Chalcogenide Phase Change Material for Active Terahertz Photonics

The strikingly contrasting optical properties of various phases of chalcogenide phase change materials (PCM) has recently led to the development of novel photonic devices such as all‐optical non‐von Neumann memory, nanopixel displays, color rendering, and reconfigurable nanoplasmonics. However, the exploration of chalcogenide photonics is currently limited to optical and infrared frequencies. Here, a phase change material integrated terahertz metamaterial for multilevel nonvolatile resonance switching with spatial and temporal selectivity is demonstrated. By controlling the crystalline proportion of the PCM film, multilevel, non‐volatile, terahertz resonance switching states with long retention time at zero hold power are realized. Spatially selective reconfiguration at sub‐metamaterial scale is shown by delivering electrical stimulus locally through designer interconnect architecture. The PCM metamaterial also features ultrafast optical modulation of terahertz resonances with tunable switching speed based on the crystalline order of the PCM film. The multilevel nonvolatile, spatially selective, and temporally tunable PCM metamaterial will provide a pathway toward development of novel and disruptive terahertz technologies including spatio‐temporal terahertz modulators for high speed wireless communication, neuromorphic photonics, and machine‐learning metamaterials.     

Optical properties change in amorphous (As2S3)0.87Sb0.13 thin films by photo and thermal induced process

Exposure with above band gap light and thermal annealing at a temperature near to glass transition temperature, of thermally evaporated amorphous (As₂S₃)_0.87Sb_0.13 thin films of 1 μm thickness, were found to be accompanied by structural effects, which in turn, lead to changes in the optical properties. The optical properties of thin films induced by illumination and annealing were studied by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy. Photo darkening or photo bleaching was observed in the film depending upon the conditions of the light exposure or annealing. These changes of the optical properties are assigned to the change of homopolar bond densities.     

热处理温度对Bi2O3/ATO复合功能填料红外-可见光兼容隐身性能的影响

采用固相法制备了Bi2O3/ATO复合功能填料,借助于XRD、SEM、分光光度计和辐射率仪研究了热处理温度分别对复合功能填料的物相组成、微观形貌、可见光及红外隐身性能的影响。结果表明,随着热处理温度的升高,复合功能填料的红外辐射率先下降后升高,当热处理温度为800℃时,复合功能填料的红外辐射率最低,达到了0.67。填料的最高反射峰出现在黄橙光范围内,但是,样品在可见光区的反射峰面积和平均反射率均随着热处理温度的升高逐渐增大。因此,复合功能填料的颜色亮度可以根据煅烧温度进行调节,适于制备多色红外迷彩涂料。     

Hybrid Lead Halide Perovskites for Ultrasensitive Photoactive Switching in Terahertz Metamaterial Devices

The recent meteoric rise in the field of photovoltaics with the discovery of highly efficient solar‐cell devices is inspired by solution‐processed organic–inorganic lead halide perovskites that exhibit unprecedented light‐to‐electricity conversion efficiencies. The stunning performance of perovskites is attributed to their strong photoresponsive properties that are thoroughly utilized in designing excellent perovskite solar cells, light‐emitting diodes, infrared lasers, and ultrafast photodetectors. However, optoelectronic application of halide perovskites in realizing highly efficient subwavelength photonic devices has remained a challenge. Here, the remarkable photoconductivity of organic–inorganic lead halide perovskites is exploited to demonstrate a hybrid perovskite–metamaterial device that shows extremely low power photoswitching of the metamaterial resonances in the terahertz part of the electromagnetic spectrum. Furthermore, a signature of a coupled phonon–metamaterial resonance is observed at higher pump powers, where the Fano resonance amplitude is extremely weak. In addition, a low threshold, dynamic control of the highly confined electric field intensity is also observed in the system, which could tremendously benefit the new generation of subwavelength photonic devices as active sensors, low threshold optically controlled lasers, and active nonlinear devices with enhanced functionalities in the infrared, optical, and the terahertz parts of the electromagnetic spectrum.     

Expanding the Toolbox of Upconversion Nanoparticles for In Vivo Optogenetics and Neuromodulation

Optogenetics is an optical technique that exploits visible light for selective neuromodulation with spatio‐temporal precision. Despite enormous effort, the effective stimulation of targeted neurons, which are located in deeper structures of the nervous system, by visible light, remains a technical challenge. Compared to visible light, near‐infrared illumination offers a higher depth of tissue penetration owing to a lower degree of light attenuation. Herein, an overview of advances in developing new modalities for neural circuitry modulation utilizing upconversion‐nanoparticle‐mediated optogenetics is presented. These developments have led to minimally invasive optical stimulation and inhibition of neurons with substantially improved selectivity, sensitivity, and spatial resolution. The focus is to provide a comprehensive review of the mechanistic basis for evaluating upconversion parameters, which will be useful in designing, executing, and reporting optogenetic experiments.     

A UV‐Responsive Multifunctional Photoelectric Device Based on Discotic Columnar Nanostructures and Molecular Motors

Orientation control of ordered materials would not only produce new physical phenomenon but also facilitate the development of fancy devices. Discotic liquid crystals (DLCs) form 1D charge transport pathway by self‐organizing into columnar nanostructures via π–π stacking. However, controlling the electrical properties in such nanostructures with some direct and instant way is a formidable task for their high viscosity and insensitivity to external stimuli. Herein, the arbitrary control over electrical conductivity of such columnar nanostructures is achieved with UV light by incorporating DLCs with molecular motors. Highly ordered DLC microstripe arrays are generated on desired substrate through a capillary bridge dewetting strategy. The conductivity of the microstripes could be continuously modulated by 365 nm light due to the influence of molecular motion under UV irradiation on the electron orbital overlap of columnar nanostructures. This is so because the disorder degree of the DLC molecules is associated with the intensity of UV light and the doping concentration of molecular motors. Moreover, the device shows memory effect and reversible conductivity change. The DLC microstripe arrays are very promising for the applications in UV detectors, memory devices, optical switches, and so on.     

改性石蜡制备及低红外发射率研究

采用丙烯酸接枝石蜡与苯胺酰胺化的方法制备改性石蜡,以此为黏合剂,Al粉为填料,制备出发射率可调的复合相变材料,并对复合相变材料的结构、热性能、控温效果和红外发射率进行了表征。结果表明,改性石蜡的相变温度提高了16.3%,相变潜热提高近60%,控温效果提高了39.3%,添加40%Al粉的复合相变材料的红外发射率可降至最低。     

Design and Applications of Photoresponsive Hydrogels

Hydrogels are the most relevant biochemical scaffold due to their tunable properties, inherent biocompatibility, and similarity with tissue and cell environments. Over the past decade, hydrogels have developed from static materials to “smart” responsive materials adapting to various stimuli, such as pH, temperature, chemical, electrical, or light. Light stimulation is particularly interesting for many applications because of the capability of contact‐free remote manipulation of biomaterial properties and inherent spatial and temporal control. Moreover, light can be finely adjusted in its intrinsic properties, such as wavelength and intensity (i.e., the energy of an individual photon as well as the number of photons over time). Water is almost transparent for light in the photochemically relevant range (NIR–UV), thus hydrogels are well‐suited scaffolds for light‐responsive functionality. Hydrogels' chemical and physical variety combined with light responsiveness makes photoresponsive hydrogels ideal candidates for applications in several fields, ranging from biomaterials, medicine to soft robotics. Herein, the progress and new developments in the field of light‐responsive hydrogels are elaborated by first introducing the relevant photochemistries before discussing selected applications in detail.     

Tunable unidirectional light transmission in a graphene–metal hybrid metamaterial

Graphene’s unique properties, such as strong plasmonic response and electrostatic doping, enable control over the properties of light in an active way. In this paper, we propose a graphene–metal hybrid metamaterial, which exhibits tunable wideband unidirectional light transmission. The hybrid metamaterial consists of a complementary split-ring graphene and a metallic grating. Unidirectional optical transmission with a wide bandwidth of 14.8% of the central frequency at 29.3?THz and a large tuning range of 6.6?THz is found to be achievable in simulations. The light reflection and graphene absorption are shown to be the major factors limiting the efficiency of unidirectional transmission. A large electron scattering time of graphene is beneficial for improving the transmission efficiency. The graphene–metal hybrid metamaterial enables active control over the propagation of light, which could be of interest for infrared isolation, polarization transformation, etc.     

半导体器件用显微红外热成像技术原理及应用

对用于半导体器件温度测量的显微红外热成像技术的原理及应用情况进行了总结。显微红外热成像技术基于普朗克黑体辐射定律,依靠测量被测件表面发出的红外辐射确定温度。在中红外波段下,该技术具备最高1. 9μm的空间分辨力,配合发射率修正技术,能够测量非黑体的微小半导体器件的真实温度。该技术具备稳态温度成像测量能力、连续毫秒级甚至微秒级的高时间分辨力成像测量能力和脉冲条件下器件温度测量能力。在各类半导体器件不同工作条件下的温度测量方面得到了广泛的应用。     

Two-color mid-infrared thermometer with a hollow glass optical fiber

We have developed a low-temperature optical-fiber-based two-color infrared thermometer. A single 700-mum-bore hollow glass optical fiber collects and transmits radiation that is then modulated and split into two paths by a reflective optical chopper. Two different thermoelectrically cooled mid-infrared HgCdZnTe photoconductors monitor the chopped signals that are recovered with lock-in amplification. With the two previously obtained blackbody calibration equations, a computer algorithm calculates the true temperature and emissivity of a target in real time, taking into account reflection of the ambient radiation field from the target surface. The small numerical aperture of the hollow glass fiber and the fast response of the detectors, together with the two-color principle, permit high spatial and temporal resolution while allowing the user to dynamically alter the fiber-to-target distance.     

Thermal camouflaging metamaterials

Thermal camouflage technologies, which aim at blending the infrared (IR) signature of targets into the background to counter the IR detection, have witnessed increasing development. To achieve thermal camouflage, the rule of thumb is to balance the thermal radiation between the target and the background, and the corresponding conductive strategy is to tune the local temperature field while the radiative strategy is to tune the local emissivity. Following these two basic strategies, the thermal metamaterials and wavelength-selective emissivity engineering to achieve thermal camouflage are first introduced. Then the more advanced dynamic strategies are reviewed that can adapt to the varying environment under the external stimuli, like electricity, light, strain, chemical, wetting, temperature, etc. Particularly the phase-changing and bioinspired materials are presented and reviewed. Finally, critical considerations on the challenges and opportunities of next-generation thermal camouflage technologies are elaborated and four future directions are cast, including temperature-responsive emissivity engineering, soft materials, multispectral camouflage, and detection-feedback system. Overall, a detailed introduction to the working principle, the state-of-the-art progress, and the critical thinking on the future development on thermal camouflage technologies are presented.     

Stoichiometric Engineering of Chalcogenide Semiconductor Alloys for Nanophotonic Applications

A variety of alternative plasmonic and dielectric material platforms—among them nitrides, semiconductors, and conductive oxides—have come to prominence in recent years as means to address the shortcomings of noble metals (including Joule losses, cost, and passive character) in certain nanophotonic and optical‐frequency metamaterial applications. Here, it is shown that chalcogenide semiconductor alloys offer a uniquely broad pallet of optical properties, complementary to those of existing material platforms, which can be controlled by stoichiometric design. Using combinatorial high‐throughput techniques, the extraordinary epsilon‐near‐zero, plasmonic, and low/high‐index characteristics of Bi:Sb:Te alloys are explored. Depending upon composition they can, for example, have plasmonic figures of merit higher than conductive oxides and nitrides across the entire UV–NIR range, and higher than gold below 550 nm; present dielectric figures of merit better than conductive oxides at near‐infrared telecommunications wavelengths; and exhibit record‐breaking refractive indices as low as 0.7 and as high as 11.5.     

Tunable metamaterial absorber based on resonant strontium titanate artificial atoms

Dynamic control of the absorption frequency and intensity of metamaterial absorbers has attracted considerable attention,and many kinds of tunable metamaterial absorbers have been proposed.Unfortunately,due to the integration of separate resonant unit and tunable unit,these designed metamaterial absorbers suffer from complex structure and low sensitivity.We numerically and experimentally demonstrate a tunable metamaterial absorber composed of artificial dielectric atoms as both resonant and tunable unit arrayed periodically in the background matrix on the metallic plate.Polarization insensitive and wide incident angle absorption band with simulated and experimental absorptivity of 99%and 96%at 9.65 GHz are achieved at room temperature.The absorption frequency can be gradually modulated by temperature,however,the absorption intensity at working frequency remains near unity.The dielectric atoms based tunable metamaterial absorbers with simple structure have potential applications as tempe rature sensors and frequency selective thermal emitters.     

Temperature Determination of Resonantly Excited Plasmonic Branched Gold Nanoparticles by X‐ray Absorption Spectroscopy

The fields of bioscience and nanomedicine demand precise thermometry for nanoparticle heat characterization down to the nanoscale regime. Since current methods often use indirect and less accurate techniques to determine the nanoparticle temperature, there is a pressing need for a direct and reliable element‐specific method. In‐situ extended X‐ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) spectroscopy is used to determine the thermo‐optical properties of plasmonic branched gold nanoparticles upon resonant laser illumination. With EXAFS, the direct determination of the nanoparticle temperature increase upon laser illumination is possible via the thermal influence on the gold lattice parameters. More specifically, using the change of the Debye–Waller term representing the lattice disorder, the temperature increase is selectively measured within the plasmonic branched nanoparticles upon resonant laser illumination. In addition, the signal intensity shows that the nanoparticle concentration in the beam more than doubles during laser illumination, thereby demonstrating that photothermal heating is a dynamic process. A comparable temperature increase is measured in the nanoparticle suspension using a thermocouple. This good correspondence between the temperature at the level of the nanoparticle and at the level of the suspension points to an efficient heat transfer between the nanoparticle and the surrounding medium, thus confirming the potential of branched gold nanoparticles for hyperthermia applications. This work demonstrates that X‐ray absorption spectroscopy‐based nanothermometry could be a valuable tool in the fast‐growing number of applications of plasmonic nanoparticles, particularly in life sciences and medicine.     

Broadband MoS2 Field‐Effect Phototransistors: Ultrasensitive Visible‐Light Photoresponse and Negative Infrared Photoresponse

Inverse photoresponse is discovered from phototransistors based on molybdenum disulfide (MoS₂). The devices are capable of detecting photons with energy below the bandgap of MoS₂. Under the illumination of near‐infrared (NIR) light at 980 and 1550 nm, negative photoresponses with short response time (50 ms) are observed for the first time. Upon visible‐light illumination, the phototransistors exhibit positive photoresponse with ultrahigh responsivity on the order of 10⁴–10⁵ A W^?1 owing to the photogating effect and charge trapping mechanism. Besides, the phototransistors can detect a weak visible‐light signal with effective optical power as low as 17 picowatts (pW). A thermally induced photoresponse mechanism, the bolometric effect, is proposed as the cause of the negative photocurrent in the NIR regime. The thermal energy of the NIR radiation is transferred to the MoS₂ crystal lattice, inducing lattice heating and resistance increase. This model is experimentally confirmed by low‐temperature electrical measurements. The bolometric coefficient calculated from the measured transport current change with temperature is ?33 nA K^?1. These findings offer a new approach to develop sub‐bandgap photodetectors and other novel optoelectronic devices based on 2D layered materials.     

Nanotransducers for Near‐Infrared Photoregulation in Biomedicine

Photoregulation, which utilizes light to remotely control biological events, provides a precise way to decipher biology and innovate in medicine; however, its potential is limited by the shallow tissue penetration and/or phototoxicity of ultraviolet (UV)/visible light that are required to match the optical responses of endogenous photosensitive substances. Thereby, biologically friendly near‐infrared (NIR) light with improved tissue penetration is desired for photoregulation. Since there are a few endogenous biomolecules absorbing or emitting light in the NIR region, the development of molecular transducers is essential to convert NIR light into the cues for regulation of biological events. In this regard, optical nanomaterials able to convert NIR light into UV/visible light, heat, or free radicals are suitable for this task. Here, the recent developments of optical nanotransducers for NIR‐light‐mediated photoregulation in medicine are summarized. The emerging applications, including photoregulation of neural activity, gene expression, and visual systems, as well as photochemical tissue bonding, are highlighted, along with the design principles of nanotransducers. Moreover, the current challenges and perspectives in this field are discussed.     

不同发射率下红外热图像的非稳态温度场测量研究

通过分析红外测温公式,研究物体发射率对红外热图像测温精度的影响,并找出影响物体发射率的因素。根据经典计算方法,发现了物体发射率在红外热图像测温应用中的局限。从红外热图像的角度对发射率的计算进行了建模,基于修正物体发射率得到提高红外热图像对非稳态温度场测量精度的模型。对铸铁、不锈钢进行了3组测温实验,红外热图像直接测量的最大误差分别为2.1℃、1.7℃、2.3℃,而所提出的方法测量的最大误差分别为1.0℃、0.7℃、1.6℃。通过对比分析3组测量结果数据验证了测量方法的可行性。     

Optoelectronic characteristics of single ZnAlO nanotetrapod

The ZnAlO nanotetrapods were prepared by a simple thermal evaporation method. The typical characteristics of I-V curves for one of our devices illustrated that both the green light and the UV light could induce the increasing of conductance, but the conductance under the UV light is much larger than that under the illumination of green light. With the increasing of temperature, the conductance of the sample is also increased. Furthermore, the change of current versus time as the UV light is switched on and off shows the sample has good switch characteristics. These findings illustrate the sample may be used in room temperature light sensors.     

Black Phosphorus/Platinum Heterostructure: A Highly Efficient Photocatalyst for Solar‐Driven Chemical Reactions

A 2D black phosphorus/platinum heterostructure (Pt/BP) is developed as a highly efficient photocatalyst for solar‐driven chemical reactions. The heterostructure, synthesized by depositing BP nanosheets with ultrasmall (≈1.1 nm) Pt nanoparticles, shows strong Pt–P interactions and excellent stability. The Pt/BP heterostructure exhibits obvious P‐type semiconducting characteristics and efficient absorption of solar energy extending into the infrared region. Furthermore, during light illumination, accelerated charge separation is observed from Pt/BP as manifested by the ultrafast electron migration (0.11 ps) detected by a femtosecond pump‐probe microscopic optical system as well as efficient electron accumulation on Pt revealed by in situ X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy. These unique properties result in remarkable performance of Pt/BP in typical hydrogenation and oxidation reactions under simulated solar light illumination, and its efficiency is much higher than that of other common Pt catalysts and even much superior to that of conventional thermal catalysis. The 2D Pt/BP heterostructure has enormous potential in photochemical reactions involving solar light and the results of this study provide insights into the design of next‐generation high‐efficiency photocatalysts.