive adjustments of quality factors and resonance frequencies of the filter’s resonators. As a result, the proposed reinforcement learning algorithm reduces the calibration’s convergence time by 59 %.

Transparent grating-based metamaterials for dynamic infrared radiative regulation smart windows.

Dynamic infrared radiation regulation has been widely explored for smart windows because of its vital importance for comfortable and energy-efficient buildings. However, it remains a great challenge to synchronously achieve high visible transmittance and pronounced infrared tunability. Here, we propose a dynamic infrared tunable metamaterial composed of indium tin oxide (ITO) gratings, an air insulator, and an ITO reflector. The ITO grating-based infrared radiation regulator exhibits a high emissivity tunability of 0.73 at 8-13 μm while maintaining a high visible transmittance of 0.65 and 0.72 before and after actuation, respectively. By adjusting the geometric parameters, the tunable bandwidth can be further extended to 3-30 μm and the ultra-broadband tunability reaches 0.62. The excellent infrared tunable performance arises from the insulator thickness-dependent effect of Fabry-Pérot and propagating surface plasmon resonance coupling and decoupling, which lead to perfect and low absorption, respectively. This work provides potential for the advancement of smart window technology and makes a significant contribution to sustainable buildings.

Tunable bandwidth terahertz perfect absorption device based on vanadium dioxide phase transition control.

Utilizing the phase transition principle of VO2, this paper presents a tunable ultra-wideband terahertz perfect absorption device with simple structure and tunability. The proposed broadband terahertz perfect absorption device is a three-layer structure with a metal reflective layer, a silicon dioxide dielectric layer and a VO2 layer from bottom to top. It was found that the terahertz perfect absorption device's absorption could be dynamically adjusted from 1.2% to 99.9% when changing from an insulated to a metallic state. With the VO2 in the metallic state, the terahertz perfect absorption device has an absorption efficiency of more than 90% in 4.00 to 10.08 THz's ultra-broadband range and near-perfect absorption is achieved in the ranges of 4.71 THz to 5.16 THz and 7.74 THz to 8.06 THz. To explain the working principle of this terahertz perfect absorption device, this paper utilizes wave interference's principle, theory of impedance matching and electric field analysis. Compared to previously reported terahertz metamaterial devices, the vanadium dioxide device proposed in this paper is significantly optimized in terms of tunable range and absorption bandwidth. In addition, the terahertz perfect absorption device is polarization insensitive and maintains good absorptivity over a wide-angle incidence range. This tunable ultra-wideband terahertz perfect absorption device could have applications in the fields of modulation, stealth devices, and thermal emission devices.

Frequency-Stabilized Optoelectronic Oscillator With Simultaneous Wideband Tunability

Frequency-Stabilized Optoelectronic Oscillator With Simultaneous Wideband Tunability

An online tunable TE11 dual-circular polarizer applied for modern high-power radar system

Circular polarizers have essential applications in modern radar and communication systems. However, an online tunable wideband dual-circular polarizer with a power capability of more than 150 kW in the Ku band has not been reported yet, and it has recently become a fundamental problem for developing some high-power radar systems. This paper has designed an overmoded waveguide operating in the TE11 mode with a non-contact cutting-off choke to imply a high power capability. A high-precision stepping motor is used to control the rotation of an elliptical waveguide remotely, and then, the left-hand and right-hand circular polarizations can be switched online. The dual-circular polarizer has been fitted on a 150 kW gyro-TWT high-power test system, and the experimental results show a tremendous high-power capability. The microwave leakage caused by the non-contact gap is reduced to less than −35 dB. The polarization bandwidth exceeds 2.5 GHz in the Ku band, and the axial ratio is better than 1.3 dB. This design concept provides a reference for future high-power radar systems.

A Continuously Tunable Wideband Differential Phase Shifter With Filtering Function and Passband Alignment

A Continuously Tunable Wideband Differential Phase Shifter With Filtering Function and Passband Alignment

Broadly tunable filter based on a graphene MEMS-photonic crystal composite structure and its application in single-pixel full-color displays

A graphene MEMS tunable narrowband filter with minimal deformation (<2 pm), high voltage sensitivity (>400 nm V−1), high tunable bandwidth (>200 nm) was proposed, achieving full-color display within a single pixel, color gamut reaching 214% of sRGB.

Fully Tunable Bandpass Filter With Wide Bandwidth Tuning Range and Switchable Single/Dual Band

Fully Tunable Bandpass Filter With Wide Bandwidth Tuning Range and Switchable Single/Dual Band