Researchers at Chalmers University of Technology have developed a groundbreaking nanodisk that combines two major fields of photonics research, leading to remarkable advancements in optical technologies. This innovative structure promises to revolutionize the way we harness the power of light-matter interactions, paving the way for transformative applications in communications, medicine, and beyond.
Combining Nonlinearity with High-Index Nanophotonics
By combining nonlinear and high-index nanophotonics in a single, disk-like nanoobject the researchers have accomplished quite an impressive feat of doing so with as much as two dominant sub-disciplines in photonics research. Without this integration, new abilities have been unleashed to the world of photonic technologies pushing its limits beyond recognition.
What gives the nanodisk its unique properties, is what makes this advancement possible. The first one is built out of transition metal dichalcogenide (TMD), in particular molybdenum disulfide (MoS2), an atomically thin material that exhibits strong light-matter coupling even at room temperature. Second, the researchers created the nanodisk in a manner that preserves its shattered inverse symmetry so it could maintain its nonlinear optical properties.
The result is an extremely efficient, frequency converter of light that can convert light through nonlinearity in a crystal. Not only is this tiny nanodisk, some 50 nanometers long, incredibly small but as much as 10,000 times more effective than unstructured material of the same variety. The fact that they demonstrate these figures of merit directly is a testament to how powerful nano-structuring has become as well as a real display of their prowess in manipulating devices for maximum performance.
Realizing Transition Metal Dichalcogenide Potential
It should come as no surprise then that the TMD materials used are primarily molybdenum disulfide. Because these materials have a high refractive index, they can help condense the light within the medium more effectively. In addition, the researchers invented a new method of nanodisk fabrication enabling the material to be transferred to any substrate without latticematching to the native thin film.
This flexibility in fabrication is a key advantage as it allows the nanodisk to be integrated with many or different devices. The possibilities for the use of these structures, integrated in different types of optical circuits or used with existing treament systems on-chip will lead to very high progress in the nonlinear optics and entangled photon pair generation.
Like I said it is a very small thing and the nanodisk has much smaller size compared to any platforms, which were used for nonlinear optical phenomena. Although these phenomena are well exploited in laser systems, the platforms are usually centimeter while MNPs have sizes of 20–100 nm which restrict them for further applications. On the other hand, the nanodisk is just 50 nm, representing a decrease of 100,000 times in size and an enormous leap forward for photonics.
Conclusion
The results of the research open new perspectives in the field of photonics. By creating tools combining the remarkable nonlinearity and high refractive index of TMD materials in a compact, efficient architecture, the researchers have opened up new possibilities for optical technologies. Such a development would have broad implications for applications including communications, medicine and even quantum technologies and more. As the researchers search for all that this incredible nanodisk has to offer, the future of photonics seems as promising as it’s ever been.
