Colloquium

Spring 2004

April 29, 2004 -- Optical Sciences Colloquium -- 3:45 p.m. -- Meinel 410
Charles Falco, Optical Sciences Center Professor and University of Arizona Chair of Condensed Matter Physics, will close the 2003-2004 Colloquium Series with The Science of Optics: The History of Art.   Abstract:  Recently, renowned artist David Hockney observed that certain drawings and paintings from as early as the Renaissance seemed almost "photographic" in detail.  Following an extensive visual investigation of western art of the past 1000 years, he made the revolutionary claim that artists even of the prominence of van Eyck and Bellini must have used optical aids.  However, many art historians insisted there was no supporting evidence for such a remarkable assertion.  In this talk I show a wealth of optical evidence for his claim that Hockney and I subsequently discovered during an unusual, and remarkably productive, collaboration between an artist and a scientist.  I also discuss the unique properties of the "mirror lens" (concave mirror), and some of the implications this work has for the history of science as well as the history of art.  These discoveries convincingly demonstrate optical instruments were in use -- by artists, not scientists -- nearly 200 years earlier than previously even thought possible, and account for the remarkable transformation in the reality of portraits that occurred early in the 15th century. (for more information see http://www.optics.arizona.edu/ssd/FAQ.html )  Acknowledgments:  This work was done in collaboration with David Hockney.  We gratefully acknowledge David Graves (London), Ultan Guilfoyle (Guggenheim), Martin Kemp (Oxford U.), Masud Mansuripur (U. Arizona), José Sasián (U. Arizona), Richard Schmidt (Los Angeles), and Lawrence Weschler (The New Yorker) for a variety of valuable contributions to our efforts.  Jose Sasian will be the Colloquium host.  The Colloquium begins at 3:45 p.m.  Pre-Colloquium refreshments will be served at 3:30. 

April 22, 2004 -- Optical Sciences Colloquium -- 3:45 p.m. -- Meinel 410
Dr. Axel Schulzgen of the University of Arizona Optical Sciences Center will present Compact High Power Fiber Lasers.  Abstract:  Fiber lasers utilize guided mode propagation to create extremely robust laser structures with resonator lengths that can reach hundreds of meters. Just like in the first glass lasers, laser emission is caused by stimulated emission from optically excited rare earth ions such as Nd, Yb, or Er. As a result, fiber lasers can operate at a multitude of wavelengths from the visible to the infrared. Less than 20 years after their first realization fiber lasers have emerged as competition for many traditional lasers. The rapid improvement of the performance of fiber lasers greatly benefits from progress in optical fiber technology and advances in high power semiconductor diode lasers that serve as efficient and powerful optical pump sources.  This talk will introduce fiber laser concepts and point out current trends. I will discuss objectives and strategies of fiber laser developments at the Optical Sciences Center. Recent results will be described including the generation of high power from very short lasers with records around 1 W per cm of fiber, large core single mode fibers with several Watts of output power, and Watt-level fiber lasers with a spectral bandwidth below 0.1 nm. Ongoing efforts to utilize photonic crystal fiber concepts and future research directions will also be discussed.   Nasser Peyghambarian is the Colloquium host.  Calendar information:  The Colloquium begins at 3:45 p.m. in Meinel 410.  Pre-Colloquium refreshments will be served at 3:30. 

April 21, 2004 -- Special Seminar -- 10:00 a.m. -- Meinel 701
Hiroyuki Takeuchi of Matsushita Electronic Industrial CoDLTD will present Ultrahigh Accurate 3-D Profilometer Using Atomic Force Probe.  Abstract:  We have developed an Ultrahigh-Accurate 3-D Profilometer (UA3P), which, using a new, in-house-developed atomic force probe, has an accuracy of 10 nm. It is capable of measuring corners as small as 2 micro meter in radius and can cover an area up to 400 x 400 x 90 (mm), providing a powerful boost to nano-level processing. A commercial product was introduced in 1994.  Examples of the key components made possible by this technology include aspherical lenses (used for a Blue-ray Disc device, a next-generation DVD, digital cameras, cellular phones, optical communications), free form lenses (used for Fresnel lens common to CD and DVD, laser printer lens, multi focus glass lens, cubic phase plate to extend depth of focus), gigabit semiconductor wafers, hard discs, air conditioner scroll vanes, DVC cylinders. The premiere ultra high-precision three-dimensional profilometer delivers superb performance using a variety of micro measurements for a wide range of applications.  More info at http://www.fa.panasonic.co.jp/products/fp/ua3p/main/ua3p_e.html.  Jim Wyant, 621-2448, is the Seminar host.

April 20, 2004 -- Distinguished Speaker Seminar -- 2:00 p.m. -- Student Union Kiva Room
Dr. Nader Engheta of the University of Pennsylvania Department of Electrical and Systems Engineering will present Metamaterials and Plasmonic Nanostructures: Concepts, Salient Features and Potential Applications.  Abstract:  Metamaterials are artificially structured composite media with unconventional electromagnetic properties not readily found in nature.  A particular class of these materials is the media in which both parameters of permittivity and permeability have negative real parts in a certain band of frequency, resulting in negative refraction. These are described as “double-negative (DNG)” or “left-handed (LH)” media. Another class is the “single-negative” media where one of the two parameters may be negative, such as plasmonic materials in the optical and IR regimes. These metamaterials exhibit exciting features in guidance, radiation, and scattering of RF and optical waves. We have been developing some of the theories of wave interaction with various structures involving DNG metamaterials and plasmonic media. We have found that cavities and waveguides formed by these media may be ultracompact, supporting resonant and propagating modes even when they have very small lateral dimensions. This implies that in such structures RF and optical signals can be guided below the diffraction limit, hinting to the possibility of miniaturization of optical interconnects.  Furthermore, the nanostructures made by pairing these media can be compact resonant or anti-resonant scatterers, despite their very
small physical cross sections, thus resulting in enhanced or reduced optical scattering. We are also interested in nanoelectromagnetism of plasmonic nanostructures that effectively act as “nano-circuit-elements”. These may provide roadmaps to more complex optical circuits formed by collection of such nanostructures. All these characteristics may offer various potential applications in high-resolution near-field imaging and microscopy, RF and optical energy transport in ultracompact optical devices, enhancement or reduction of wave interaction with nano-particles and nano-apertures, miniaturization of optical devices and components, nanoantennas, molecular-optical circuits, to name a few.  In this talk, we present a tutorial overview of the concepts, salient features, recent developments, and potential applications of these metamaterials, and will forecast some futures ideas in this area.  A reception with refreshments will follow the talk.  The event is sponsored by the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.

April 16, 2004 -- Special Colloquium -- 5:30 p.m. -- 655 North Alvernon Way, Suite 108
The University of Arizona Department of Ophthalmology and Optical Sciences Center present Steve Charles, MD, Chairman and Founder of MicroDexterity Systems & Charles Retina Institute.  Abstract:  A wide variety of tasks in medicine are subject to limitations in human dexterity. Advances in imaging technology put further demands on a doctor's ability to perform procedures on tissue that he cannot view without the imaging technology. The majority of such tasks can be conceptually mastered but demand exceptional dexterity of the human arm/hand.  Enhanced dexterity systems will revolutionize tomorrow's medical procedures. MicroDexterity Systems, Inc. develops systems that permit enhanced dexterity. What the microscope does for the eyes, these electromechanical systems do for the hands. MDS devices permit the control of hand tremor, scaled movements, and boundaries against movement. This technology will be used to increase precision and improve success rates in demanding microsurgical procedures such as skull base neurosurgery, brain tumors, aneurysms, spine surgery, Ear/Nose/Throat, and other microsurgery for micro-vascular, hand, and pediatric surgery.  Calendar information:  The Colloquium begins at 5:30 p.m. and concludes at 7:00 p.m.  The location is Department of Ophthalmology Conference Room at 655 North Alvernon Way, Suite 108.

April 15, 2004 -- Optical Sciences Colloquium -- 3:45 p.m. -- Meinel 410
OSC alumnus Dr. Erik Novak will present Recent Innovations in White Light Interferometry.  Abstract:  One of the more versatile instruments for surface characterization is the white-light interferometric microscope.  These systems are non-contact, have high vertical resolution, and are among the fastest area-measurement systems.  While the basic principles of interferometry have been known for a long time, new algorithms, software, and integration of advanced features continually increase the range, accuracy, and served applications.  This talk will describe some of the challenges and solutions for meeting increasingly difficult applications in MEMS, data storage, semiconductor, and medical fields.  Advances have led to the ability to measure moving test pieces, characterization of film thickness as well as surface properties, measurement of features with very high-aspect ratios, interferometry through dispersive materials, and self-calibration of instruments for improved accuracy.  Jim Wyant, 621-2448, is the Colloquium host.  Calendar information:  The Colloquium begins at 3:45 p.m. in Meinel 410.  Pre-Colloquium refreshments will be served at 3:30. 

April 8, 2004 -- Optical Sciences Colloquium -- 3:45 p.m. -- Meinel 410
Trey Porto of the National Institute of Science and Technology will present Cold Atoms in Optical Lattices: Pushing Bose-Einstein Condensates Beyond Mean Field.  Abstract:  The majority of experiments with quantum degenerate gases have been performed in the dilute, weakly interacting limit, on Bose-Einstein condensates characterized by long-range phase coherence and well described by a "single particle" picture.   While the single particle nature of Bose-Einstein condensates gives rise to many interesting properties, there has been increasing interest in exploring more complicated many-body physics. It has recently been realized that loading atoms into optical lattices can produce interesting, correlated many-body states by reducing the dimensionality, increasing the interactions between particles and decreasing the quantum kinetic (or tunnelling) energy. Cold atoms in a sufficiently deep optical lattice provide a nearly perfect realization of the Bose-Hubbard Hamiltonian, which allows for a zero temperature Mott-insulator transition. I will describe experiments which probe particle correlations and transport properties of trapped 1D Bose gases, realized by loading a BEC into an optical lattice.  Jose Sasian, 621-3733, is the Colloquium host.  Calendar information:  The Colloquium begins at 3:45 p.m. in Meinel 410.  Pre-Colloquium refreshments will be served at 3:30. 

April 1, 2004 -- Optical Sciences Colloquium -- 3:45 p.m. -- Meinel 410
OSC alumnus Devon G. Crowe of Spectrum Astro, Inc. will present Imaging in Space: A Tour of Selected Space Optics Technologies at Spectrum Astro.  Abstract:  Escalating requirements for more capable astronomy and defense sensors in space are driving the development of technologies that will provide higher performance than ever before. Spectrum Astro is innovating advanced space sensors while maintaining the low-cost and fast-schedule approach that the company is known for in spacecraft. A few of the technology areas in which Spectrum Astro is working will be described.  Jose Sasian, 621-3733, is the Colloquium host.  Calendar information:  The Colloquium begins at 3:45 p.m. in Meinel 410.  Pre-Colloquium refreshments will be served at 3:30. 

March 25, 2004 -- Optical Sciences Colloquium -- 3:45 p.m. -- Meinel 410
Dr. John Bruning of Corning Tropel Corporation will present Precision Interferometry of “Industrial” Surfaces.  Abstract:  Optical interferometry has been used for many decades in the optical industry for measuring the figure of spherical lenses and flats.  Today, the Twyman-Greene and Fizeau configurations are highly developed for that purpose, employing phase shifting and other computerized techniques.  The interferometer, however, is relatively new to the metalworking industry with some tight manufacturing tolerances now appropriate to interferometry.  One outstanding example is fuel injection components used in the modern diesel engine where sub-micrometer form-tolerances of cylindrical, conical and flat surfaces are required to achieve new pollution abatement and fuel-economy standards.  These surfaces can all be measured by interferometry – even though the manufacturing processes produce non-specular surfaces.  This talk will discuss this challenging market area, some of the diverse interferometric approaches used to measure high-precision industrial components and provide a glimpse into some future industrial applications of interferometry.  For more information please contact Jose Sasian at 621-3733.  Calendar information:  The Colloquium begins at 3:45 p.m. in Meinel 410.  Pre-Colloquium refreshments will be served in the OSC Lobby at 3:30. 

February 5, 2004 -- Optical Sciences Colloquium -- 3:45 p.m. -- Meinel 410
OSC Research Professor Tom Milster will present Near-Field Optics: Introduction and Applications.  Abstract:  Microscopy is used to explore objects and processes that are smaller than the eye can see.  The workhorse instrument for microscopy is the optical microscope.  Simple microscopes are constructed by combining several lenses in a particular way to magnify the image of the object onto the eye of the observer or onto a camera.  Optical microscopes can magnify images up to about one thousand times larger than they appear to the naked eye.  However, the diffraction limit determines how much magnification is useful.  This limit depends on the focused spot size, which is proportional to the wavelength of light and the particular configuration of lens elements.  A new field of optical research called near-field optics has its origin in the microwave region of the electromagnetic spectrum.  Near-field optics use special configurations of lenses and other elements to provide resolution beyond the diffraction limit.  For example, one implementation of near-field optics uses a microscope to focus laser light down to a small spot centered on a clear hole in an opaque screen.  The hole’s diameter is much smaller that the spot.  A small number of photons pass through the hole, thus creating an even smaller diameter light spot on the back side of the screen.  Close to the hole, light is well confined in an area smaller than the diffraction limit.  A second method for breaking the diffraction limit is to use a material close to the object being imaged that slows down the optical wave focused from a microscope.  The slower velocity optical wave combined with a fixed frequency of oscillation produces an effective wavelength reduction inside the material.  Therefore, the diffraction-limited spot size is also reduced.  Some objects can be brought close enough to the material so that they interact with the evanescent fields near the material/object boundary.  That is, the object is immersed in the properties of the high-resolution optical field.  Resolution enhancement in this way is the principle of solid immersion lenses.  This talk briefly reviews operating principles of solid immersion lenses and other near-field optical devices.  By combining near-field technologies, it may be possible to produce efficient arrays of near-field visible-wavelength sources that are 25 nm in diameter.  Applications for such an instrument include data storage, lithography, and microscopy.  Our laboratory is actively working toward a proof-of-principle demonstration of this instrument.  For more information please contact: Jose Sasian at 621-3733.  Calendar information:  The Colloquium begins at 3:45 p.m. in Meinel 410.  Pre-Colloquium refreshments will be served in the OSC Lobby at 3:30. 

February 3, 2004 -- Special Physics Seminar -- 3:00 p.m. -- PAS 218
Professor Klaus Meerholz of the University of Koln will present Polymeric Anodes with Adjustable Work Function for Use in Organic Semiconductor Devices.  By manipulating the work function of the anode we demonstrate the optimization of organic light-emitting diodes  and organic solar cells. The changes of the underlying device physics is explained in terms of a simple model.  Rapid screening is achieved by a combinatorial approach. Sumit Mazumdar is the host.

February 3, 2004 -- Special Seminar -- 3:30 p.m. -- Meinel 410
Professor Malgorzata Kujawinska of the Institute of Micromechanics and Photonics at the Warsaw University of Technology will present Full-Field Optical Metrology: From Micromeasurements to Virtual Reality Systems.  Seminar Overview:  Main directions of research and instruments development.  General concept of micromeasurement station:  in plane displacement/strain measurement; out-of-plane displacement/shape measurement; 3D refractove index distribution.  Optical extensometers integrated with loading machine (black box concept).  True 3D shape measurement and data conversion system.  Shape/deformation/movement monitoring as the fundamentals for virtual reality systems.  Seminar Host:  Eustace Dereniak.

February 2, 2004 -- Special Chemistry Seminar -- 4:00 p.m. -- Koffler 218
Professor Klaus Meerholz of the University of Koln will present Fabrication of Red-Green-Blue Organic Light Emitting Diodes with Solution Processed Electroluminescent Polymers.  Abstract:  Organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) have recently attracted much interest for RGB (red, green, blue) matrix displays. So far, this goal has been achieved with small-molecule devices fabricated by vacuum deposition. In contrast, electroluminescent (EL) polymers, which are commonly deposited by solution processing, have seemed to be only poorly suited for this purpose owing to the lack of high-resolution patterning processes. Recent attempts, therefore, focus on the adaptation of common printing techniques such as screen printing and ink jetting, both having severe technical difficulties and drawbacks. We demonstrate the use of a new class of EL polymers, which can be formed into thin films as with standard photoresists. The resolution of the process is sufficient to fabricate common pixilated matrix displays. Consecutive deposition of the three colors yields a RGB device with  efficiencies comparable to state-of-the-art EL polymers, even slightly reduced onset voltages, and improved efficiencies at high luminance levels.  Neal Armstrong is the host.

January 29, 2004 -- Optical Sciences Colloquium -- 3:45 p.m. -- Meinel 410
Dr. Ernest J. Garcia of the Electromechanical Engineering Department at Sandia National Laboratories will present Microelectromechanical Systems.  Abstract:  Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) are moving at a faster and faster pace with quite a number of start-up companies started (and some already busted) to take advantage of what is surely promising be a new revolution.  The IC revolution was of course spectacular and it appears that a MEMS revolution will be equally astonishing.  The merging of electronics and mechanics in the micro (and nano) domains will undoubtedly lead to many unimagined applications.  An interesting application for MEMS at present appears to be in its utility in switching light.   Many other applications are envisioned for the future, including the development of amazing biological tools that might someday roam through the body performing such functions as cleaning arteries, or attacking tumors in ways that eliminate side effects experienced via surgery, chemotherapy, or radiation therapy.  Such a complex system will require micro-sized sensors, actuation and propulsion means, functional tools, decision-making capability, and very likely, telemetry.  In this short talk, we will spend some time looking at the current state of things and discuss the question that is always asked: How do they fabricate these little devices?  I will also speak about a couple of projects going on at Sandia (some related to optics) with the intent of giving us a flavor of things that are occurring in the MEMS world.  We will finish by bringing up a couple of unresolved issues that require further effort.  Ernest J García is a Principal Member of the Technical Staff at Sandia National Laboratories in New Mexico.  Using a range of MEMS technologies, he has successfully developed micro and meso actuation devices, micro acceleration switches, micro gyroscopic rate sensors including the first surface micromachined rigid-body gyro, micro pumping devices, micro geared systems, micromirror systems in silicon, and opto-mechanical switching devices in both silicon and gallium arsenide.  His most recent activities are concerned with the development of packaged micromirror systems for an assortment of instrument applications.  Calendar information:  The Colloquium begins at 3:45 p.m. in Meinel 410.  Pre-Colloquium refreshments will be served in the OSC Lobby at 3:30. 

January 22, 2004 -- Optical Sciences Colloquium -- 3:45 p.m. -- Meinel 410
Optical Sciences Center Professor Emeritus H. Angus Macleod of Thin Film Center, Inc. will present Optical Coatings Yesterday and Today.  Abstract:  Most optical instruments consist of a series of surfaces that direct and manipulate the light. The direction of the light is determined by the surface shape but virtually all other qualities of the light are due to the optical coating that is almost invariably present. Optical coatings are essential components of optical systems and in many cases the coatings actually enable the application. This talk will look briefly at the history and fundamentals of optical coatings, discuss some of the recent advances in thin-film technology and examine a number of significant modern applications where thin film coatings play a leading role. No specialized knowledge other than a nodding acquaintance with optical fundamentals will be assumed.  Calendar info:  Refreshments will be served in the Meinel Building lobby at 3:30.  Jose Sasian, 621-3733, is the Colloquium host.

January 13, 2004 -- Special Seminar -- 10:00 a.m. -- Meinel 701
Professor Nikolay Zheludev of the School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Southampton, will present Chiral Flatland or Remarkable Properties of Planar Chiral Optical Meta-Materials.  Abstract:  Recent advances in the nano-fabrication have provided a new playfield for fundamental optical experiments with meta-materials and a hope for a new breed of optical devices. For instance, it was thought in the past that if time could be made to flow in the opposite direction, light would interact with media in exactly the same fashion as before the direction of time’s arrow had been changed. This symmetry is a cornerstone of contemporary optical theories. To give an example of the new physics which has become possible with meta-material, we show that they can challenge this conventional wisdom.  We report experimental evidence of a T-odd interaction between light and an artificial planar nanostructured non-magnetic structure. 2D chirality is its key feature, meaning that the pattern can exit in left- and right flat forms that are otherwise identical. Such structures show a 2D analogy of the optical activity effect in the form of enantiomeric sensitive change of the polarization state of light diffracted from them and that this optical effect correlates with the continuous geometrical chirality measure of the pattern. However in contrast with 3D chiral effects that are always reciprocal, planar chiral meta-material could breed nonreciprocal diffraction, which resembles the famous non-reciprocity of the Faraday effect.  Moreover, we discovered that polarized colour images of the structure taken under a microscope show intriguing and unusual symmetry known as anti-symmetry that involves the idea of broken parity and time reversal. Interaction of light with planar chiral structures shows similarities with light scattering by anyons, hypothetical and elusive particles placed between bosons and fermions. Finally, we show how planar chiral meta-materials could solve the Immanuel Kant’s challenge of communication the notion of left and right to a remote civilization.  Calendar info:  For more information, please contact Professor Ewan Wright at 621-2406.

January 13, 2004 -- Translational Research Seminar -- Noon -- Sarver Heart Center 4137
Sponsored by the College of Medicine Research Office and General Clinical Research Center.  Molly Brewer, MD, Associate Professor, Gynecology and Oncology and Urs Utzinger, PhD, Assistant Professor, Biomedical Engineering will present Optical Imaging of Ovarian Cancer. This research is trans-disciplinary research between oncologists, biomedical engineers, optical scientists, molecular biologists, statisticians, and veterinarians to develop better methods of assessing the ovary for cancers and precancers.  Light lunch.