|
Abstract: |
Abstract: Major breakthroughs in photonics have often
occurred when superb materials science is coupled with elegant
and efficient device design/fabrication. Silica-based optical
fiber, the semiconductor laser, the erbium doped fiber amplifier
and the silica-on-silicon arrayed waveguide grating router are
several notable examples of this phenomena. State-of-the-art
photonics now requires the development of ever-higher degrees of
integration, placing stringent demands on photonic materials
technology, which ultimately must be suitable for the new field
of nanophotonics. In parallel with these developments, the
field of optical polymer nanocomposites (PNC) has emerged thanks
to considerable advances in optical polymer materials,
nanoparticle synthesis, nanoparticle functionalization and
dispersion techniques. Optical PNCs have the potential to
fulfill a broad range of photonic functions ranging from
compact, narrowband filters, to electro-optical modulation at
hundreds of GHz. To accomplish this, a clear understanding of
optical polymer and nanoparticle properties is required, as well
as an ability to effectively model and predict the properties of
the PNC, and finally align these properties with the photonics
engineering problem at hand. We will discuss our recent work on
optical PNCs, including PNC infiltrated silicon photonic
crystals, polymer/InP nanowire composites, and magneto-optic
PNCs. |