Gordon A. Keeler

Resonantly Enhanced Second-Harmonic Generation Using III–V Semiconductor All-Dielectric Metasurfaces

Nonlinear optical phenomena in nanostructured materials have been challenging our perceptions of nonlinear optical processes that have been explored since the invention of lasers. For example, the ability to control optical field confinement, enhancement, and scattering almost independently allows nonlinear frequency conversion efficiencies to be enhanced by many orders of magnitude compared to bulk materials. Also, the subwavelength length scale renders phase matching issues irrelevant. Compared with plasmonic nanostructures, dielectric resonator metamaterials show great promise for enhanced nonlinear optical processes due to their larger mode volumes. Here, we present, for the first time, resonantly enhanced second-harmonic generation (SHG) using gallium arsenide (GaAs) based dielectric metasurfaces. Using arrays of cylindrical resonators we observe SHG enhancement factors as large as 10(4) relative to unpatterned GaAs. At the magnetic dipole resonance, we measure an absolute nonlinear conversion efficiency of ∼2 × 10(-5) with ∼3.4 GW/cm(2) pump intensity. The polarization properties of the SHG reveal that both bulk and surface nonlinearities play important roles in the observed nonlinear process.

Enhanced third harmonic generation from the epsilon-near-zero modes of ultrathin films

We experimentally demonstrate efficient third harmonic generation from an indium tin oxide nanofilm (λ/42 thick) on a glass substrate for a pump wavelength of 1.4 μm. A conversion efficiency of 3.3 × 10−6 is achieved by exploiting the field enhancement properties of the epsilon-near-zero mode with an enhancement factor of 200. This nanoscale frequency conversion method is applicable to other plasmonic materials and reststrahlen materials in proximity of the longitudinal optical phonon frequencies.

Ultrafast all-optical tuning of direct-gap semiconductor metasurfaces

Optical metasurfaces are regular quasi-planar nanopatterns that can apply diverse spatial and spectral transformations to light waves. However, metasurfaces are no longer adjustable after fabrication, and a critical challenge is to realise a technique of tuning their optical properties that is both fast and efficient. We experimentally realise an ultrafast tunable metasurface consisting of subwavelength gallium arsenide nanoparticles supporting Mie-type resonances in the near infrared. Using transient reflectance spectroscopy, we demonstrate a picosecond-scale absolute reflectance modulation of up to 0.35 at the magnetic dipole resonance of the metasurfaces and a spectral shift of the resonance by 30 nm, both achieved at unprecedentedly low pump fluences of less than 400 μJ cm–2. Our findings thereby enable a versatile tool for ultrafast and efficient control of light using light.Metasurfaces are not adjustable after fabrication, and a critical challenge is to realise a technique of tuning their optical properties that is both fast and efficient. Here, Shcherbakov et al. realise an ultrafast tunable metasurface with picosecond-scale large absolute reflectance modulation at low pump fluences.

III–V Semiconductor Nanoresonators—A New Strategy for Passive, Active, and Nonlinear All‐Dielectric Metamaterials

Metamaterials comprising assemblies of dielectric resonators have attracted much attention due to their low intrinsic loss and isotropic optical response. In particular, metasurfaces made from silicon dielectric resonators have shown desirable behaviors such as efficient nonlinear optical conversion, spectral filtering and advanced wave-front engineering. To further explore the potential of dielectric metamaterials, we present all-dielectric metamaterials fabricated from epitaxially grown III-V semiconductors that can exploit the high second-order optical susceptibilities of III-V semiconductors, as well as the ease of monolithically integrating active/gain media. Specifically, we create GaAs nano-resonators using a selective wet oxidation process that forms a low refractive index AlGaO (n~1.6) under layer similar to silicon dielectric resonators formed using silicon-on-insulator wafers. We further use the same fabrication processes to demonstrate multilayer III-V dielectric resonator arrays that provide us with new degrees of freedom in device engineering. For these arrays, we experimentally measure ~100% reflectivity over a broad spectral range. We envision that all-dielectric III-V semiconductor metamaterials will open up new avenues for passive, active and nonlinear all dielectric metamaterials

Single transverse mode operation of electrically pumped vertical-external-cavity surface-emitting lasers with micromirrors

We report an electrically pumped vertical-external-cavity surface-emitting laser (VECSEL) that is designed for wafer-scale fabrication. Single-mode continuous-wave operation is demonstrated at a wavelength of 970 nm. The device structure incorporates a curved micromirror output coupler that is produced using a micromolding process. In addition to outlining the VECSEL fabrication process, we quantify its spatial and spectral modal characteristics.

Mesa-isolated InGaAs photodetectors with low dark current

We demonstrate InGaAs photodiodes with an epitaxial heterostructure that allows simple mesa isolation of individual devices with low dark current and high responsivity. An undoped InAlAs barrier and passivation layer enables isolation of detectors without exposing the InGaAs active region, while simultaneously reducing electron diffusion current. Photodetectors with mesa sizes as small as 25×25 μm2 exhibit dark current densities of 10 nA/cm2 at 295 K and responsivities of 0.62 A/W at 1550 nm.

Experimental verification of epsilon-near-zero plasmon polariton modes in degenerately doped semiconductor nanolayers

We investigate optical polariton modes supported by subwavelength-thick degenerately doped semiconductor nanolayers (e.g. indium tin oxide) on glass in the epsilon-near-zero (ENZ) regime. The dispersions of the radiative (R, on the left of the light line) and non-radiative (NR, on the right of the light line) ENZ polariton modes are experimentally measured and theoretically analyzed through the transfer matrix method and the complex-frequency/real-wavenumber analysis, which are in remarkable agreement. We observe directional near-perfect absorption using the Kretschmann geometry for incidence conditions close to the NR-ENZ polariton mode dispersion. Along with field enhancement, this provides us with an unexplored pathway to enhance nonlinear optical processes and to open up directions for ultrafast, tunable thermal emission.

Huygens’ Metasurfaces Enabled by Magnetic Dipole Resonance Tuning in Split Dielectric Nanoresonators

Dielectric metasurfaces that exploit the different Mie resonances of nanoscale dielectric resonators are a powerful platform for manipulating electromagnetic fields and can provide novel optical behavior. In this work, we experimentally demonstrate independent tuning of the magnetic dipole resonances relative to the electric dipole resonances of split dielectric resonators (SDRs). By increasing the split dimension, we observe a blue shift of the magnetic dipole resonance toward the electric dipole resonance. Therefore, SDRs provide the ability to directly control the interaction between the two dipole resonances within the same resonator. For example, we achieve the first Kerker condition by spectrally overlapping the electric and magnetic dipole resonances and observe significantly suppressed backward scattering. Moreover, we show that a single SDR can be used as an optical nanoantenna that provides strong unidirectional emission from an electric dipole source.

GaSb-based infrared detectors utilizing InAsPSb absorbers

InPSb and InAsPSb have been investigated for use as absorber materials in GaSb-based n-type/barrier/n-type (nBn) detectors with cutoff wavelengths shorter than 4.2 μm. The growth temperature window for high-quality InPSb lattice-matched to GaSb by molecular beam epitaxy is approximately 440–460 °C. InPSb films with thicknesses greater than approximately 1 μm or films grown outside this temperature window have high densities of large defects, with films grown at lower temperatures exhibiting evidence of significant phase separation. In contrast, InAsPSb films can be grown with excellent surface morphologies and no apparent phase separation over a wide temperature range. InAsPSb samples with low-temperature photoluminescence between 3.0 and 3.4 μm and lattice mismatch of less than 1 × 10−3 have been grown, although both photoluminescence and x-ray diffraction data exhibit peak splitting indicative of compositional nonuniformity. AlAsSb-barrier nBn detectors with InPSb and InAsPSb absorbers have been fabrica...

Multi-Filament Triggering of PCSS for High Current Utilizing VCSEL Triggers

We are developing advanced optically-activated solid-state switch technology for Firing Sets. Advanced switch development at Sandia has demonstrated multi-kA/kV switching and the path for scalability to even higher current/power, resulting in good prospects for sprytron replacement and other even higher current pulsed power switching applications. Realization of this potential requires development of new optical sources/switches based on key Sandia photonic device technologies: vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs) and photoconductive semiconductor switch (PCSS) devices. The key to increasing the switching capacity of PCSS devices to 5kV/5kA and higher has been to distribute the current in multiple parallel line filaments triggered by an array of high-brightness line-shaped illuminators [Mar, A., et al., 2001]. This was limited by commercial mechanically-stacked edge-emitting lasers, which are difficult to scale and manufacture with the required uniformity. In VCSEL arrays, adjacent lasers utilize identical semiconductor material and are lithographically patterned to the required aspect ratio. However, we have demonstrated that good optical uniformity in rectangular-aperture (e.g. 5-by-500 mum) VCSELs is difficult to achieve due to the lack of optical confinement in the long dimension. We have demonstrated line filament triggering using 1-D VCSEL arrays to approximate line generation. These arrays of uncoupled circular-aperture VCSELs have fill factors ranging from 2% to 50%. Using these arrays, we are developing a better understanding of the illumination requirements for stable triggering of multiple-filament PCSS devices. In particular, we are examining the dependence of filament formation versus the illumination fill factor and spatial brightness along the length of the filament. Ultimately, we will apply effective index techniques, pioneered at Sandia for leaky-mode VCSELs, to create a lateral photonic lattice that selects a single transverse mode with high brightness and uniformity for even higher fill factors and illumination unformity [Zhou, D., et al., 2000]. These sources will be developed and tested with complementary PCSS designs employing interdigitated multifilament contacts for high-power switching.