scispace - formally typeset
Search or ask a question
Topic

Nanolaser

About: Nanolaser is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 571 publications have been published within this topic receiving 15707 citations.


Papers
More filters
PatentDOI
03 Nov 2012-Nature
TL;DR: Hybrid plasmonic waveguides as discussed by the authors employ a high-gain semiconductor nanostructure functioning as a gain medium that is separated from a metal substrate surface by a nanoscale thickness thick low-index gap.
Abstract: Hybrid plasmonic waveguides are described that employ a high-gain semiconductor nanostructure functioning as a gain medium that is separated from a metal substrate surface by a nanoscale thickness thick low-index gap. The waveguides are capable of efficient generation of sub-wavelength high intensity light and have the potential for large modulation bandwidth >1 THz.

2,060 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
27 Aug 2009-Nature
TL;DR: It is shown that 44-nm-diameter nanoparticles with a gold core and dye-doped silica shell allow us to completely overcome the loss of localized surface plasmons by gain and realize a spaser, and that outcoupling of surface plasmon oscillations to photonic modes at a wavelength of 531 nm makes this system the smallest nanolaser reported to date—and to the authors' knowledge the first operating at visible wavelengths.
Abstract: Nanoplasmonics — the nanoscale manipulation of surface plasmons (fluctuations in the electron density at a metallic surface) — could revolutionize applications ranging from sensing and biomedicine to imaging and information technology. But first, we need a simple and efficient method for actively generating coherent plasmonic fields. This is in theory possible with the spaser, first proposed in 2003 as a device that generates and amplifies surface plasmons in the same way that a laser generates and amplifies photons. Now Noginov et al. present the first unambiguous experimental demonstration of spasing, using 44-nm diameter nanoparticles with a gold core and dye-doped silica shell. The system generates stimulated emission of surface plasmons in the same way as a laser generates stimulated emission of coherent photons, and has been used to implement the smallest nanolaser reported to date, and the first operating at visible wavelengths. Nanoplasmonics promises to revolutionize applications ranging from sensing and biomedicine to imaging and information technology, but its full development is hindered by the lack of devices that can generate coherent plasmonic fields. In theory, this is possible with a so-called 'spaser' — analogous to a laser — which would generate stimulated emission of surface plasmons. This is now realized experimentally, and should enable many new technological developments. One of the most rapidly growing areas of physics and nanotechnology focuses on plasmonic effects on the nanometre scale, with possible applications ranging from sensing and biomedicine to imaging and information technology1,2. However, the full development of nanoplasmonics is hindered by the lack of devices that can generate coherent plasmonic fields. It has been proposed3 that in the same way as a laser generates stimulated emission of coherent photons, a ‘spaser’ could generate stimulated emission of surface plasmons (oscillations of free electrons in metallic nanostructures) in resonating metallic nanostructures adjacent to a gain medium. But attempts to realize a spaser face the challenge of absorption loss in metal, which is particularly strong at optical frequencies. The suggestion4,5,6 to compensate loss by optical gain in localized and propagating surface plasmons has been implemented recently7,8,9,10 and even allowed the amplification of propagating surface plasmons in open paths11. Still, these experiments and the reported enhancement of the stimulated emission of dye molecules in the presence of metallic nanoparticles12,13,14 lack the feedback mechanism present in a spaser. Here we show that 44-nm-diameter nanoparticles with a gold core and dye-doped silica shell allow us to completely overcome the loss of localized surface plasmons by gain and realize a spaser. And in accord with the notion that only surface plasmon resonances are capable of squeezing optical frequency oscillations into a nanoscopic cavity to enable a true nanolaser15,16,17,18, we show that outcoupling of surface plasmon oscillations to photonic modes at a wavelength of 531 nm makes our system the smallest nanolaser reported to date—and to our knowledge the first operating at visible wavelengths. We anticipate that now it has been realized experimentally, the spaser will advance our fundamental understanding of nanoplasmonics and the development of practical applications.

1,998 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
02 Apr 2015-Nature
TL;DR: A new lasing strategy is reported: an atomically thin crystalline semiconductor—that is, a tungsten diselenide monolayer—is non-destructively and deterministically introduced as a gain medium at the surface of a pre-fabricated PCC, allowing an optical pumping threshold as low as 27 nanowatts at 130 kelvin similar to the value achieved in quantum-dot PCC lasers.
Abstract: Engineering the electromagnetic environment of a nanometre-scale light emitter by use of a photonic cavity can significantly enhance its spontaneous emission rate, through cavity quantum electrodynamics in the Purcell regime. This effect can greatly reduce the lasing threshold of the emitter, providing a low-threshold laser system with small footprint, low power consumption and ultrafast modulation. An ultralow-threshold nanoscale laser has been successfully developed by embedding quantum dots into a photonic crystal cavity (PCC). However, several challenges impede the practical application of this architecture, including the random positions and compositional fluctuations of the dots, extreme difficulty in current injection, and lack of compatibility with electronic circuits. Here we report a new lasing strategy: an atomically thin crystalline semiconductor--that is, a tungsten diselenide monolayer--is non-destructively and deterministically introduced as a gain medium at the surface of a pre-fabricated PCC. A continuous-wave nanolaser operating in the visible regime is thereby achieved with an optical pumping threshold as low as 27 nanowatts at 130 kelvin, similar to the value achieved in quantum-dot PCC lasers. The key to the lasing action lies in the monolayer nature of the gain medium, which confines direct-gap excitons to within one nanometre of the PCC surface. The surface-gain geometry gives unprecedented accessibility and hence the ability to tailor gain properties via external controls such as electrostatic gating and current injection, enabling electrically pumped operation. Our scheme is scalable and compatible with integrated photonics for on-chip optical communication technologies.

765 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
27 Jul 2012-Science
TL;DR: The low-threshold, continuous-wave operation of a subdiffraction nanolaser based on surface plasmon amplification by stimulated emission of radiation is reported on, opening a scalable platform for low-loss, active nanoplasmonics.
Abstract: A nanolaser is a key component for on-chip optical communications and computing systems. Here, we report on the low-threshold, continuous-wave operation of a subdiffraction nanolaser based on surface plasmon amplification by stimulated emission of radiation. The plasmonic nanocavity is formed between an atomically smooth epitaxial silver film and a single optically pumped nanorod consisting of an epitaxial gallium nitride shell and an indium gallium nitride core acting as gain medium. The atomic smoothness of the metallic film is crucial for reducing the modal volume and plasmonic losses. Bimodal lasing with similar pumping thresholds was experimentally observed, and polarization properties of the two modes were used to unambiguously identify them with theoretically predicted modes. The all-epitaxial approach opens a scalable platform for low-loss, active nanoplasmonics.

678 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
09 Feb 2012-Nature
TL;DR: A family of coaxial nanostructured cavities that potentially solve the resonator scalability challenge by means of their geometry and metal composition are described, and the smallest room-temperature, continuous-wave telecommunications-frequency laser to date is demonstrated.
Abstract: The effects of cavity quantum electrodynamics (QED), caused by the interaction of matter and the electromagnetic field in subwavelength resonant structures, have been the subject of intense research in recent years. The generation of coherent radiation by subwavelength resonant structures has attracted considerable interest, not only as a means of exploring the QED effects that emerge at small volume, but also for its potential in applications ranging from on-chip optical communication to ultrahigh-resolution and high-throughput imaging, sensing and spectroscopy. One such strand of research is aimed at developing the 'ultimate' nanolaser: a scalable, low-threshold, efficient source of radiation that operates at room temperature and occupies a small volume on a chip. Different resonators have been proposed for the realization of such a nanolaser--microdisk and photonic bandgap resonators, and, more recently, metallic, metallo-dielectric and plasmonic resonators. But progress towards realizing the ultimate nanolaser has been hindered by the lack of a systematic approach to scaling down the size of the laser cavity without significantly increasing the threshold power required for lasing. Here we describe a family of coaxial nanostructured cavities that potentially solve the resonator scalability challenge by means of their geometry and metal composition. Using these coaxial nanocavities, we demonstrate the smallest room-temperature, continuous-wave telecommunications-frequency laser to date. In addition, by further modifying the design of these coaxial nanocavities, we achieve thresholdless lasing with a broadband gain medium. In addition to enabling laser applications, these nanoscale resonators should provide a powerful platform for the development of other QED devices and metamaterials in which atom-field interactions generate new functionalities.

561 citations


Network Information
Related Topics (5)
Quantum dot
76.7K papers, 1.9M citations
86% related
Optical fiber
167K papers, 1.8M citations
86% related
Nanowire
52K papers, 1.5M citations
84% related
Laser
353.1K papers, 4.3M citations
83% related
Photoluminescence
83.4K papers, 1.8M citations
83% related
Performance
Metrics
No. of papers in the topic in previous years
YearPapers
202324
202242
202132
202048
201954
201852