han Lin

Synthesis and Photoluminescence Properties of Porous Silicon Nanowire Arrays

Herein, we prepare vertical and single crystalline porous silicon nanowires (SiNWs) via a two-step metal-assisted electroless etching method. The porosity of the nanowires is restricted by etchant concentration, etching time and doping lever of the silicon wafer. The diffusion of silver ions could lead to the nucleation of silver nanoparticles on the nanowires and open new etching ways. Like porous silicon (PS), these porous nanowires also show excellent photoluminescence (PL) properties. The PL intensity increases with porosity, with an enhancement of about 100 times observed in our condition experiments. A “red-shift” of the PL peak is also found. Further studies prove that the PL spectrum should be decomposed into two elementary PL bands. The peak at 850 nm is the emission of the localized excitation in the nanoporous structure, while the 750-nm peak should be attributed to the surface-oxidized nanostructure. It could be confirmed from the Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy analyses. These porous SiNW arrays may be useful as the nanoscale optoelectronic devices.

Bubble-Pen Lithography

Current lithography techniques, which employ photon, electron, or ion beams to induce chemical or physical reactions for micro/nano-fabrication, have remained challenging in patterning chemically synthesized colloidal particles, which are emerging as building blocks for functional devices. Herein, we develop a new technique - bubble-pen lithography (BPL) - to pattern colloidal particles on substrates using optically controlled microbubbles. Briefly, a single laser beam generates a microbubble at the interface of colloidal suspension and a plasmonic substrate via plasmon-enhanced photothermal effects. The microbubble captures and immobilizes the colloidal particles on the substrate through coordinated actions of Marangoni convection, surface tension, gas pressure, and substrate adhesion. Through directing the laser beam to move the microbubble, we create arbitrary single-particle patterns and particle assemblies with different resolutions and architectures. Furthermore, we have applied BPL to pattern CdSe/ZnS quantum dots on plasmonic substrates and polystyrene (PS) microparticles on two-dimensional (2D) atomic-layer materials. With the low-power operation, arbitrary patterning and applicability to general colloidal particles, BPL will find a wide range of applications in microelectronics, nanophotonics, and nanomedicine.

Photoluminescence origins of the porous silicon nanowire arrays

We investigate the photoluminescence (PL) behavior of the porous silicon nanowire (PSiNW) arrays synthesized via metal-assisted electroless etching method on the n-Si (100) substrate. Two PL bands with different origins dependent on the post-chemical treatments were detected. The red emission band, the peak position of which is insensitive to temperature and excitation source, is considered to originate from the excitons localized at the interface between the Si nanostructure and the oxide layer. An anomalous blue shift of the near-infrared PL band was observed when the temperature increased from 80 to 290 K. The maximum intensity appears around 160 K and the emission energy is strongly dependent on the excitation energy and power. The triplet-singlet state transition is introduced to explain the PL behavior for this emission band. The absorption spectra are also induced to confirm the PL origins.

Light-Directed Reversible Assembly of Plasmonic Nanoparticles Using Plasmon-Enhanced Thermophoresis

Reversible assembly of plasmonic nanoparticles can be used to modulate their structural, electrical, and optical properties. Common and versatile tools in nanoparticle manipulation and assembly are optical tweezers, but these require tightly focused and high-power (10-100 mW/μm2) laser beams with precise optical alignment, which significantly hinders their applications. Here we present light-directed reversible assembly of plasmonic nanoparticles with a power intensity below 0.1 mW/μm2. Our experiments and simulations reveal that such a low-power assembly is enabled by thermophoretic migration of nanoparticles due to the plasmon-enhanced photothermal effect and the associated enhanced local electric field over a plasmonic substrate. With software-controlled laser beams, we demonstrate parallel and dynamic manipulation of multiple nanoparticle assemblies. Interestingly, the assemblies formed over plasmonic substrates can be subsequently transported to nonplasmonic substrates. As an example application, we selected surface-enhanced Raman scattering spectroscopy, with tunable sensitivity. The advantages provided by plasmonic assembly of nanoparticles are the following: (1) low-power, reversible nanoparticle assembly, (2) applicability to nanoparticles with arbitrary morphology, and (3) use of simple optics. Our plasmon-enhanced thermophoretic technique will facilitate further development and application of dynamic nanoparticle assemblies, including biomolecular analyses in their native environment and smart drug delivery.

Optimizing plasmonic nanoantennas via coordinated multiple coupling.

Plasmonic nanoantennas, which can efficiently convert light from free space into sub-wavelength scale with the local field enhancement, are fundamental building blocks for nanophotonic systems. Predominant design methods, which exploit a single type of near- or far-field coupling in pairs or arrays of plasmonic nanostructures, have limited the tunability of spectral response and the local field enhancement. To overcome this limit, we are developing a general strategy towards exploiting the coordinated effects of multiple coupling. Using Au bowtie nanoantenna arrays with metal-insulator-metal configuration as examples, we numerically demonstrate that coordinated design and implementation of various optical coupling effects leads to both the increased tunability in the spectral response and the significantly enhanced electromagnetic field. Furthermore, we design and analyze a refractive index sensor with an ultra-high figure-of-merit (254), a high signal-to-noise ratio and a wide working range of refractive indices, and a narrow-band near-infrared plasmonic absorber with 100% absorption efficiency, high quality factor of up to 114 and a wide range of tunable wavelength from 800 nm to 1,500 nm. The plasmonic nanoantennas that exploit coordinated multiple coupling will benefit a broad range of applications, including label-free bio-chemical detection, reflective filter, optical trapping, hot-electron generation, and heat-assisted magnetic recording.

The fabrication of large-scale sub-10-nm core-shell silicon nanowire arrays

A combination of template-assisted metal catalytic etching and self-limiting oxidation has been successfully implemented to yield core-shell silicon nanowire arrays with inner diameter down to sub-10 nm. The diameter of the polystyrene spheres after reactive ion etching and the thickness of the deposited Ag film are both crucial for the removal of the polystyrene spheres. The mean diameter of the reactive ion-etched spheres, the holes on the Ag film, and the nanowires after metal catalytic etching exhibit an increasing trend during the synthesis process. Two-step dry oxidation and post-chemical etching were employed to reduce the diameter of the silicon nanowires to approximately 50 nm. A self-limiting effect was induced by further oxidation at lower temperatures (750°C ~ 850°C), and core-shell silicon nanowire arrays with controllable diameter were obtained.

The synthesis and photoluminescence properties of selenium-treated porous silicon nanowire arrays

Here we prepared vertical and single crystalline porous silicon nanowire (SiNW) arrays using the silver-assisted electroless etching method. The selenization was carried out by annealing the samples in vacuum with selenium atmosphere. The selenization treatment at 700 °C is useful for investigating the photoluminescence (PL) properties of porous SiNWs, with an enhancement of 30 times observed. The observed PL peaks blue-shift to 650 nm and the decomposition of the spectrum reveals that three PL bands with different origins are obtained. It is proved that selenization treatment could remove the Si-H bonds on the surface and form Si-Se bonds, which could increase the absorbance of the SiNWs and also enhance the stability of the PL intensity. These Se-treated porous SiNWs may be useful as nanoscale optoelectronic devices.

Indirect to direct band gap transition in ultra-thin silicon films

Free standing silicon layers undergo a transition from indirect to direct band gap semiconductor, which predicts a new possible way in silicon band gap engineering. The thickness and crystal orientation of the exposed surface are crucial. Our simulations reveal that the (100) films with thickness of ∼1.05 nm and (110) films with thickness of ∼1.14 nm could maintain the direct band gap structure. However, the (111) films always show indirect band gap structure even if the monolayer is constructed. The electron states density calculations were also carried out and the transition of the band gap structure is considered to be determined by the quantum confinement and surface termination conditions. The momentum matrix element calculations were also carried out, approving the effective direct band gap transitions for these ultra-thin films.

Thermophoretic Tweezers for Low-Power and Versatile Manipulation of Biological Cells

Optical manipulation of biological cells and nanoparticles is significantly important in life sciences, early disease diagnosis, and nanomanufacturing. However, low-power and versatile all-optical manipulation has remained elusive. Herein, we have achieved light-directed versatile thermophoretic manipulation of biological cells at an optical power 100-1000 times lower than that of optical tweezers. By harnessing the permittivity gradient in the electric double layer of the charged surface of the cell membrane, we succeed at the low-power trapping of suspended biological cells within a light-controlled temperature gradient field. Furthermore, through dynamic control of optothermal potentials using a digital micromirror device, we have achieved arbitrary spatial arrangements of cells at a resolution of ∼100 nm and precise rotation of both single and assemblies of cells. Our thermophoretic tweezers will find applications in cellular biology, nanomedicine, and tissue engineering.

Lattice plasmon resonance in core-shell SiO 2 /Au nanocylinder arrays

Core-shell SiO2/Au nanocylinder arrays (NCAs) are studied using finite-difference time-domain simulations. The increase of height induces new surface plasmon resonances along the nanocylinders, i.e., dipole and quadrupole modes. Orthogonal coupling between superstrate diffraction order and the height-induced dipole mode is observed, which could achieve a well-defined lattice plasmon mode even for smaller NCAs in asymmetric environments. Electromagnetic field distribution has been employed to determine the coupling origin. Radiative loss could also be effectively suppressed in these core-shell NCAs, indicating the possibility of future applications in fluorescence enhancement and nanolasers.