J. S. Kyoung

Active terahertz nanoantennas based on VO2 phase transition.

Unusual performances of metamaterials such as negative index of refraction, memory effect, and cloaking originate from the resonance features of the metallic composite atom(1-6). Indeed, control of metamaterial properties by changing dielectric environments of thin films below the metallic resonators has been demonstrated(7-11). However, the dynamic control ranges are still limited to less than a factor of 10,(7-11) with the applicable bandwidth defined by the sharp resonance features. Here, we present ultra-broad-band metamaterial thin film with colossal dynamic control range, fulfilling present day research demands. Hybridized with thin VO(2) (vanadium dioxide) (12-18) films, nanoresonator supercell arrays designed for one decade of spectral width in terahertz frequency region show an unprecedented extinction ratio of over 10000 when the underlying thin film experiences a phase transition. Our nanoresonator approach realizes the full potential of the thin film technology for long wavelength applications.

Nanopattern enabled terahertz all-optical switching on vanadium dioxide thin film

We demonstrate ultrafast all-optical control of terahertz (THz) radiation through nanoresonators, slot antennas with a hundred micron length but submicron width in thin gold layers, fabricated on vanadium dioxide (VO2) thin films. Our THz nanoresonators show almost perfect transmission at resonance. By virtue of phase transition of VO2 from insulating to metallic state, induced in subpicosecond time scale by moderate optical pump, ultrafast control of THz transmission is enabled. This is compared to bare VO2 films where no switching dynamics are observed under similar conditions.

A Reel-Wound Carbon Nanotube Polarizer for Terahertz Frequencies

Utilizing highly oriented multiwalled carbon nanotube aerogel sheets, we fabricated micrometer-thick freestanding carbon nanotube (CNT) polarizers. Simple winding of nanotube sheets on a U-shaped polyethylene reel enabled rapid and reliable polarizer fabrication, bypassing lithography or chemical etching processes. With the remarkable extinction ratio reaching ∼37 dB in the broad spectral range from 0.1 to 2.0 THz, combined with the extraordinary gravimetric mechanical strength of CNTs, and the dispersionless character of freestanding sheets, the commercialization prospects for our CNT terahertz polarizers appear attractive.

Terahertz nanoresonators: Giant field enhancement and ultrabroadband performance

Transmission of terahertz (THz) electromagnetic waves through a series of nanoresonator arrays punctured in a thin metallic film is investigated. Over 30% of normalized transmitted amplitude is observed with only 0.18% of aperture-coverage, implying an electric field enhancement of 170. Increasing the coverage to 0.6% results in a 90% normalized amplitude, with a broader line width. Inspired by log-periodic antenna, we put ten nanoresonators with four different lengths per unit cell, succeeding in an ultrabroadband THz filter with one decade width between 0.2 and 2.0 THz.

A Vanadium Dioxide Metamaterial Disengaged from Insulator-to-Metal Transition

We report that vanadium dioxide films patterned with λ/100000 nanogaps exhibit an anomalous transition behavior at millimeter wavelengths. Most of the hybrid structures switching actions occur well below the insulator to metal transition temperature, starting from 25 °C, so that the hysteresis curves completely separate themselves from their bare film counterparts. It is found that thermally excited intrinsic carriers are responsible for this behavior by introducing enough loss in the context of the radically modified electromagnetic environment in the vicinity of the nanogaps. This phenomenon newly extends the versatility of insulator to metal transition devices to encompass their semiconductor properties.

Resonance behavior of single ultrathin slot antennas on finite dielectric substrates in terahertz regime

We investigate resonance behaviors of optically thin metallic slot antennas on finite substrates in terahertz frequency regime. By carefully analyzing theoretical and experimental results, we observe that slot antennas fabricated in a gold film with a thickness below the skin depth of gold show blueshifted resonance frequencies for the increasing slot width, while the opposite resonance behaviors appear when the slot antennas are perforated in perfectly electric conductor. In addition, we find that for slot antenna sustained by a finite substrate its thickness and the slot width are additional crucial factors determining the resonance frequency of slot antennas.

Giant nonlinear response of terahertz nanoresonators on VO2 thin film

We report on an order of magnitude enhanced nonlinear response of vanadium dioxide thin film patterned with nanoresonators--nano slot antennas fabricated on the gold film. Transmission of terahertz radiation, little affected by an optical pumping for the case of bulk thin film, can now be completely switched-off: DeltaT/T approximately -0.9999 by the same optical pumping power. This unprecedentedly large optical pump-terahertz probe nonlinearity originates from the insulator-to-metal phase transition drastically reducing the antenna cross sections of the nanoresonators. Our scheme enables nanoscale-thin film technology to be used for all-optical switching of long wavelength light.

Selective enhanced resonances of two asymmetric terahertz nano resonators.

We studied the electromagnetic interaction between two asymmetric terahertz nano resonators, rectangular holes which have a few hundred micron lengths but nanoscale widths. We report that the dominant resonant transmission of the structures can be modulated by the horizontal distance between two rectangles due to the different oscillation strength of the asymmetric coupling at two different resonance frequencies. Our results are significant for an optimum design of rectangular holes in terahertz frequency regime for applications such as sensitive nanoparticle detection and terahertz filters.

Separation of surface plasmon polariton from nonconfined cylindrical wave launched from single slits

We theoretically investigate the separation positions of surface plasmon polariton (SPP) from the cylindrical nonconfined diffracted light launched from a single slit. Through an analysis of the finite difference time domain calculations and the analytical solution of a line source on a metal surface, we find the wavelength dependent SPP separation positions defined as the lateral distance from the slit with two different criteria. These results show that the SPP separation positions can be approximated by a simple relationship given by the permittivity of the metal and by the wavelength regardless of how the criteria are chosen.

Anisotropic high-field terahertz response of free-standing carbon nanotubes

We demonstrate that unidirectionally aligned, free-standing multi-walled carbon nanotubes (CNTs) exhibit highly anisotropic linear and nonlinear terahertz (THz) responses. For the polarization parallel to the CNT axis, strong THz pulses induce nonlinear absorption in the quasi-one-dimensional conducting media, while no nonlinear effect is observed in the perpendicular polarization configuration. Time-resolved measurements of transmitted THz pulses and a theoretical analysis of the data reveal that intense THz fields enhance permittivity in carbon nanotubes by generating charge carriers.