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Several important sensory physical quantities exist but are difficult to quantify, including food freshness. With the aid of a hyperspectral imaging system (HIS) and machine learning (ML), meat freshness is converted into a measurable physical quantity, i.e., freshness index (F. I.), in this study. F. I. is defined from meat fluorescence, which has a strong correlation with bacterial density, using a line-scan-type HIS stimulated at 365 nm. Combined with ML techniques, hyperspectral images are processed more efficiently. By employing linear discriminant and quadratic component analyses for hyperspectral images, F. I. can be estimated from its decision boundary after hyperspectral images are taken at an unknown freshness state. Advanced sensing versatility utilized by computational sensing systems allows hyper-personalization and hyper-customization of human life with the aid of home appliances and smartphones.

We have demonstrated a compact and efficient metasurface-based spectral imager for use in the near-infrared range. The spectral imager was created by fabricating dielectric multilayer filters directly on top of the CMOS image sensor. The transmission wavelength for each spectral channel was selected by embedding a Si nanopost array of appropriate dimensions within the multilayers on the corresponding pixels, and this greatly simplified the fabrication process by avoiding the variation of the multilayer-film thicknesses. The meta-spectral imager shows high efficiency and excellent spectral resolution up to 2.0 nm in the near-infrared region. Using the spectral imager, we were able to measure the broad spectra of LED emission and obtain hyperspectral images from wavelength-mixed images. This approach provides ease of fabrication, miniaturization, low crosstalk, high spectral resolution, and high transmission. Our findings can potentially be used in integrating a compact spectral imager in smartphones for diverse applications.

Measuring, recoding and analyzing of spectral information of materials as its unique finger print using a ubiquitous smart phone has been craved for by scientists and consumers. We demonstrated the concept of a spectral barcode in drug classification with a smartphone Raman spectrometer. The spectral barcode is a 2D Raman spectral intensity map captured with a CMOS-image sensor integrated with a periodic array of band-pass filters. We classified the type of each drug by capturing its spectrum and using a convolutional neural network (CNN) that we trained to identify 11 major spectral components. This yielded a prediction accuracy of 99%, including drugs in the same category but from different brands. The accuracy of identifying drugs by individual brand was 79.5%, which improved to 83.2% simultaneously using the spectral barcode and RGB image in the CNN. This inherent property-based labeling system will facilitate fundamental research and business opportunities.

One critical factor for bolometer sensitivity is efficient electromagnetic heating of thermistor materials, which plasmonic nanogap structures can provide through the electric field enhancement. In this report, using finite element method simulation, electromagnetic heating of nanorod dimer antennas with a nanogap filled with vanadium dioxide (VO2) was studied for long-wavelength infrared detection. Because VO2 is a thermistor material, the electrical resistance between the two dimer ends depends on the dimer’s temperature. The simulation results show that, due to the high heating ability of the nanogap, the temperature rise is several times higher than expected from the areal coverage. This excellent performance is observed over various nanorod lengths and gap widths, ensuring wavelength tunability and ultrafast operating speed, thereby making the dimer structures a promising candidate for high sensitivity bolometers.

We present optical slot antennas and their applications to photonic devices. We show that metallic nanoslots have the properties of a slot antenna by measuring the transmission spectra and far-field radiation patterns and then prove that they can be physically regarded as magnetic dipoles in the optical region. Additionally, we can generate directional radiations from optical slot antennas by adopting the geometry of radiofrequency Yagi-Uda antenna and properly adding auxiliary elements called reflectors and directors to a single slot antenna. We present two cases as the applications of optical slot antennas. One is the integration of slot antennas to plasmonic waveguides. This combination can be used as a basic unit for optical interconnection to free space and plasmonic via in multilayered plasmonic structures. The other is the integration of slot antennas to the electrode of light-emitting diodes (LEDs). Using slot antennas, we can control the polarization and direction of emissions from LEDs. Besides the above-mentioned two cases, we expect that optical slot antennas have possible applications to various photonic devices and can be essential elements in future integrated photonic circuits with nanometer scales.

Broadband detection of mid-infrared (IR) photons extends to advanced optoelectronic applications such as imaging, sensing, and telecommunications. While graphene offers an attractive platform for broadband visible/IR photodetection, previous efforts to improve its responsivity, for example, by integrating light-absorbing colloids or waveguide or antenna fabrication, were achieved at the cost of reduced photon detection bandwidth. In this work, we demonstrate room-temperature operation of a novel mid-IR photodetector based on a graphene–Bi2Se3 heterostructure showing broadband detection and high responsivity (1.97 and 8.18 A/W at mid- and near-IR, respectively), in which simultaneous improvement of the spectral range and responsivity is achieved via exploiting broadband absorption of mid-IR and IR photons in a small-band-gap Bi2Se3 topological insulator and efficient hot carrier separation and strong photogating across the Bi2Se3/graphene interface. With sufficient room for further improvement by interface...

We monolithically fabricated vertical cavity lasers with densely packed colloidal quantum dot films and demonstrated single-mode lasing operation using nanosecond optical excitation. Due to the accurate spectral and spatial alignment of the cavity optical modes and the quantum dot gains, in addition to the high quality factors of our devices, we observed lasing from a colloidal quantum dot gain medium only 35 nm thick (6 or 7 monolayers thick) with a threshold of 20 mJ/cm2. We fabricated a laser with more numerous quantum dot layers as well, which exhibited a lower lasing threshold of 9 mJ/cm2 due to the enhanced modal gain. This work represents an important step toward fabricating monolithic colloidal quantum dot lasers for practical photonic devices.

We report a colloidal quantum dot (CQD) distributed feedback (DFB) laser structure containing a chirped grating. The device exhibits single-mode DFB lasing, of which the wavelength is spatially dispersed in a single chip. A period-chirped surface grating is fabricated using a modified Lloyd-type laser interference lithography setup, where a flat Lloyd's mirror is replaced with a concave one. A dense red-emitting CdSe/CdS/ZnS CQD film is prepared on a temporary substrate by spin-coating, which is subsequently released and wet-transferred onto a period-chirped quartz surface grating. Upon optical excitation, the fabricated DFB laser device lases in a single mode at a laser threshold of ∼400 μJ cm−2, with its lasing wavelength shifted linearly (in proportion to the grating pitch) along the chirp direction from 613.4 nm to 623.2 nm over a distance of ∼5.6 mm.

Flow lithography (FL) is a microfluidic technique distinguished for its ability to produce hydrogel microparticles of various geometrical and chemical designs. While FL is typically performed in room temperature, this paper reports a new technique called low temperature flow lithography that uses low synthesis temperature to increase the degree of polymerization of microparticles without compromising other aspects of flow lithography. We suggest that decreased oxygen diffusivity in low temperature is responsible for the increase in polymerization. Microparticles that exhibit a higher degree of polymerization display a more developed polymer network, ultimately resulting in a more defined morphology, higher incorporation of materials of interest, and improved functional performance. This work demonstrates the increase in the degree of polymerization by examining the temperature effect on both the physical and chemical structures of particles. We show applications of this technique in synthesizing thin microparticles and enhancing microparticle-based detection of microRNA. Low temperature FL offers a simple and easy method of improving the degree of polymerization, which can be implemented in a wide range of FL applications.

The photoresponse in graphene has drawn significant attention for potential applications owing to its gapless linear electronic band structure. To enhance both the spectral selectivity and responsivity in graphene, we demonstrate a novel but versatile and simple method of introducing surface plasmons. We utilize block copolymers to fabricate different nanostructured metal nanoparticle arrays on a single graphene surface. The plasmonic resonances could be tuned using Ag, Au, and Cu metal nanoparticles. By extending the synthetic route for the metallic particles, dual surface plasmonic bands from a single material were also successfully realized. Furthermore, enhanced photoresponsivity through the entire visible spectra could be achieved by mixing metallic nanoparticles and by controlling their shapes. Owing to its all-band transition characteristics, the ultrabroad band photocurrent generation in graphene can be tailored for an arbitrary photoresponse, which could be utilized in flexible CMOS image sensors...

We demonstrate optical pumping lasers based on colloidal quantum dots, with a very thin geometry consisting of a ≈20 nm thick film. Obstacles in ultrasmall laser devices come from the limitation of gain materials and the size of cavities for lasing modes, which requires a minimum thickness of the gain media (typically greater than 50-100 nm). Here we introduce dielectric waveguide structures with a high refractive index, in order to reduce the thickness of quantum dot gain media as well as their threshold energy (≈39 % compared to the original gain medium). Finite-difference time-domain simulations show that the modal confinement factor of thinner quantum dot films can be improved by the presence of an adjacent waveguide layer. We also discuss the possible role of dielectric waveguide layers for efficient heat dissipation during optical pumping. Integrating an extremely thin colloidal quantum dot gain medium into optical waveguides is a promising platform for downscaling on-chip photonic integrated devices, as well as investigating extreme interactions between light and matter such as surface plasmon-photon coupling.

Phosphors, long-known color-converting photonic agents, are gaining increasing attention owing to the interest in white LEDs and related applications. Conventional material-based approaches to phosphors focus on obtaining the desired absorption/emission wavelengths and/or improving quantum efficiency. Here, we report a novel approach for enhancing the performance of phosphors: structural modification of phosphors. We incorporated inorganic colloidal quantum dots (CQDs) into a lateral one-dimensional (1D) photonic crystal (PhC) thin-film structure, with its photonic band-edge (PBE) modes matching the energy of 'excitation photons' (rather than 'emitted photons', as in most other PBE application devices). At resonance, we observed an approximately 4-fold enhancement of fluorescence over the reference bulk phosphor, which reflects an improved absorption of the excitation photons. This nano-structural engineering approach is a paradigm shift in the phosphor research area and may help to develop next-generation higher efficiency phosphors with novel characteristics.

We present an optical slot antenna and its application. By measuring transmission spectra and far-field radiation pattern of metallic slots with nanometer scale, we show that a metallic nanoslot has the properties of an antenna, which are resonance, polarization, and bidirectional far-field radiation pattern, and can be regarded as a magnetic dipole in optical region. Additionally, we also make the unidirectional radiation by adapting the geometry of RF Yagi-Uda antenna and applying slot antenna. By the aid of phase analysis based on 3-dimensional finite-difference time-domain simulation, we can increase the front-to-back ratio of an optical slot Yagi-Uda antenna up to about 5. As the application of a slot antenna, we integrate a metal-insulator-metal plasmonic waveguide with a slot antenna. A surface plasmon waveguide mode propagating in MIM structure is well-coupled to a slot antenna and radiates into free-space in form of dipole radiation. By adding an auxiliary structure that has the role of reflector as like a slot Yagi-Uda antenna, the direction of radiation from a slot antenna integrated with a plasmonic waveguide can be controlled efficiently. Besides the possibility of integration with a waveguide, we expect that a slot antenna can be applied to active devices such as light emitting diodes or lasers for the future.

The ability of metasurfaces to manipulate light at the subwavelength scale offers unprecedented functionalities for passive and active lasing devices. However, applications of metasurfaces to optical devices are rare due to fabrication difficulties. Here, we present quantum dot light emitting diodes (QDLEDs) with a metasurface-integrated metal electrode and demonstrate microscopically controlled LED emission. By incorporating slot-groove antennas into the metal electrode, we show that LED emission from randomly polarized QD sources can be polarized and directed at will. Utilizing the relation between polarization and emission direction, we also demonstrate microscopic LED beam splitting through the selective choice of polarization.

Nanophotonics capable of directing radiation or enhancing quantum-emitter transition rates rely on plasmonic nanoantennas. We present here a novel Babinet-inverted magnetic-dipole-fed multislot optical Yagi-Uda antenna that exhibits highly unidirectional radiation to free space, achieved by engineering the relative phase of the interacting surface plasmon polaritons between the slot elements. The unique features of this nanoantenna can be harnessed for realizing energy transfer from one waveguide to another by working as a future "optical via".

We report on the systematic studies of the parameters governing the integrity of graphene film during general “wet” transfer from a thermodynamic point of view. We chose polystyrene (PS) as a test carrier material and attempted to use eight different solvents to find optimal conditions for the graphene transfer from a catalyst film to a desired substrate without defects. When parameterizing the conventional chemical properties of solvents, the boiling points and surface tension were found to be critical in determining the quality of the transferred graphene. During the formation step of a conformal PS film on a graphene surface before catalyst etching, a solvent with a boiling point over ∼140 °C was essential. During the following PS film removal step, a solvent with surface tension higher than approximately 29 dyn/cm led to the formation of a continuous graphene film without cracks and holes. In addition, a high spin-coating velocity and lower concentration of PS in the solvent enhanced the quality of a transferred graphene film. The UV treatment of Si/SiO2 (100 nm) was also found to improve the adhesion of the graphene on substrates. By electrical characterization, morphological differences were found to affect the electrical properties markedly.

Wearable devices often employ optical sensors, such as photoplethysmography sensors, for detecting heart rates or other biochemical factors. Pulse waveforms, rather than simply detecting heartbeats, can clarify arterial conditions. However, most optical sensor designs require close skin contact to reduce power consumption while obtaining good quality signals without distortion. We have designed a detection-gap-independent optical sensor array using divergence-beam-controlled slit lasers and distributed photodiodes in a pulse-detection device wearable over the wrist’s radial artery. It achieves high biosignal quality and low power consumption. The top surface of a vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser of 850 nm wavelength was covered by Au film with an open slit of width between 500 nm and 1500 nm, which generated laser emissions across a large divergence angle along an axis orthogonal to the slit direction. The sensing coverage of the slit laser diode (LD) marks a 50% improvement over nonslit LD sensor coverage. The slit LD sensor consumes 100% more input power than the nonslit LD sensor to obtain similar optical output power. The slit laser sensor showed intermediate performance between LD and light-emitting diode sensors. Thus, designing sensors with multiple-slit LD arrays can provide useful and convenient ways for incorporating optical sensors in wrist-wearable devices.

Utilizing colloidal quantum dots (CQDs) as a gain material in a passive two-dimensional photonic crystal (PC) backbone structure, we have experimentally demonstrated room-temperature lasing operation at band-edge modes. A silicon nitride PC slab on silica substrate contains a square lattice array of air-holes, which is designed to have an in-plane, M-point low index band-edge mode. The air-hole array is then infiltrated by colloidal quantum dots using simple spin-coating method.

Although two-dimensional monolayer transition-metal dichalcogenides reveal numerous unique features that are inaccessible in bulk materials, their intrinsic properties are often obscured by environmental effects. Among them, work function, which is the energy required to extract an electron from a material to vacuum, is one critical parameter in electronic/optoelectronic devices. Here, we report a large work function modulation in MoS2 via ambient gases. The work function was measured by an in situ Kelvin probe technique and further confirmed by ultraviolet photoemission spectroscopy and theoretical calculations. A measured work function of 4.04 eV in vacuum was converted to 4.47 eV with O2 exposure, which is comparable with a large variation in graphene. The homojunction diode by partially passivating a transistor reveals an ideal junction with an ideality factor of almost one and perfect electrical reversibility. The estimated depletion width obtained from photocurrent mapping was ∼200 nm, which is much narrower than bulk semiconductors.

We present an optical slot antenna integrated with a metal-dielectric-metal (MIM) plasmonic waveguide. By integrating optical slot antenna on top metal layer of MIM waveguide, we can couple the plasmon guide mode into the feed antenna directly. The resonantly excited slot antenna works as a magnetic dipole and then radiates in dipole-like far-field pattern. By adding an auxiliary groove structure along with the slot antenna, the radiation can be directed into the direction where the structure determined. The demonstrated optical slot antenna integrated with a plasmonic waveguide can be used as a “plasmonic via” in plasmonic nanocircuits.

We report the room-temperature lasing action from two-dimensional photonic crystal (PC) structures composed of a passive Si3N4 backbone with an over-coat of CdSe/CdS/ZnS colloidal quantum dots (CQDs) for optical gain. When optically excited, devices lased in dual PC band-edge modes, with the modal dominance governed by the thickness of the CQD over-layer. The demonstrated laser platform should have an impact on future photonic integrated circuits as the on-chip coupling between active and passive components is readily achievable.

Tunable metamaterial operating in terahertz (THz) frequency range based on dielectric cubic particles with deposited conducting resonant strip was investigated. The frequency of the first magnetic type Mie resonance depends on the electric length of the strip. It can be changed under photoexcitation or applied voltage. This method of control was used for a design of tunable double negative metamaterial based on dielectric resonant inclusions and wire medium.

Misorientation-angle dependence on layer thickness is an intriguing feature of van der Waals materials, which causes stark optical gain and electrical transport modulation. However, the influence of misorientation angle on phase transformation is not determined yet. Herein, this phenomenon in a MoS2 multilayer via in situ electron-beam irradiation is reported. An AA'-stacked MoS2 bilayer undergoes structural transformation from the 2H semiconducting phase to the 1T' metallic phase, similar to a MoS2 monolayer, which is confirmed via in situ transmission electron microscopy. Moreover, non-AA' stacking, which has no local AA' stacking order in the Moire pattern, does not reveal such a phase transformation. While a collective sliding motion of chalcogen atoms easily occurs during the transformation in AA' stacking, in non-AA' stacking it is suppressed by the weak van der Waals strength and by the chalcogen atoms interlocked at different orientations, which disfavor their kinetics by the increased entropy of mixing.

We study the efficiency of coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (CARS) under frequency comb excitation. We calculate the power density of the anti-Stokes signal for two major cases: (1) molecular excitation by frequency comb and cw probe and, (2) both excitation and probing by frequency combs. In the first case, average CARS power varies as an inverse third degree of frequency combs free spectral range (FSR−3); in the second case, it varies as FSR−5. These results were applied to the CARS on blood glucose under frequency comb excitation. It was found that the resulting glucose CARS signal could approach nanowatt (nW) level at FSR=10 GHz.

We present a Babinet-inverted optical nanoantenna integrated with a plasmonic waveguide. Using an integrated nanoantenna, we can couple the plasmon guide mode in a metal-insulator-metal (MIM) structure into the resonant antenna feed directly. The resonantly excited feed slot then radiates to free space and generates a magnetic dipole-like far-field pattern. The coupling efficiency of the integrated nanoantenna is calculated as being approximately 19% using a three-dimensional finite-difference time-domain (3D FDTD) simulation. By adding an auxiliary groove structure along with the feed, the radiation direction can be controlled similar to an optical Yagi-Uda antenna. We also determine, both theoretically and experimentally, that groove depth plays a significant role to function groove structure as a reflector or a director. The demonstrated Babinet-inverted optical nanoantenna integrated with a plasmonic waveguide can be used as a “plasmonic via” in plasmonic nanocircuits.

We propose a hybrid type of photonic crystal waveguide (PCW) structure, in which two-dimensional (2D) PCW is embedded in a two one-dimensional (1D) PCW. This rather new PCW structure should be identical to a full three-dimensional PCW in its functionality, but its fabrication is much simpler. Toward the realization of such an amenable PCW structure, an epitaxially grown GaAs/AlAs multilayer structure was successfully converted to an omnidirectional reflector, suitable for the 1D photonic crystal structure in the hybrid PCW. In terms of fabricating 2D-PCWs, we took a rather new approach instead of conventional electron-beam lithography. An air-bridge type of thin film Si 2D-PCW was fabricated using a combined technique of holography and photolithography. Optical characterizations revealed that the propagation loss of the waveguide fabricated such is comparable to those of e-beam generating PCWs in the literature.

The patterning of colloidal quantum dots with nanometer resolution is essential for their application in photonics and plasmonics. Several patterning approaches, such as the use of polymer composites, molecular lock-and-key methods, inkjet printing, and microcontact printing of quantum dots, have limits in fabrication resolution, positioning and the variation of structural shapes. Herein, we present an adaptation of a conventional liftoff method for patterning colloidal quantum dots. This simple method is easy and requires no complicated processes. Using this method, we formed straight lines, rings, and dot patterns of colloidal quantum dots on metallic substrates. Notably, patterned lines approximately 10 nm wide were fabricated. The patterned structures display high resolution, accurate positioning, and well-defined sidewall profiles. To demonstrate the applicability of our method, we present a surface plasmon generator elaborated from quantum dots.

We have experimentally demonstrated a very low cross talk in photonic crystal waveguide crossings of any kind. For cross talk reduction, we added a resonant cavity to the waveguide intersection designed to operate in microwave frequencies. The two-dimensional waveguide crossing structure was sandwiched between two parallel metal plates to eliminate radiation loss in the vertical direction. Transmission measurements revealed that when designed properly the cross talk reduction was as large as −30dB at resonance, which is qualitatively consistent with simulation results. From the experimental results, the detailed resonant mode shape at the waveguide intersection was found to play a key role in relaying the input signal in the forward direction and therefore reducing cross talk.

In order to emphasize and demonstrate the importance of light confinement in the vertical direction, an otherwise ordinary two-dimensional photonic crystal waveguide structure operating at microwave frequencies was sandwiched between two metal plates. Such waveguides exhibited excellent guiding properties despite the existence of multiple 90° bends. From the experimental data, we have estimated that the propagation velocity of the waveguide is about 0.47 c, regardless of the number of bends, and that the bending loss is only 0.1 dB per bend.

We introduce a compound-semiconductor-based omnidirectional reflector. A four-layer-pair stack of GaAs/AlAs was grown epitaxially using molecular-beam epitaxy, and was then converted to a GaAs/Al2O3 multilayer stack by selective oxidation of the AlAs layers. The resultant one-dimensional photonic crystal exhibited omnidirectional reflection properties in near-IR wavelength range below 1 μm. Reflectance spectra measured at various incidence angles and polarizations were observed to be in good agreement with theoretically simulated results.

We fabricated bilayer photonic crystal (PhC) as large as $20\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}30\text{ }\ensuremath{\mu}\text{m}$ possessing 200-nm-thick slabs and a 200-nm-thick air gap. Input power dependence of reflectance spectra indicates air gap reduction by 3.6 nm. Combining it with finite element method calculation we estimate optomechanically generated force per unit stored energy as $0.4\text{ }\ensuremath{\mu}\text{N}/\text{pJ}$, exhibiting strong optomechanical coupling. RF spectrum of reflected light reveals intensity modulation by thermal vibration of bilayer PhC, which also shows strong interaction of optical resonance mode and mechanical mode of bilayer PhC

We experimentally observed optomechanical response of photonic crystal slabs separated by a thin air gap. Reflectance measurement reveals photonic crystal slabs are mechanically displaced by optical pumping.

We analyze photonic crystal based optical nanocavity structures. The result indicates that the photonic crystal based cavity structure has the promising application toward optomechanics. The structure also has a potential application for cavity-QED due to large Q-factor and small modal volume.

We identified new photonic structures and phenomenon that are analogous to alloy crystals and the associated electronic bandgap engineering. From a set of diamond-lattice microwave photonic crystals of randomly mixed silica and alumina spheres but with a well defined mixing composition, we observed that both bandedges of the L-point bandgap monotonically shifted with very little bowing as the composition was varied. The observed results were in excellent agreement with the virtual crystal approximation theory originally developed for electronic properties of alloy crystals. This result signifies the similarity and correspondence between photonics and electronics.

We investigated photo-induced voltage across perforated metal-dielectric-metal layered structure in experimental and numerical manner. Reversal of the sign of the induced voltage revealed negative direction of energy flow at the negative refractive index frequency.

Photo-induced voltage across a metallic wire in thin film of negative index material is discussed. Electromagnetic and Poynting vector fields in a perforated metallic bi-layer structure are numerically calculated by the scattering matrix formalism.

We emphasize the importance of optical confinement in the vertical direction for a successful two-dimensional photonic crystal waveguide (2D-PCW) performance by presenting optical properties of a 2D-PCW that has a special feature to provide a strong vertical confinement. The 2D-PCW, which was designed to operate in microwave regime, was composed of two parts: an ordinary 2D-PCW composed of alumina rods in air for lateral optical confinement and a pair of aluminum metal plates forming a metal waveguide in the vertical direction. Cylindrical alumina rods, each being 2 mm in diameter, were arranged in a square-lattice with its spatial period of 9 mm, which according to a simple photonic band calculation produces a photonic bandgap in the frequency range of 14.7~16.5 GHz for TM-polarized light (E-field parallel to the rods). This 2D-PCW was then embedded between two aluminum metal plates. Light propagation loss for a straight waveguide, which was estimated from transmission measurement as a function of waveguide length, is as low as 0.05 dB/cm whereas most of transmission loss could be attributed to the input and output couplings due to mode mismatch. When multiple 90°-bends were incorporated, on the other hand, estimated bending loss was only 0.1 dB/bend, which indicates that high performance 2D-PCWs are indeed possible if an appropriate strong confinement in the vertical direction is provided. Fabry-Perot oscillations seen in transmission spectra, whose oscillation period was observed dictated only by total waveguide length regardless of the number of bends, are another strong evidence for the low propagation and bending losses of our waveguide structure.

We introduce a compound semiconductor based omnidirectional reflector. A four layer pair stack of GaAs/AlAs was grown epitaxially using molecular beam epitaxy, which was then converted to a GaAs/Al 2 O 3 multilayer stack by selective oxidation of the AlAs layers. The resultant one-dimensional photonic crystal exhibited omnidirectional reflection properties in near infrared wavelength range below 1μm. Reflectance spectra measured at various incidence angles and polarizations were observed to be in good agreements with theoretically simulated results.

Patterning of colloidal quantum dot (QD) of a nanometer res- olution is important for potential applications in micro- or nanophotonics. Several patterning techniques such as polymer composites, molecular key-lock methods, inkjet printing, and the microcontact printing of QDs have been successfully developed and applied to various plasmonic applications. However, these methods are not easily adapted to conven- tional complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS)-compatible processes because of either limits in fabrication resolutions or difficulties in sub-100-nm alignment. Here, we present an adaptation of a conven- tional lift-off method for the patterning of colloidal QDs. This simple method can be later applied to CMOS processes by changing electron beam lithography to photolithography for building up photon-generation ele- ments in various planar geometries. Various shapes formed by colloidal QD clusters such as straight lines, rings, and dot patterns with sub-100-nm size could be fabricated. The patterned structures show sub-10-nm posi- tioning with good fluorescence properties and well-defined sidewall profiles. To demonstrate the applicability of our method, we present a sur- face plasmon generator from a QD cluster. © 2013 Society of Photo-Optical

The patterning of colloidal quantum dots with nanometer resolution is essential for their application in photonics and plasmonics. Several patterning approaches, such as the use of polymer composites, molecular lock-and-key methods, inkjet printing and microcontact printing of quantum dots have been recently developed. Herein, we present a simple method of patterning colloidal quantum dots for photonic nanostructures such as straight lines, rings and dot patterns either on transparent or metallic substrates. Sub-10 nm width of the patterned line could be achieved with a well-defined sidewall profile. Using this method, we demonstrate a surface plasmon launcher from a quantum dot cluster in the visible spectrum.

We report designs for a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) one-dimensional (1D) photonic crystal (PhC) nanocavity with modulated mode-gap barriers based on the lowest dielectric band. These cavities have an ultrahigh theoretical quality factor (Q) of 10(7)-10(8) while maintaining a very small modal volume of 0.6-2.0 (lambda/n)(3), which are the highest Q for any nanocavities with SiO(2) under-cladding. We have fabricated these SOI 1D-PhC cavities and confirmed that they exhibited a Q of 3.6 x 10(5), which is also the highest measured Q for SOI-type PhC nanocavities. We have also applied the same design to 1D PhC cavities with air claddings, and found that they exhibit a theoretical quality factor higher than 10(9). The fabricated air-cladding 1D Si PhC cavities have showed a quality factor of 7.2 x 10(5), which is close to the highest Q value for 1D PhC cavities.