Testing the adequacy of a simple theoretical model of dehydration optical clearing of collagen bundles: OCT measurements

Using optical coherence tomography, the scattering coefficients of collagen bundles are estimated at different levels of tissue hydration. We test the validity of a simple theoretical model of dehydration changes in the optical characteristics of a collagen bundle, which is considered as a system of parallel cylinders that model the collagen fibrils forming the bundle. The characteristics of scattering by individual scatterers are calculated using the Mie theory. To take into account the cooperative effects caused by the close packing of the scatterers, use is made of the standard packing function for a system of identical cylinders. The theoretical model also relies on a certain empirical law of changes in the hydration level of fibrils with a change in the water content in the tissue, which predetermines changes in the diameter and refractive index of fibrils during dehydration and rehydration of the tissue. It is shown that the theoretical estimates obtained using this model are in good agreement with the experimental data, which makes it possible to consider this model as reliable.

Collective cloaking of a cluster of electrostatically defined core-shell quantum dots in graphene

We study cloaking of a cluster of electrostatically defined core-shell quantum dots in graphene. Guided by the generalized multiparticle Mie theory, the Dirac electron scattering from a cluster of quantum dots is addressed. Indeed distant quantum dots may experience a sort of individual cloaking. But despite the multiple scattering of an incident electron from a set of adjacent quantum dots, collective cloaking may happen. Via a proper choice of the radii and bias voltages of shells, two most important scattering coefficients and hence the scattering efficiency of the cluster dramatically decrease. Energy-selective electron cloaks are realizable. More importantly, clusters simultaneously transparent to electrons of different energies, are achievable. Being quite sensitive to applied bias voltages, clusters of core-shell quantum dots may be used to develop switches with high on-off ratios.

Generalized Kerker effect in dielectric antennas for enhanced backscattering modulation

Enhancement of electromagnetic signal modulation is one of the key problems for modern contactless communication systems. Using resonance effects allows to achieve significant interaction between an electromagnetic wave and matter of an antenna, providing opportunity to control scattering. This work demonstrates efficiency of multipole engineering based on Mie theory for dielectric core-shell antennas, particularly we show that generalized Kerker effect is a useful tool for backscattering modulation magnification. Our approach allows to manipulate scattering properties of devices without increasing their size by using all-dieletric concept.

Retrieving the refractive index of a sphere from the phase spectrum of its light-scattering profile

We studied the Fourier spectrum of the light-scattering profiles of single particles in the Rayleigh-Gans-Debye (RGD) and Wentzel–Kramers–Brillouin (WKB) approximations. In the case of a homogeneous sphere, we found the relationship between the key parameters of the spectrum (including its phase) and the sphere characteristics – both analytically and numerically in the framework of the approximations and the rigorous Lorentz–Mie theory, respectively. Based on these results, we have improved the existing spectral characterization method for spheres extending the applicability range to particles with a higher refractive index.

Computational Modelling for the Optical Properties of Dye Molecules Adsorbed onto Metallic Nanoparticles

<p><b>The study of light scattering by particles has become fundamental and applied interests in the fields of chemistry, biology, and most importantly in physics. In this context, this thesis focuses on understanding the optical properties of dye layers adsorbed onto metallic nanoparticles (NP), which is essential for interpreting the results of plasmon-dye coupling experiments. To model such a system, Mie theory is often used to solve for the exact solution to Maxwell’s equations for spherical homogeneous and isotropic coated NP. The effects of the NP’s plasmon resonances on the optical properties of the adsorbed dye layer have been predicted using an effective medium model, where the dye-layer is treated as an isotropic layer with an effective dielectric function accounting for the dye resonance. However, this isotropic shell model is inadequate as it cannot account for the dye surface concentration and the anisotropy of the optical response of the dye layer.</b></p> <p>In this thesis, we introduce anisotropic effects within Mie theory and develop microscopic models to define effective dielectric functions which explicitly include the dye-concentration effect in the shell model. Combining anisotropic Mie theory with a concentration-dependent effective shell model allows us to form new theoretical tools to model the optical properties of adsorbed dye layers on metallic NPs of spherical shape. With this new refined effective medium model, we are then able to study shell models for elongated particles beyond the quasi-static approximation. This is implemented using the finite element method (FEM) to numerically solve Maxwell’s equations. The FEM implementation is then used to investigate how the NP’s plasmon resonance can be affected by the dye’s orientation and location on the NP’s surface. We show that the orientation and location of the dye molecules on the NP determine how strongly the plasmon resonance is shifted.</p> <p>The results of this work will improve our ability to accurately model the optical properties of anisotropic molecules adsorbed on metallic NPs. This is important in a number of applications including the development of localised surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) sensing and the design of plasmonic devices.</p>

Computational Modelling for the Optical Properties of Dye Molecules Adsorbed onto Metallic Nanoparticles

<p><b>The study of light scattering by particles has become fundamental and applied interests in the fields of chemistry, biology, and most importantly in physics. In this context, this thesis focuses on understanding the optical properties of dye layers adsorbed onto metallic nanoparticles (NP), which is essential for interpreting the results of plasmon-dye coupling experiments. To model such a system, Mie theory is often used to solve for the exact solution to Maxwell’s equations for spherical homogeneous and isotropic coated NP. The effects of the NP’s plasmon resonances on the optical properties of the adsorbed dye layer have been predicted using an effective medium model, where the dye-layer is treated as an isotropic layer with an effective dielectric function accounting for the dye resonance. However, this isotropic shell model is inadequate as it cannot account for the dye surface concentration and the anisotropy of the optical response of the dye layer.</b></p> <p>In this thesis, we introduce anisotropic effects within Mie theory and develop microscopic models to define effective dielectric functions which explicitly include the dye-concentration effect in the shell model. Combining anisotropic Mie theory with a concentration-dependent effective shell model allows us to form new theoretical tools to model the optical properties of adsorbed dye layers on metallic NPs of spherical shape. With this new refined effective medium model, we are then able to study shell models for elongated particles beyond the quasi-static approximation. This is implemented using the finite element method (FEM) to numerically solve Maxwell’s equations. The FEM implementation is then used to investigate how the NP’s plasmon resonance can be affected by the dye’s orientation and location on the NP’s surface. We show that the orientation and location of the dye molecules on the NP determine how strongly the plasmon resonance is shifted.</p> <p>The results of this work will improve our ability to accurately model the optical properties of anisotropic molecules adsorbed on metallic NPs. This is important in a number of applications including the development of localised surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) sensing and the design of plasmonic devices.</p>