Nanophotonic crystals with chiral elements by a hot embossing process in SU-8

We report a novel nanoprocess to fabricate 2D metallic and non-metallic nanophotonic crystals on SU-8 using hot embossing combining with a UV-curing process. The fabricated photonic crystals were characterized by optical diffraction experiments. Theoretical simulation of the light diffraction through such kind of artificial crystals agrees with the measured optical property very well, indicating that the developed fabrication technique is able to produce large area nanosize photonic crystals at economic costs. The success of this work not only provides scientists with a good opportunity to pioneer novel photonic physics in metallic and non-metallic chiral as well as photonic crystal systems, but also bridges the gap between laboratory and industrial application for mass production of photonic nanostuctures.

Fabrication of planar chiral photonic meta-materials on SU- 8 using nanoimprint lithography technique

Yi-Chiang Sun, Shenqi Xie

We present a photonic meta-material with planar dielectric chiral structures on SU-8 realized using nanoimprint lithography (NIL). A Si template with chiral structure arrays was first fabricated by electron beam lithography (EBL) followed by reactive ion etch (RIE). The chiral pattern on the template was then transferred to a SU-8 layer spin coated on Pyrex using an in-house developed press. The imprint property of SU-8 under various pressures and temperatures was systematically studied. The optimized imprint process was successfully applied for the fabrication of planar chiral structure in SU-8. The periodically distributed chiral elements form a photonic crystal with the pitch of 4 μm. Optical diffraction of such kind of periodically arranged chiral structures in SU-8 has been observed for the first time.

2007

Dispersion Properties of Photonic Crystals and Silicon Nanostructures Investigated by Fourier-Space Imaging

Jana Jágerská

State-of-the-art nanophotonic devices based on semiconductor technology use total internal reflection or the photonic bandgap effect to reduce the waveguide core dimensions down to hundreds of nanometers, ensuring strong optical confinement within the scale of the wavelength. Within the framework of this thesis, we investigate the light propagation in such devices by direct experimental reconstruction of their dispersion relation ω (k), where ω is the optical frequency and k the wave vector of the supported modes. Knowledge of the dispersion relation provides us with comprehensive information about the guided field, including the number of supported modes, their phase and group velocity as well as the higher order dispersion. As a principal characterization tool, an original experimental technique referred as Fourier-space imaging is used. It is based on far-field analysis of optical signal radiated out of the plane of the structure, which makes it possible to retrieve accurately, non-invasively and in one step the complex dispersion of both the leaky and the truly guided optical modes. The latter is feasible provided that the device is equipped with vanishingly weak grating probes that scatter a small part of the guided light into the light cone. The Fourier-space imaging technique was applied to study the optical properties of a large number of nanophotonic devices, ranging from simple nanowire waveguides to complex photonic crystal structures. In the first part of the work, silicon-on-insulator slot waveguides, coupled ridge waveguides and nanowire waveguide arrays are addressed. Besides the phase and group index dispersion, we investigate the phenomenon of mode splitting in coupled systems, being able to probe the coupling lengths with an accuracy of ±50 nm. In the case of waveguide arrays, beam steering using both thermo-optic effect and wavelength tuning was demonstrated. Concerning the photonic crystal devices, we primarily focus on the phenomenon of slow light propagation in line-defect and coupled-cavity photonic crystal waveguides. The latter represent a special type of a waveguide, which allows for substantial optical signal retardation by evanescent coupling along a chain of photonic crystal cavities. The main motivation was to accurately measure the group index of the slow light modes and recognize the main factors limiting its maximum achievable value. Among others, experimental observation of dispersion curve renormalization, enhanced out-of-plane and back-scattering as well as light localization due to residual disorder were reported. Finally, a detailed experimental study of hollow-core photonic crystal structures intended for optical sensing applications is presented.

EPFL2011

Up-scalable plasmonic and diffractive nanostructures

Fabian Michael Lütolf

Since most of the academic photonic and plasmonic nanostructures are based on slow and expensive electron beam lithography processes, there is a need for innovative alternatives suitable for industrial manufacturing. Large areas need to be patterned with a high throughput, which is for example achieved with roll-to-roll machines. Up-scalable designs of photonic and plasmonic nanostructures are therefore studied in this thesis. Typical industrial processes include embossing and evaporation, which are consequently used throughout the thesis. I propose oblique evaporation of high refractive index materials to render binary gratings highly efficient for first order transmission. Zinc sulfide coatings are employed to diffract close to 70% of unpolarized green light. Simulations further show that they can be encapsulated to protect them from environmental influences like humidity, wear or dust, while retaining their exceptional diffractive properties, which is very appealing for outdoor applications. I also show that thin metallic coatings can attain similar efficiencies for TE polarized light. The effect is asymmetric and shows a maximum at the Wood-Rayleigh anomaly, which results in orientation dependent coloration of the zero order as well as first order transmittances. A large part of the standard RGB gamut can be covered through proper adjustment of the grating parameters. Combination of zero order and first order effects allows creation of color appearances that switch when rotating or flipping the device. I finally present how floating images become apparent when a patterned light source like e.g. a mobile phone is used in conjunction with the metallized grating. Direct transfer of plasmonic technology from universities to industry is often not possible: in academia, metallic nanostructures often require a lateral resolution of a few nanometers, which is challenging to achieve in up-scalable processes. Thicknesses on the other hand can be controlled in this regime using evaporation techniques, which are hence powerful methods for high-throughput production. In this thesis, Fano-resonant, U-shaped nanowires are created with oblique metal deposition. In order to make them available for mass-production, aluminum is chosen as the plasmonic material. The surface integral equation method is used to investigate near-fields and charge distributions, which shed light onto the physics behind the present resonances. A surface plasmon polariton is found to couple to a localized plasmonic mode with a hexapolar charge distribution. It is finally shown that the Fano-resonance can be accurately tuned by adapting evaporation angle and metal thickness. These two parameters can easily be accessed and would allow for good control over the optical response even in an industrial environment. The applicability of the above insights is then demonstrated by creating a strain sensor. To that end, the process is transferred to a stretchable polymer and when elongating the structure perpendicular to the wires, the polymeric spacing between them is expanded. The sensitivity of the Fano-resonance to this change in inter-wire distance is investigated and a strong damping is observed. Through careful design, a clearly visible color switch from purple to green is achieved for elongations less than 20%. The sensor was deemed to be very durable, as no deterioration in the color or the spectral response was observed even after several strain cycles.