The research, conducted over the past year at 91精品黑料吃瓜's Advanced Research Complex (ARC), was led by Ravi Bhardwaj, Professor, Department of Physics at the University of Ottawa and PhD student Ashish Jain, in collaboration with Howard Northfield, Research Engineer, and colleagues Ebrahim Karimi, Canada Research Chair in Structured Light and Associate Professor of Physics, and Pierre Berini, University Research Chair in Surface Plasmon Photonics and Professor of Electrical Engineering.
The team used a special light tool developed by Professor Karimi's and fabricated the necessary structures with the help of Howard Northfield and Professor Berini. Their findings showed that this selective absorption happens because of interactions between different parts of the light and the material.
"For decades, we believed that these materials couldn't show any difference in how they absorb polarized light," says Professor Bhardwaj. "But our research shows that by using a special kind of twisted light, we can control and tune this absorption up to 50%."
鈥淥ur research opens doors to next-generation plasmonic-based spectroscopy and sensing via enhanced optical metrology鈥
Ravi Bhardwaj
鈥 Professor, Department of Physics at the University of Ottawa
Key points from the study include:
- Breaking the Old Belief: The team showed that achiral structures can indeed absorb light differently, challenging old beliefs.
- Precise Control: They found ways to precisely control this absorption, which could be useful in technologies like optical switches.
- Improved Efficiency: Their special twisted light improved light absorption efficiency in these materials.
- Easier Fabrication: Achiral structures are simpler to make, which could lead to better and more functional optical devices.
- New Insights: The research provides a better understanding of how light interacts with these materials.
Professor Bhardwaj explains, 鈥淥ur research not only debunks the myth that dichroism doesn鈥檛 exist in achiral structures but also opens doors to next-generation plasmonic-based spectroscopy and sensing via enhanced optical metrology.鈥 This work promises significant advancements in optical devices, such as sensors and switches鈥.
In addition,鈥渢his discovery is important because it shows that even symmetrical materials can have special light-absorbing properties, opening up new possibilities for advanced sensing and measurement technologies,鈥 adds Ashish Jain.
The study, titled 鈥溾, was published in the journal ACS Nano.