Near unity Raman β-factor of surface enhanced Raman scattering in a waveguide

The Raman scattering of light by molecular vibrations offers a powerful technique to ‘fingerprint’ molecules via their internal bonds and symmetries. Since Raman scattering is weak1, methods to enhance, direct and harness it are highly desirable, e.g. through the use of optical cavities2, waveguides3–6, and surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS)7–9. While SERS offers dramatic enhancements6,15,22,2 by localizing light within vanishingly small ‘hot-spots’ in metallic nanostructures, these tiny interaction volumes are only sensitive to few molecules, yielding weak signals that are difficult to detect10 . Here, we show that SERS from 4-Aminothiophenol (4-ATP) molecules bonded to a plasmonic gap waveguide is directed into a single mode with > 99% efficiency. Although sacrificing a confinement dimension, we find > 104 times SERS enhancement across a broad spectral range enabled by the waveguide’s larger sensing volume and non-resonant mode. Remarkably, the waveguide-SERS (W-SERS) is bright enough to image Raman transport across the waveguides exposing the roles of nanofocusing11–13 and the Purcell effect14. Emulating the e-factor from laser physics15–17, the near unity Raman -factor observed exposes the SERS technique in a new light and points to alternative routes to controlling Raman scattering. The ability of W-SERS to direct Raman scattering is relevant to Raman sensors based on integrated photonics7–9 with applications in gas and bio-sensing as well as healthcare.

Geometrical shapes effects of optical cavity on entanglement dynamics of optomechanical systems: A numerical analysis

In this work, a model of optomechanical system was investigated by analyzing the entanglement dynamics of two related mechanical oscillators in a modified system. Geometrical shapes effects of optical cavities on entanglement of a representative optomechanical system were investigated by means of performing numerical analysis. It was signified that the steady-state or the dynamic behavior of optomechanical engagement could be created owing to the strength of mechanical pairs, which are strong towards the oscillating temperature. In addition, the mentioned entanglement dynamics were seen to be entirely related to the natural state’s stability. Furthermore, rendering the mechanical damping effects, the critical mechanical coupling strength-related analytical expression, where the transition from a steady state to a dynamic clamp occurs, was reported. In the studied system, two identical mechanical oscillators were formed in different conditions of the optical cavities shapes.

Nesting and degeneracy of Mie resonances of dielectric cavities within zero-index materials

Resonances in optical cavities are used to manipulate light propagation, enhance light-matter interaction, modulate quantum states, and so on. However, the index contrast between the traditional cavities and the host is generally not high, which to some extent limited their performances. By putting dielectric cavities into a host of zero-index materials, index contrast in principle can approach infinity. Here, we analytically deduced Mie resonance conditions at this extreme circumstance. Interestingly, we discovered a so-called resonance nesting effect, in which a set of cavities with different radii can possess the same type of resonance at the same wavelength. We also revealed previously unknown degeneracy between the 2l-TM (2l-TE) and 2l+1-TE (2l+1-TM) modes for " 0 ( 0) material, and the 2l-TM and 2l-TE for both " 0 and 0. Such extraordinary resonance nesting and degeneracy provide additional principles to manipulate cavity behaviors.

Direct limits for scalar field dark matter from a gravitational-wave detector

The nature of dark matter remains unknown to date, although several candidate particles are being considered in a dynamically changing research landscape1. Scalar field dark matter is a prominent option that is being explored with precision instruments, such as atomic clocks and optical cavities2–8. Here we describe a direct search for scalar field dark matter using a gravitational-wave detector, which operates beyond the quantum shot-noise limit. We set new upper limits on the coupling constants of scalar field dark matter as a function of its mass, by excluding the presence of signals that would be produced through the direct coupling of this dark matter to the beam splitter of the GEO600 interferometer. These constraints improve on bounds from previous direct searches by more than six orders of magnitude and are, in some cases, more stringent than limits obtained in tests of the equivalence principle by up to four orders of magnitude. Our work demonstrates that scalar field dark matter can be investigated or constrained with direct searches using gravitational-wave detectors and highlights the potential of quantum-enhanced interferometry for dark matter detection.

Optical Gain in Commercial Laser Diodes

Optical gain and optical losses are separately measured in commercial laser diodes by simple analysis of spectral and electrical characteristics, and with no special specimen preparation or handling. The aim is to bring device analysis, for characterization and reliability purposes, closer to the intimate physical processes that rule over laser diode operation. Investigation includes resonating and non-resonating optical cavities.

Engineering the sensitivity of macroscopic physical systems to variations in the fine-structure constant

Experiments aimed at searching for variations in the fine-structure constant α are based on spectroscopy of transitions in microscopic bound systems, such as atoms and ions, or resonances in optical cavities. The sensitivities of these systems to variations in α are typically on the order of unity and are fixed for a given system. For heavy atoms, highly charged ions and nuclear transitions, the sensitivity can be increased by benefiting from the relativistic effects and favorable arrangement of quantum states. This article proposes a new method for controlling the sensitivity factor of macroscopic physical systems. Specific concepts of optical cavities with tunable sensitivity to α are described. These systems show qualitatively different properties from those of previous studies of the sensitivity of macroscopic systems to variations in α, in which the sensitivity was found to be fixed and fundamentally limited to an order of unity. Although possible experimental constraints attainable with the specific optical cavity arrangements proposed in this article do not yet exceed the present best constraints on α variations, this work paves the way for developing new approaches to searching for variations in the fundamental constants of physics.

Extended bound states in the continuum in a one-dimensional grating implemented on a distributed Bragg reflector

Bound states in the continuum (BICs) are observed in optical cavities composed of a high refractive index periodic structure embedded in significantly lower refractive index surroundings, enabling vertical confinement of the grating modes. Here, we propose a vertically nonsymmetric configuration, implemented on a high refractive index bulk substrate with a one-dimensional grating positioned on a distributed Bragg reflector (DBR). In this configuration, the grating modes are leaky, which could prohibit the creation of a BIC if the grating was implemented on uniform substrate. However, the judiciously designed DBR on which the grating is implemented reflects nonzero diffraction orders induced by the grating. We found that the laterally antisymmetric optical modes located at the center of the Brillouin zone of this structure create BICs that are robust against changes in the grating parameters, as long as the DBR reflects the diffraction orders. The configuration enables a high degree of design freedom, facilitating the realization of very high quality factor cavities in conventional all-semiconductor technology.

Ellipsoidal Optical Cavities for Enhanced Thermophotovoltaics

Herein we present an optical cavity in the form of a prolate ellipsoid that can greatly enhance the performance of solar thermophotovoltaic (STPV) systems. The geometrical parameters of the cavity can be designed to control the degree of photon recycling, the temperature of the emitter within the STPV system, gap distance and effective view factor between the PV cell and the emitter, and to minimize the emission losses. Numerical analysis shows the ellipsoidal optical cavity can be designed to achieve an effective view factor of 88.7% between the emitter and PV cell within a STPV system. Results show an efficiency of 5.62% in a STPV system with a GaSb PV cell and a black-body emitter under solar radiation at a concentration factor of 350X. Further, assuming the surface of the ellipsoidal optical cavity is capable of reflecting 99% of the radiation incident onto its surface, efficiencies of 15.54% can be attained when the solar concentration factor is 1400X. These results are attained for STPV systems without using selective absorbers, emitters or filters. The ellipsoidal optical cavity can be integrated into the design of advanced TPV systems and bring them closer to the high theoretical efficiencies TPV systems are capable of.