Metallic quantum wells

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11002996-B2
Application number	US-201816156944-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 10, 2018
Priority date	Oct 10, 2017
Publication date	May 11, 2021
Grant date	May 11, 2021

Abstract

A metallic quantum well may be formed by interposing a layer of metallic well material two layers of barrier material. Two or more metallic quantum wells may be combined to form a coupled metallic quantum well. The absorption spectrum and the emission spectrum of the coupled metallic quantum well may be tuned by at least adjusting the dimensions of the individual metallic quantum wells and/or the materials forming the metallic quantum wells. The metallic quantum well and/or the coupled metallic quantum well may exhibit sufficient nonlinearity even at a miniaturized scale. As such, the metallic quantum well and/or coupled metallic quantum well may be used for a variety of on-chip applications including, for example, as part of an on-chip pulse limiter, an on-chip super-continuum generator, and/or the like.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus, comprising:
a first layer of metallic well material disposed between a first layer of barrier material and a second layer of barrier material, the metallic well material generating one or more nonlinear responses when exposed to a first light having a first frequency, and the one or more nonlinear responses includes a second light having a second frequency, wherein the first layer of metallic well material comprises a first metallic side and a second metallic side opposite the first metallic side, wherein the second layer of barrier material comprises a first barrier side and a second barrier side opposite the first barrier side, and wherein the first metallic side abuts the first layer of barrier material and the second metallic side abuts the first barrier side; and
a second layer of metallic well material disposed between the second layer of barrier material and a third layer of barrier material, wherein the second layer of metallic well material comprises a third metallic side and a fourth metallic side opposite the third metallic side, wherein the third metallic side abuts the second barrier side, and wherein the fourth metallic side abuts the third layer of barrier material;
wherein the first layer of metallic well material comprises a first metallic thickness;
wherein the second layer of metallic well material comprises a second metallic thickness;
wherein the first layer of barrier material comprises a first barrier thickness;
wherein the second layer of barrier material comprises a second barrier thickness;
wherein the third layer of barrier material comprises a third barrier thickness; and
wherein a total thickness of the first metallic thickness, the second metallic thickness, the first barrier thickness, the second barrier thickness, and the third barrier thickness is less than or equal to 10 nanometers.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:
tuning an absorption spectrum and/or an emission spectrum of the apparatus by at least adjusting the first metallic thickness and the second metallic thickness.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the first metallic thickness and the second metallic thickness are equal to or less than an exciton Bohr radius.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:
tuning an absorption spectrum and/or an emission spectrum of the apparatus by at least selecting a first material comprising the first layer of metallic well material to be the same as or different from a second material comprising the second layer of metallic well material.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the metallic well material includes a metal and/or a metal compound.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the metallic well material comprises a noble metal and/or a transition metal nitride.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the barrier material is associated with a wider bandgap than the metallic well material.

8. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the barrier material comprises a dielectric.

9. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the one or more nonlinear responses include a second order nonlinear response or a third order nonlinear response.

10. The apparatus of claim 9 , wherein the second frequency is twice or three times the first frequency.

11. The apparatus of claim 9 , wherein the first light is associated with the first frequency and a second frequency, and wherein the second frequency comprises a sum of the first frequency and the second frequency.

12. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:
a metasurface that is formed by at least disposing, on top of a surface of the apparatus, one or more plasmon nanostructures.

13. The apparatus of claim 12 , wherein the one or more plasmon nanostructures comprise one or more metallic structures.

14. The apparatus of claim 12 , wherein the one or more plasmon nanostructures comprise an array of monocrystalline silver (Ag) cubes.

15. The apparatus of 1 , wherein the metallic well material further generates one or more linear responses when exposed to the first light having the first frequency, and wherein the one or more linear responses include a third light having the first frequency.

16. A super-continuum generator, comprising:
a metallic quantum well formed by interposing a first layer of metallic well material between a first layer of barrier material and a second layer of the barrier material, wherein the first layer of metallic well material comprises a first metallic side and a second metallic side opposite the first metallic side, wherein the second layer of the barrier material comprises a first barrier side and a second barrier side opposite the first barrier side, and wherein the first metallic side abuts the first layer of barrier material and the second metallic side abuts the first barrier side, and
interposing a second layer of metallic well material between the second layer of the barrier material and a third layer of the barrier material, wherein the second layer of metallic well material comprises a third metallic side and a fourth metallic side opposite the third metallic side, wherein the third metallic side abuts the second barrier side, and wherein the fourth metallic side abuts the third layer of the barrier material, the metallic quantum well generating a nonlinear response when exposed to a first light, the first light being monochromatic, and the nonlinear response including a broadband of frequencies forming a super-continuum;
wherein the first layer of metallic well material comprises a first metallic thickness;
wherein the second layer of metallic well material comprises a second metallic thickness;
wherein the first layer of barrier material comprises a first barrier thickness;
wherein the second layer of barrier material comprises a second barrier thickness;
wherein the third layer of barrier material comprises a third barrier thickness; and
wherein a total thickness of the first metallic thickness, the second metallic thickness, the first barrier thickness, the second barrier thickness, and the third barrier thickness is less than or equal to 10 nanometers.

17. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the first layer of barrier material, the first layer of metallic well material, the second layer of barrier material, the second layer of metallic well material, and the third layer of barrier material are parallel with respect to one another.

18. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the second metallic thickness is different from the first metallic thickness.

19. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the first barrier thickness and the third barrier thickness are equal; wherein the second barrier thickness is less than the first barrier thickness and the third barrier thickness; and wherein the second barrier thickness is 0.5 nanometers.

20. A coupled metallic quantum well, comprising:
a first layer of metallic well material disposed between a first layer of barrier material and a second layer of barrier material, the metallic well material generating one or more nonlinear responses when exposed to a first light having a first frequency, and the one or more nonlinear responses includes a second light having a second frequency, wherein the first layer of metallic well material comprises a first metallic side and a second metallic side opposite the first metallic side, wherein the second layer of barrier material comprises a first barrier side and a second barrier side opposite the first barrier side, and wherein the first metallic side abuts the first layer of barr

Assignees

• Univ California

Inventors

• Liu Zhaowei
• Xiao Yuzhe
• Qian Haoliang

Classifications

• G02F1/3528

  for producing a supercontinuum · CPC title

• G02F1/01725 Primary

  Non-rectangular quantum well structures, e.g. graded or stepped quantum wells · CPC title

• G02F1/3556

  Semiconductor materials, e.g. quantum wells · CPC title

• G02F1/0157

  using electro-absorption effects, e.g. Franz-Keldysh [FK] effect or quantum confined stark effect [QCSE] · CPC title

• G02F1/353

  Frequency conversion, i.e. wherein a light beam is generated with frequency components different from those of the incident light beams · CPC title