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Zubin Jacob

Publications and source records attributed to Zubin Jacob.

124 records · Page 7Linked to original sources
arXiv2014

Singular evanescent wave resonances

Resonators fold the path of light by reflections leading to a phase balance and thus constructive addition of propagating waves. However, amplitude decrease of these waves due to incomplete reflection or material absorption leads to a finite quality factor of all resonances. Here we report on our discovery that evanescent waves can lead to a perfect phase and amplitude balance causing an ideal Fabry-Perot resonance condition in spite of material absorption and non-ideal reflectivities. This counterintuitive resonance occurs if and only if the metallic Fabry-Perot plates are in relative motion to each other separated by a critical distance. We show that the energy needed to approach the resonance arises from the conversion of the mechanical energy of motion to electromagnetic energy. The phenomenon is similar to lasing where the losses in the cavity resonance are exactly compensated by optical gain media instead of mechanical motion. Nonlinearities and non-localities in material response will inevitably curtail any singularities however we show the giant enhancement in non-equilibrium phenomena due to such resonances in moving media.

physics.optics↗
arXiv2014

Strong Coupling in Hyperbolic Metamaterials

Nanoscale light-matter interaction in the weak-coupling regime has been achieved with unique hyperbolic metamaterial modes possessing a high density of states. Here, we show strong coupling between intersubband transitions (ISBTs) of a multiple quantum well (MQW) slab and the bulk polariton modes of a hyperbolic metamaterial (HMM). These HMM modes have large wave vectors (high-k modes) and are normally evanescent in conventional materials. We analyze a metal-dielectric practical multilayer HMM structure consisting of a highly doped semiconductor acting as a metallic layer and an active multiple quantum well dielectric slab. We observe delocalized metamaterial mode interaction with the active materials distributed throughout the structure. Strong coupling and characteristic anticrossing with a maximum Rabi splitting (RS) energy of up to 52 meV is predicted between the high-k mode of the HMMand the ISBT, a value approximately 10.5 times greater than the ISBT linewidth and 4.5 times greater than the material loss of the structure. The scalability and tunability of the RS energy in an active semiconductor metamaterial device have potential applications in quantum well infrared photodetectors and intersubband light-emitting devices.

physics.optics↗
arXiv2014

Fluctuational electrodynamics of hyperbolic metamaterials

We give a detailed account of equilibrium and non-equilibrium fluctuational electrodynamics of hyperbolic metamaterials. We show the unifying aspects of two different approaches; one utilizes the second kind of fluctuation dissipation theorem and the other makes use of the scattering method. We analyze the near-field of hyperbolic media at finite temperatures and show that the lack of spatial coherence can be attributed to the multi-modal nature of super-Planckian thermal emission. We also adopt the analysis to phonon-polaritonic super-lattice metamaterials and describe the regimes suitable for experimental verification of our predicted effects. The results reveal that far-field thermal emission spectra are dominated by epsilon-near-zero and epsilon-near-pole responses as expected from Kirchoff's laws. Our work should aid both theorists and experimentalists to study complex media and engineer equilibrium and non-equilibrium fluctuations for applications in thermal photonics.

physics.optics↗
arXiv2014

Directional out-coupling from active hyperbolic metamaterials

Hyperbolic Metamaterials (HMMs) have recently garnered much attention because they possess the ability for broadband manipulation of the photon density of states and sub-wavelength light confinement. However, a major difficulty arises with the coupling of light out of HMMs due to strong confinement of the electromagnetic field in states with high momentum called high-k modes which become evanescent outside the structure. Here we report the first demonstration of directional out-coupling of light from high-k modes in an active HMM using a high index bulls-eye grating. Quantum dots (QDs) embedded underneath the metamaterial show highly directional emission through the propagation and out-coupling of resonance cones which are a unique feature of hyperbolic media. This demonstration of efficient out-coupling of light from active HMMs could pave the way for developing practical photonic devices using these systems.

physics.optics↗
arXiv2014

Hyperbolic metamaterials: fundamentals and applications

Metamaterials are nano-engineered media with designed properties beyond those available in nature with applications in all aspects of materials science. In particular, metamaterials have shown promise for next generation of optical materials with electromagnetic responses that cannot be obtained from conventional media. We review the fundamental properties of metamaterials with hyperbolic dispersion and present the various applications where such media offer potential for transformative impact. These artificial materials support unique bulk electromagnetic states which can tailor light-matter interaction at the nanoscale. We present a unified view of current research in the field of hyperbolic metamaterials such as sub-wavelength imaging and broadband photonic density of states engineering. The review introduces the concepts central to the theory of hyperbolic media as well as nanofabrication and characterization details essential to experimentalists. Finally, we outline the challenges in the area and offer a set of directions for future work.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗
arXiv2013

Thermal Hyperbolic Metamaterials

We explore the near-field radiative thermal energy transfer properties of hyperbolic metamaterials. The presence of unique electromagnetic states in a broad bandwidth leads to super-planckian thermal energy transfer between metamaterials separated by a nano-gap. We consider practical phonon-polaritonic metamaterials for thermal engineering in the mid-infrared range and show that the effect exists in spite of the losses, absorption and finite unit cell size. For thermophotovoltaic energy conversion applications requiring energy transfer in the near-infrared range we introduce high temperature hyperbolic metamaterials based on plasmonic materials with a high melting point. Our work paves the way for practical high temperature radiative thermal energy transfer applications of hyperbolic metamaterials.

physics.optics↗
arXiv2013

High temperature plasmonics: Narrowband, tunable, near-field thermal sources

We propose multiple approaches for controlling Wien's displacement law in the near-field leading to narrowband, tunable, spatially-coherent high temperature thermal sources. We show that narrowband super-planckian thermal emission relevant to the wavelength ranges for near-field thermophotovoltaics can be achieved by utilizing engineered plasmonic states of metals with a high melting point. Along with conventional thin film surface plasmon polaritons of high temperature plasmonic metals, we also introduce multiple different approaches to narrowband near field thermal emission a) epsilon-near-zero metamaterials b) tunable surface-plasmon-polaritons of anisotropic metamaterials and c) photonic van hove singularities. Our work solves the critical issue of a narrowband thermal source for near-field thermophotovoltaics.

physics.optics↗
arXiv2013

Enhanced and directional single photon emission in hyperbolic metamaterials

We propose an approach to enhance and direct the spontaneous emission from isolated emitters embedded inside hyperbolic metamaterials into single photon beams. The approach rests on collective plasmonic Bloch modes of hyperbolic metamaterials which propagate in highly directional beams called quantum resonance cones. We propose a pumping scheme using the transparency window of the hyperbolic metamaterial that occurs near the topological transition. Finally, we address the challenge of outcoupling these broadband resonance cones into vacuum using a dielectric bullseye grating. We give a detailed analysis of quenching and design the metamaterial to have a huge Purcell factor in a broad bandwidth inspite of the losses in the metal. Our work should help motivate experiments in the development of single photon sources for broadband emitters such as nitrogen vacancy centers in diamond.

physics.optics↗
arXiv2012

High temperature epsilon-near-zero and epsilon-near-pole metamaterial emitters for thermophotovoltaics

We propose a method for engineering thermally excited far field electromagnetic radiation using epsilon-near-zero metamaterials and introduce a new class of artificial media: epsilon-near-pole metamaterials. We also introduce the concept of high temperature plasmonics as conventional metamaterial building blocks have relatively poor thermal stability. Using our approach, the angular nature, spectral position, and width of the thermal emission and optical absorption can be finely tuned for a variety of applications. In particular, we show that these metamaterial emitters near 1500 K can be used as part of thermophotovoltaic devices to surpass the full concentration Shockley-Queisser limit of 41%. Our work paves the way for high temperature thermal engineering applications of metamaterials.

physics.optics↗
arXiv2012

Applications of hyperbolic metamaterial substrates

We review the properties of hyperbolic metamaterials and show that they are promising candidates as substrates for nano-imaging, nano-sensing, fluorescence engineering and for controlling thermal emission. Hyperbolic metamaterials can support unique bulk modes, tunable surface plasmon polaritons as well as surface hyperbolic states (Dyakonov plasmons) that can be used for a variety of applications. We compare the effective medium predictions with practical realizations of hyperbolic metamaterials to show their potential for radiative decay engineering, bio-imaging, sub-surface sensing, meta-plasmonics and super-Planckian thermal emission.

physics.optics↗
arXiv2012

Broadband super-Planckian thermal emission from hyperbolic metamaterials

We develop the fluctuational electrodynamics of metamaterials with hyperbolic dispersion and show the existence of broadband thermal emission beyond the black body limit in the near field. This arises due to the thermal excitation of unique bulk metamaterial modes, which do not occur in conventional media. We consider a practical realization of the hyperbolic metamaterial and estimate that the effect will be observable using the characteristic dispersion (topological transitions) of the metamaterial states. Our work paves the way for engineering the near-field thermal emission using metamaterials.

physics.optics↗
arXiv2011

Broadband Purcell effect: Radiative decay engineering with metamaterials

Engineering the photonic density of states (PDOS) using resonant microcavities or periodic dielectric media gives control over a plethora of classical and quantum phenomena associated with light. Here, we show that nanostructured metamaterials with hyperbolic dispersion, possess a broad bandwidth singularity in the PDOS, an effect not present in any other photonic system, which allows remarkable control over light-matter interactions. A spectacular manifestation of this non-resonant PDOS alteration is the broadband Purcell effect, an enhancement in the spontaneous emission of a light source, which ultimately leads to a device that can efficiently harness a single photon from an isolated emitter. Our approach differs from conventional resonant Purcell effect routes to single photon sources with a limitation in bandwidth, which places restrictions on the probable use of such methods for practical device applications, especially at room temperature. The proposed metadevice, useful for applications from quantum communications to biosensing also opens up the possibility of using metamaterials to probe the quantum electrodynamic properties of atoms and artificial atoms such as quantum dots.

physics.optics↗
arXiv2011

Topological Transitions in Metamaterials

The ideas of mathematical topology play an important role in many aspects of modern physics - from phase transitions to field theory to nonlinear dynamics (Nakahara M (2003) in Geometry, Topology and Physics, ed Brewer DF (IOP Publishing Ltd, Bristol and Philadelphia), Monastryskiy M (1987) in Riemann Topology and Physics, (Birkhauser Verlag AG)). An important example of this is the Lifshitz transition (Lifshitz IM (1960) Anomalies of electron characteristics of a metal in the high-pressure region, Sov Phys JETP 11: 1130-1135), where the transformation of the Fermi surface of a metal from a closed to an open geometry (due to e.g. external pressure) leads to a dramatic effect on the electron magneto-transport (Kosevich AM (2004) Topology and solid-state physics. Low Temp Phys 30: 97-118). Here, we present the optical equivalent of the Lifshitz transition in strongly anisotropic metamaterials. When one of the components of the dielectric permittivity tensor of such a composite changes sign, the corresponding iso-frequency surface transforms from an ellipsoid to a hyperboloid. Since the photonic density of states can be related to the volume enclosed by the iso-frequency surface, such a topological transition in a metamaterial leads to a dramatic change in the photonic density of states, with a resulting effect on every single physical parameter related to the metamaterial - from thermodynamic quantities such as its equilibrium electromagnetic energy to the nonlinear optical response to quantum-electrodynamic effects such as spontaneous emission. In the present paper, we demonstrate the modification of spontaneous light emission from quantum dots placed near the surface of the metamaterial undergoing the topological Lifshitz transition, and present the theoretical description of the effect.

physics.optics↗
arXiv2008

Solutions in folded geometries, and associated cloaking due to anomalous resonance

Solutions for the fields in a coated cylinder where the core radius is bigger than the shell radius are seemingly unphysical, but can be given a physical meaning if one transforms to an equivalent problem by unfolding the geometry. In particular the unfolded material can act as an impedance matched hyperlens, and as the loss in the lens goes to zero finite collections of polarizable line dipoles lying within a critical region surrounding the hyperlens are shown to be cloaked having vanishingly small dipole moments. This cloaking, which occurs both in the folded geometry and the equivalent unfolded one, is due to anomalous resonance, where the collection of dipoles generates an anomalously resonant field, which acts back on the dipoles to essentially cancel the external fields acting on them.

physics.optics↗
arXiv2006

Optical Hyperlens: Far-field imaging beyond the diffraction limit

We propose an approach to far-field optical imaging beyond the diffraction limit. The proposed system allows image magnification, is robust with respect to material losses and can be fabricated by adapting existing metamaterial technologies in a cylindrical geometry.

physics.optics↗