Optical guided mode resonance filter on a flexible substrate

Guided-mode resonance with reduced bandwidth in mid-infrared absorption and thermal emission

Narrowband resonance plays an important role in many optical applications, especially for the development of wavelength-selective properties and enhanced light-matter interaction. In this paper, we demonstrate metal-insulator-metal (MIM) waveguide gratings, which exhibit guided-mode resonance (GMR) with reduced bandwidth in mid-infrared absorption and thermal emission. Our fabricated MIM waveguide grating consists of a copper substrate, a lossless ZnSe film, and a top gold stripe grating. Our measurements reveal strong GMRs with a bandwidth of 1.29% of the central wavelength in both mid-infrared absorption and thermal emission spectra. By varying structural parameters of the MIM waveguide grating, strong absorptions and thermal emissions of GMRs are observed and tuned within the 3-5 µm wavelength range. These results manifest the great potential of engineering infrared properties by using GMR and could be useful for spectral control in a variety of infrared devices.

Metasurface-based contact lenses for color vision deficiency

We embed large-scale, plasmonic metasurfaces into off-the-shelf rigid gas permeable contact lenses and study their ability to serve as visual aids for color vision deficiency. In this study, we specifically address deuteranomaly, which is the most common class of color vision deficiency. This condition is caused by a redshift of the medium-type cone photoreceptor and leads to ambiguity in the color perception of red and green and their combinations. The effect of the metasurface-based contact lenses on the color perception was simulated using Commission Internationale de l'Eclairage (CIE) color spaces and conventional models of the human color-sensitive photoreceptors. Comparison between normal color vision and uncorrected and corrected deuteranomaly by the proposed element demonstrates the ability offered by the nanostructured contact lens to shift back incorrectly perceived pigments closer to the original pigments. The maximal improvement in the color perception error before and after the proposed correction for deuteranomaly is up to a factor of $\sim{10}$∼10. In addition, an Ishihara-based color test was also simulated, showing the contrast restoration achieved by the element, for deuteranomaly conditions.

Angular Dependence of Photonic Crystal Coupled to Photovoltaic Solar Cell

Photonic crystals have the advantage of minimizing thermal losses from solar cells, reflecting the solar radiation that is not absorbed by the photovoltaic device. To optimize this optical response, photonic crystals are designed considering the relative position of the Bragg peak and the bandgap of the solar cell, under normal incident irradiation conditions. The aim of this research article was to determine experimentally the optical limits of a solar cell coupled to a photonic crystal acting as beam splitter. For that purpose, the photovoltaic system was characterized under indoor and outdoor conditions; angular dependence of the irradiation source was determined in each case, and both results were compared with good agreement. Moreover, other parameters such as irradiation spectrum and polarization of the light were investigated. The main conclusion is that photovoltaic performance is highly affected by the Bragg peak shifting and the profile is distorted, due to the angular dependence with the sun. These experimental limits must be considered at the early design stage to avoid performance losses.

Holography Using Curved Metasurfaces

In this work, we demonstrate nonflat metasurface holograms with applications in imaging, sensing, and anticounterfeiting. For these holograms, the image and its symmetry properties, with respect to the polarization of the light, depend on the specific shape of the substrate. Additionally, the sensitivity of the holographic image to the substrate shape can be engineered by distributing the phase information into determined areas of the metasurface.

Highly efficient omnidirectional structural color tuning method based on dielectric-metal-dielectric structure

A novel and convenient scheme is proposed to achieve angle insensitive color filtering across a large color gamut by simply altering the thickness of the dielectric layer of a dielectric-metal-dielectric grating structure. The plasmonic filter presents a great feature of angle resolved spectrum response up to 60° and is independent of the azimuthal angle and the polarization state as well so as to construct an omnidirectional filter for practical applications. The color tuning feature of the proposed filter with varied dielectric thickness is attributed to the modulation of the condition for the localized surface plasmon resonance, which bears responsibility for the omnidirectional property of this plasmonic filter. This color-tuning method with a single mold size required can have wide applications in fields of display, colorful decoration, printing, and so forth.

Angle- and polarization-dependent spectral characteristics of circular grating filters

We design and implement one type of guided mode resonance (GMR) circular grating filters (CGFs) on an HfO₂-on-silicon platform. Taking advantage of an angle-resolved micro-reflection measurement system, we achieve their incident angle- and polarization-dependent reflection spectra. For normal incident arbitrary linear polarization, a pair of reflection peaks is experimentally observed due to the coexistence of the azimuthal component E_a and the radial component E_r of the incident wave electric field (E-field). For oblique incident s-polarization (E-field perpendicular to the incident plane), the peak excited by the E_a component splits into two sub-peaks due to the removal of degeneracy, while that excited by the E_r component gradually fades away with the increase of the incident angle. For oblique incident p-polarization (E-field parallel to the incident plane), the spectrum appears to be reversed; that is, the peak corresponding to the E_r component gets split while that corresponding to the E_a component gradually disappears when the incident angle increases. Moreover, we experimentally demonstrate the spectral relationships between CGFs and linear grating filters under not only normal incidence but also oblique incidence; these relationships greatly facilitate the spectral design and tailoring of the CGFs.

Assembling Color on the Nanoscale: Multichromatic Switchable Pixels from Plasmonic Atoms and Molecules

Nanoparticles of different materials, shapes, and sizes are integrated into plasmonic atoms and molecules of defined shape and location through sequential directed self-assembly following a single patterning step. A rational tuning of the emitted color across the visible range of the electromagnetic spectrum and switchable polarization properties are demonstrated. Self-assembled plasmonic pixels provide tunable, stable, and switchable optical responses.

Concurrent spatial and spectral filtering by resonant nanogratings

Optical devices incorporating resonant periodic layers constitute an emerging technological area. Recent advances include spectral filters, broadband mirrors, and polarizers. Here, we demonstrate concurrent spatial and spectral filtering as a new outstanding attribute of this device class. This functionality is enabled by a unique, near-complete, reflection state that is discrete in both angular and spectral domains and realized with carefully-crafted nanogratings operating in the non-subwavelength regime. We study the pathway and inter-modal interference effects inducing this intriguing reflection state. In a proof-of-concept experiment, we obtain angular and spectral bandwidths of ~4 mrad and ~1 nm, respectively. This filter concept can be used for focus-free spectral and spatial filtering in compact holographic and interferometric optical instruments.

Lab-on-fiber technology: a new vision for chemical and biological sensing

The integration on the optical fiber tip of nanostructures supporting resonant modes highly sensitive to local modifications of the surrounding environment allows the development of lab-on-fiber based biosensors.

Nanostructure arrays in free-space: optical properties and applications

Dielectric and metallic gratings have been studied for more than a century. Nevertheless, novel optical phenomena and fabrication techniques have emerged recently and have opened new perspectives for applications in the visible and infrared domains. Here, we review the design rules and the resonant mechanisms that can lead to very efficient light-matter interactions in sub-wavelength nanostructure arrays. We emphasize the role of symmetries and free-space coupling of resonant structures. We present the different scenarios for perfect optical absorption, transmission or reflection of plane waves in resonant nanostructures. We discuss the fabrication issues, experimental achievements and emerging applications of resonant nanostructure arrays.