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Updated: May 25, 2026
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Free-form Light Actuators — Fabrication and Control of Actuation in Microscopic Scale
Published on: May 25, 2016
Self-assembled flexible microlasers
Van Duong Ta1, Rui Chen, Han Dong Sun
1School of Physical and Mathematical Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore.
Advanced Materials (Deerfield Beach, Fla.)
|February 11, 2012
Summary
Flexible hemispherical microresonators were created using the hydrophobic effect. These microresonators exhibit whispering gallery mode lasing at room temperature, showing promise for photonic integrated circuits.
Area of Science:
- Optics and Photonics
- Materials Science
Background:
- Distributed Bragg reflectors (DBRs) are crucial optical components.
- Microresonators enable miniaturized photonic devices.
- Controlling microresonator size is key for tunable optical properties.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop tunable hemispherical microresonators.
- To investigate lasing properties of these microresonators.
- To assess their suitability for photonic integrated circuits.
Main Methods:
- Fabrication of hemispherical microresonators utilizing the hydrophobic effect on DBRs.
- Optical excitation of dye-doped microresonators.
- Observation of lasing phenomena at room temperature.
Main Results:
- Tunable-sized hemispherical microresonators were successfully fabricated.
- Whispering gallery mode lasing was observed in dye-doped microresonators.
- Room temperature lasing indicates efficient light confinement and gain.
Conclusions:
- The hydrophobic effect provides a viable method for creating tunable microresonators.
- The observed lasing demonstrates the functionality of these microresonators.
- Flexible microresonators hold potential for advanced photonic integrated circuits.
