arXiv subjects

Felix G. Kaps

Publications and source records attributed to Felix G. Kaps.

6 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Ultra-high THz-field-confinement at LaAlO3 twin walls

The control and steering of light at nanometre length scales is crucial for the development of both fundamental science and nanophotonic technologies. Recent advancements have been achieved by exploiting various crystalline anisotropies, allowing for subdiffractional and diffraction-less canalisation of energy. These studies in particular benefit from stacking and twisting of 2D materials, whereas corresponding capabilities of anisotropic bulk crystals are rather unexplored. In this work, we show that ferroelastic twin walls - crystallographically perfect 2D-sheets that separate regions of differently oriented domains - in the distorted perovskite LaAlO3 provide a natural platform for broadband lateral confinement and superb canalisation of light at the nanoscale. Without fabrication processes, the electromagnetic fields localised at such walls exhibit lateral optical sizes up to 260 times smaller than the free-space wavelength. Depending on the adjacent domain orientation and frequency, the twin wall pattern preferentially concentrates or repels the electromagnetic energy, constituting a natural building block towards broadband MIR and THz nanophotonics for polaritonic circuitry.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2026

Tailoring phonon-driven responses in α-MoO3 through isotopic enrichment

The implementation of polaritonic materials into nanoscale devices requires selective tuning of parameters to realize desired spectral or thermal responses. One robust material is α-MoO3, which as an orthorhombic crystal boasts three distinct phonon dispersions, providing three polaritonic dispersions of hyperbolic phonon polaritons (HPhPs) across the mid-infrared (MIR). Here, the tunability of both optical and thermal responses in isotopically enriched α-MoO3 (98MoO3, Mo18O3 and 98Mo18O3) are explored. A uniform ~5 % spectral redshift from 18O enrichment is observed in both Raman- and IR-active TO phonons. Both the in- and out-of-plane thermal conductivities for the isotopic variations are reported. Ab initio calculations both replicate experimental findings and analyze the select-mode three-phonon scattering contributions. The HPhPs from each isotopic variation are probed with s-SNOM and their Q- factors are reported. A Q-factor maxima increase of ~50 % along the [100] in the RB2 and ~100 % along the [001] in the RB3 are reported for HPhPs supported in 98Mo18O3. Observations in both real and Fourier space of higher-order HPhP modes propagating in single slabs of isotopically enriched α-MoO3 without the use of a subdiffractional surface scatterer are presented here. This work illustrates the tunability of α-MoO3 for thermal and nanophotonic applications.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2025

Spectral tuning of hyperbolic shear polaritons in monoclinic gallium oxide via isotopic substitution

Hyperbolic phonon polaritons - hybridized modes arising from the ultrastrong coupling of infrared light to strongly anisotropic lattice vibrations in uniaxial or biaxial polar crystals - enable to confine light to the nanoscale with low losses and high directionality. In even lower symmetry materials, such as monoclinic $β$-Ga$_2$O$_3$ (bGO), hyperbolic shear polaritons (HShPs) further enhance the directionality. Yet, HShPs are intrinsically supported only within narrow frequency ranges defined by the phonon frequencies of the host material. Here, we report spectral tuning of HShPs in bGO by isotopic substitution. Employing near-field optical microscopy to image HShPs in $^{18}$O bGO films homo-epitaxially grown on a $^{16}$O bGO substrate, we demonstrate a spectral redshift of $\sim~40~$cm$^{-1}$ for the $^{18}$O bGO, compared to $^{16}$O bGO. The technique allows for direct observation and a model-free estimation of the spectral shift driven by isotopic substitution without the need for knowledge of the dielectric tensor. Complementary far-field measurements and ab initio calculations - in good agreement with the near-field data - confirm the effectiveness of this estimation. This multifaceted study demonstrates a significant isotopic substitution induced spectral tuning of HShPs into a previously inaccessible frequency range, creating new avenues for technological applications of such highly directional polaritons.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2024

Hot electron dynamics in a semiconductor nanowire under intense THz excitation

We report THz-pump / mid-infrared probe near-field studies on Si-doped GaAs-InGaAs core-shell nanowires utilizing THz radiation from the free-electron laser FELBE. Upon THz excitation of free carriers, we observe a red shift of the plasma resonance in both amplitude and phase spectra, which we attribute to the heating up of electrons in the conduction band. The simulation of heated electron distributions anticipates a significant electron population in both L- and X-valleys. The two-temperature model is utilized for a quantitative analysis of the dynamics of the electron gas temperature under THz pumping at various power levels.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2023

Polarization sensitivity in scattering-type scanning near-field optical microscopy -- towards nanoellipsometry

Electric field enhancement mediated through sharp tips in scattering-type scanning near-field optical microscopy (s-SNOM) enables optical material analysis down to the 10-nm length scale, and even below. Nevertheless, mostly the out-of-plane electric field component is considered here due to the lightning rod effect of the elongated s-SNOM tip being orders of magnitude stronger as compared to any in-plane field component. Nonetheless, the fundamental understanding of resonantly excited near-field coupled systems clearly allows us to take profit from all vectorial components, especially also from the in-plane ones. In this paper, we theoretically and experimentally explore how linear polarization control of both near-field illumination and detection, can constructively be implemented to (non-)resonantly couple to selected sample permittivity tensor components, e.g. explicitly also to the in-plane directions. When applying the point-dipole model, we show that resonantly excited samples respond with a strong near-field signal, to all linear polarization angles. We then experimentally investigate the polarization-dependent responses for both non-resonant (Au) and phonon-resonant (3C-SiC) sample excitations at a 10.6~$μ$m and 10.7~$μ$m incident wavelength using a tabletop CO$_2$ laser. Varying the illumination polarization angle thus allows for quantitatively comparing the scattered near-field signatures for the two wavelengths. Finally, we compare our experimental data to simulation results, and thus gain the fundamental understanding of the polarization's influence on the near-field interaction. As a result, the near-field components parallel and perpendicular to the sample surface can be easily disentangled and quantified through their polarization signatures, connecting them directly to the sample's local permittivity.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2023

Terahertz Twistoptics -- engineering canalized phonon polaritons

The terahertz (THz) frequency range is key to study collective excitations in many crystals and organic molecules. However, due to the large wavelength of THz radiation, the local probing of these excitations in smaller crystalline structures or few-molecular arrangements, requires sophisticated methods to confine THz light down to the nanometer length scale, as well as to manipulate such a confined radiation. For this purpose, in recent years, taking advantage of hyperbolic phonon polaritons (HPhP) in highly anisotropic van der Waals (vdW) materials has emerged as a promising approach, offering a multitude of manipulation options such as control over the wavefront shape and propagation direction. Here, we demonstrate the first THz application of twist-angle-induced HPhP manipulation, designing the propagation of confined THz radiation between 8.39 and 8.98 THz in the vdW material alpha-molybdenum trioxide ($α-MoO_{3}$), hence extending twistoptics to this intriguing frequency range. Our images, recorded by near-field optical microscopy, show the frequency- and twist-angle-dependent change between hyperbolic and elliptic polariton propagation, revealing a polaritonic transition at THz frequencies. As a result, we are able to allocate canalization (highly collimated propagation) of confined THz radiation by carefully adjusting these two parameters, i.e. frequency and twist angle. Specifically, we report polariton canalization in $α-MoO_{3}$ at 8.67 THz for a twist angle of 50°. Our results demonstrate an unprecedented control and the manipulation of highly-confined collective excitations at THz frequencies, offering novel possibilities for nanophotonic applications.

physics.optics↗