Enhanced Nonlinear Effects in Metamaterials and Plasmonics
Main Article Content
Abstract
In this paper we provide an overview of the anomalous and enhanced nonlinear effects available when optical nonlinear materials are combined inside plasmonic waveguide structures. Broad, bistable and all-optical switching responses are exhibited at the cut-off frequency of these waveguides, characterized by reduced Q-factor resonances. These phenomena are due to the large field enhancement obtained inside specific plasmonic gratings, which ensures a significant boosting of the nonlinear operation. Several exciting applications are proposed, which may potentially lead to new optical components and add to the optical nanocircuit paradigm.
Downloads
Article Details
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
References
J. B. Pendry, “Negative refraction makes a perfect lens,” Phys. Rev. Lett. 85, 3966, 2000.
A. Alù, N. Engheta, “Achieving transparency with plasmonic and metamaterial coatings,” Phys. Rev. E 72, 016623, 2005.
J. B. Pendry, D. Shurig, D. R. Smith, “Controlling electromagnetic fields,” Science 312, 1780, 2006.
M. G. Silveirinha, N. Engheta, “Tunneling of Electromagnetic Energy through Subwavelength Channels and Bends using ε-Near-Zero Materials,” Phys. Rev. Lett 97, 157403, 2006.
A. Alù, N. Engheta, “Light squeezing through arbitrarily shaped plasmonic channels and sharp bends,” Phys. Rev. B 78, 035440, 2008.
N. Fang, H. Lee, X. Zhang, “Sub–Diffraction-Limited Optical Imaging with a Silver Superlens,” Science 308, 534, 2005.
D. Schurig, J. J. Mock, B. J. Justice, S. A. Cummer, J. B. Pendry, A. F. Starr, D. R. Smith, “Metamaterial Electromagnetic Cloak at Microwave Frequencies,” Science 314, 977, 2006.
B. Edwards, A. Alù, M. G. Silveirinha, N. Engheta, “Experimental Verification of Plasmonic Cloaking at Microwave Frequencies with Metamaterials,” Phys. Rev. Lett. 103, 153901, 2009.
D. Rainwater, A. Kerkhoff, K. Melin, J. C. Soric, G. Moreno, A. Alù, “Experimental Verification of Three- Dimensional Plasmonic Cloaking in Free-Space,” New Journ. of Phys. 14, 013054, 2012.
B. Edwards, A. Alù, M. E. Young, M. Silveirinha, N. Engheta, “Experimental Verification of Epsilon-Near- Zero Metamaterial Coupling and Energy Squeezing Using a Microwave Waveguide,” Phys. Rev. Lett. 100, 033903, 2008.
R. Liu, Q. Cheng, T. Hand, J. J. Mock, T. J. Cui, S. A. Cummer, D. R. Smith, “Experimental Demonstration of Electromagnetic Tunneling Through an Epsilon-Near- Zero Metamaterial at Microwave Frequencies,” Phys. Rev. Lett. 100, 023903, 2008.
S. Xiao, V. P. Drachev, A. V. Kildishev, X. Ni, U. K. Chettiar, H.-K. Yuan, V. M. Shalaev, “Loss-free and active optical negative-index metamaterials,” Nature 466, 735, 2010.
A. Bouhelier, M. Beversluis, A. Hartschuh, L. Novotny, “Near-Field Second-Harmonic Generation Induced by Local Field Enhancement,” Phys. Rev. Lett. 90, 013903, 2008.
N. I. Zheludev, “The road ahead for metamaterials,” Science 328, 582, 2010.
P.-Y. Chen, A., Alù, “Optical nanoantenna arrays loaded with nonlinear materials,” Phys. Rev. B 82, 235405, 2010.
J. A. Porto, L. Martín-Moreno, F. J. García-Vidal, “Optical bistability in subwavelength slit apertures containing nonlinear media,” Phys. Rev. B 70, 081402(R), 2004.
G. D’Aguanno, D. Ceglia, N. Mattiucci, M. J. Bloemer, “All-optical switching at the Fano resonances in subwavelength gratings with very narrow slits,” Opt. Lett. 36, 1984, 2011.
M. Ren, B. Jia, J.-Y. Ou, E. Plum, J. Zhang, K. F. MacDonald, A. E. Nikolaenko, J. Xu, M. Gu, N. I. Zheludev, “Nanostructured Plasmonic Medium for Terahertz Bandwidth All-Optical Switching,” Adv. Mater. 23, 5540, 2011.
F. J. García-Vidal, E. Moreno, J. A. Porto, L. Martín- Moreno, “Transmission of Light through a Single Rectangular Hole,” Phys. Rev. Lett. 95, 103901, 2005.
C. Argyropoulos, P.-Y. Chen, G. D’Aguanno, N. Engheta, A. Alù, “Boosting Optical Nonlinearities in ε- Near-Zero Plasmonic Channels,” Phys. Rev. B 85, 045129, 2012.
P. B. Johnson, R. W. Christy, “Optical Constants of the Noble Metals,” Phys. Rev. B 6, 4370, 1972.
A. Alù, N. Engheta, “Optical nanotransmission lines: synthesis of planar left-handed metamaterials in the infrared and visible regimes,” J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 23, 571, 2006.
Q. Xu, R. M. Rioux, M. D. Dickey, G. M. Whitesides, “Nanoskiving: A New Method To Produce Arrays of Nanostructures,” Acc. Chem. Res. 41, 1566, 2008.
E. M. Purcell, “Spontaneous Emission Probabilities at Radio Frequencies,” Phys. Rev. 69, 681, 1946.