Coherent upconversion of light
View Patent ↗Embodiments include an apparatus and method. An apparatus includes a metasurface that coherently upconverts light waves having a first frequency f 1 . A substrate forms a first plasmonic surface. A plasmonic nanoparticle forms a second plasmonic surface. A layer of a second-order nonlinear dielectric material is disposed between the first plasmonic surface and the second plasmonic surface. The metasurface has at least three plasmonic resonant modes including a first plasmonic resonant mode having a first frequency f 1 , a second plasmonic resonant mode having a second frequency f 2 , and a third plasmonic resonant mode having a third frequency f 3 that is a sum of the first frequency f 1 and the second frequency f 2 . The apparatus includes a second light propagation path from a source of pumped monochromatic coherent light waves having the second frequency f 2 to the metasurface. A digital image capture device captures the generated light waves having the frequency f 3 .
1. An apparatus comprising:
a metasurface configured to coherently upconvert incident light waves emanating from an object and having a first frequency f 1 , the metasurface comprising:
a substrate having a first negative-permittivity layer comprising a first plasmonic surface;
a plasmonic nanoparticle having a base with a second negative-permittivity layer comprising a second plasmonic surface;
a dielectric layer comprising a second-order nonlinear dielectric material disposed between the first plasmonic surface and the second plasmonic surface;
wherein the metasurface is configured to form at least three plasmonic resonant modes in the dielectric layer, the at least three plasmonic resonant modes including a first plasmonic resonant mode having the first frequency f 1 , a second plasmonic resonant mode having a second frequency f 2 , and a third plasmonic resonant mode having a third frequency f 3 ; and
wherein the metasurface is further configured to generate by a second order parametric process coherent light having the third frequency f 3 that is a sum of the first frequency f 1 and the second frequency f 2 ; and
a second light propagation path from a source of pumped monochromatic coherent light waves having the second frequency f 2 to the metasurface; and
a digital image capture device substantially transparent to light waves having the first frequency f 1 and configured to capture the generated light waves having the frequency f 3 .
2. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:
a first light propagation path transmitting the light waves emanating from the object and having the first frequency f 1 to the metasurface.
3. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:
a third light propagation path transmitting the generated light waves having the third frequency f 3 from the metasurface to the digital image capture device.
4. The apparatus of claim 3 , further comprising:
a band block filter configured to block light at the second frequency f 2 and interposed in the third light propagation path between the metasurface and the digital image capture device.
5. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:
a source of pumped monochromatic coherent light waves having the second frequency f 2 and optically coupled with the second light propagation path.
6. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:
a lens configured to focus the light waves emanating from the object onto the metasurface.
7. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the first plasmonic resonant mode frequency f 1 is spectrally separated from the second plasmonic resonant mode frequency f 2 .
8. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the first plasmonic resonant mode frequency f 1 is a function of a first characteristic of the plasmonic nanoparticle, the second plasmonic resonant mode frequency f 2 is a function of a second characteristic of the plasmonic nanoparticle, and the third plasmonic resonant mode frequency f 3 is a function of both the first characteristic of the plasmonic nanoparticle and the second characteristic of the plasmonic nanoparticle.
9. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the first plasmonic resonant mode frequency f 1 is a function of a first side dimension of a non-square rectangular base of the plasmonic nanoparticle, the second plasmonic resonant mode frequency f 2 is a function of a second side dimension of the non-square rectangular base of the plasmonic nanoparticle, and the third plasmonic resonant mode frequency f 3 is a function of both the first side dimension of the non-square rectangular base of the plasmonic nanoparticle and the second side dimension of the non-square rectangular base of the plasmonic nanoparticle.
10. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the plasmonic nanoparticle includes a base having (i) a first characteristic that establishes a first spatial mode at the first plasmonic resonant mode frequency f 1 and (ii) a second characteristic that establishes a second spatial mode at the second plasmonic resonant mode frequency f 2 , the first spatial mode and the second spatial mode overlapping each other in the dielectric layer and creating the third plasmonic resonant mode having the third frequency f 3 .
11. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the first plasmonic resonant mode frequency f 1 and the second plasmonic resonant mode frequency f 2 are a function of the second-order nonlinear dielectric material disposed between the first plasmonic surface of the substrate and the second plasmonic surface of the plasmonic nanoparticle.
12. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the digital image capture device is further configured to output an image responsive to the light waves emanating from the object.
13. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the metasurface includes:
a substrate having a first negative-permittivity layer comprising a first plasmonic surface;
at least two plasmonic nanoparticles, each plasmonic nanoparticle of the at least two plasmonic nanoparticles having a respective base with a second negative-permittivity layer comprising a second plasmonic surface;
the dielectric layer including a second-order nonlinear material disposed between the first plasmonic surface and the respective second plasmonic surface of each of the at least two plasmonic nanoparticles; and
wherein the metasurface is configured to form at least three plasmonic resonant modes in the dielectric layer, the at least three plasmonic resonant modes including a first plasmonic resonant mode having the first frequency f 1 , a second plasmonic resonant mode having a second frequency f 2 , and a third plasmonic resonant mode having a third frequency f 3 ; and
wherein the metasurface is further configured to generate by a second order parametric process coherent light waves having the third frequency f 3 that is a sum of the first frequency f 1 and the second frequency f 2 .
14. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein both the substrate and the base of the plasmonic nanoparticle have a parallel planar geometry.
15. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the metasurface includes a flat panel metasurface.
16. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the metasurface includes a metasurface formed on a silicon chip.
17. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the metasurface includes a metasurface on a chip integrated platform.
18. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the apparatus includes on a chip integrated platform.
19. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the metasurface includes an optically thin metasurface.
20. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the base of the plasmonic nanoparticle is substantially conformal to the first plasmonic surface.
21. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the base of the plasmonic nanoparticle is substantially planar.
22. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the base of the plasmonic nanoparticle has a major side and a minor side shorter than the major side.
23. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the plasmonic nanoparticle includes at least two joined or proximate plasmonic nanoparticles forming the base with a second negative-permittivity layer comprising the second plasmonic surface.
24. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the plasmonic nanoparticle includes a nanorod having a non-square rectangular base with the second negative-permittivity layer.
25. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the base of the plasmonic nanoparticle includes a rectangular, an ellipsoidal, or a triangular shaped base.
26. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the base of the plasmonic nanoparticle has an arbitrary shaped base.
27. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the base of the plasmonic nanoparticle has a major side length between about 1000 and about 5000 nm.
28. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the base of the plasmonic nanoparticle has a major side length between about 1500 and about 4000 nm.
29. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the base of the plasmonic nanoparticle has a minor side length between about 500 and about 2000 nm.
30. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the dielectric layer includes a dielectric filled gap.
31. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the dielectric layer includes a non-linear optical material having a non-linear response configured to enhance emissions at the third frequency f 3 .
32. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the plasmonic nanoparticle includes a doubly-resonant plasmonic nanoparticle.
33. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the first negative-permittivity layer includes a metallic layer.
34. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the first negative-permittivity layer includes a semiconductor layer.
35. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the second negative-permittivity layer includes a noble metal.
36. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the second negative-permittivity layer includes a metallic layer.
37. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the second negative-permittivity layer includes a semiconductor layer or a polaritonic dielectric layer.
38. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the dielectric layer is less than 100 nm thick.
39. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the dielectric layer is less than 25 nm thick.
40. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the dielectric layer is less than 2.5 nm thick.
41. An apparatus comprising:
a metasurface configured to coherently upconvert light waves emanating from an object and having a first frequency f 1 , the metasurface comprising:
a substrate having a first negative-permittivity layer comprising a first plasmonic surface;
a plasmonic nanoparticle having a base with a second negative-permittivity layer comprising a second plasmonic surface;
a dielectric layer comprising a second-order nonlinear dielectric material disposed between the first plasmonic surface and the second plasmonic surface;
wherein the metasurface is configured to form at least three plasmonic resonant modes in the dielectric layer, the at least three plasmonic resonant modes including a first plasmonic resonant mode having the first frequency f 1 , a second plasmonic resonant mode having a second frequency f 2 , and a third plasmonic resonant mode having a third frequency f 3 ; and
wherein the metasurface is further configured to generate by a second order parametric process coherent light waves having the third frequency f 3 that is a sum of first frequency f 1 and the second frequency f 2 ;
a first light propagation path transmitting the light waves emanating from the object and having the first frequency f 1 to the metasurface;
a pumped laser outputting a monochromatic coherent light having the second frequency f 2 ;
a second light propagation path transmitting monochromatic coherent light having the second frequency f 2 from the pumped laser to the metasurface;
a digital image capture device substantially transparent to the light waves having the first frequency f 1 , and configured to (i) capture the generated light waves having the third frequency f 3 and (ii) output an image responsive to the light waves emanating from the object; and
a third light propagation path transmitting the generated light waves having the third frequency f 3 from the metasurface to the digital image capture device.
42. A method comprising:
simultaneously receiving in a thin planar metasurface (i) light waves emanating from an object and having a first frequency f 1 and (ii) pumped monochromatic coherent light waves having a second frequency f 2 ;
non-linearly combining in the thin planar metasurface the light waves having the first frequency f 1 and the pumped monochromatic coherent light waves having the second frequency f 2 ;
generating in the thin planar metasurface by a second order parametric process coherent light waves having a third frequency f 3 that is a sum of the first frequency f 1 and the second frequency f 2 ;
digitizing the generated light waves having the frequency f 3 ; and
outputting in response to the digitized generated light waves a digital image responsive to the light waves emanating from the object.
43. The method of claim 42 , wherein the thin planar metasurface includes a thin planar metasurface having a subwavelength thickness relative to f 1 or f 2 .
44. The method of claim 42 , further comprising:
blocking light waves at the second frequency f 2 from reaching the digital image capture device.