Tailored semiconductors for high-harmonic optoelectronics

Murat Sivis1,2, Marco Taucer3, Giulio Vampa3

  • 1Joint Attosecond Science Laboratory, National Research Council of Canada and University of Ottawa, 100 Sussex Drive, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0R6, Canada. msivis@uni-goettingen.de.

Science (New York, N.Y.)
|July 22, 2017
PubMed
Summary

Researchers engineered solid-state materials to control high-harmonic generation, enabling tailored attosecond science applications. This breakthrough allows for precise control over light-matter interactions in customized solid targets.

Related Concept Videos

Semiconductors01:22

Semiconductors

There is variation in the electrical conductivity of materials - metals, semiconductors, and insulators that are showcased with the help of the energy band diagrams.
Metals such as copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), or lead (Pb) have low resistivity and feature conduction bands that are either not fully occupied or overlap with the valence band, making a bandgap non-existent. This allows electrons in the highest energy levels of the valence band to easily transition to the conduction band upon gaining...
1.7K
Types of Semiconductors01:20

Types of Semiconductors

Intrinsic semiconductors are highly pure materials with no impurities. At absolute zero, these semiconductors behave as perfect insulators because all the valence electrons are bound, and the conduction band is empty, disallowing electrical conduction. The Fermi level is a concept used to describe the probability of occupancy of energy levels by electrons at thermal equilibrium. In intrinsic semiconductors, the Fermi level is positioned at the midpoint of the energy gap at absolute zero. When...
1.6K
Biasing of Metal-Semiconductor Junctions01:27

Biasing of Metal-Semiconductor Junctions

Biasing metal-semiconductor junctions involves applying a voltage across the junction. Specifically, the metal is connected to a voltage source, while the semiconductor is grounded. This technique is essential for controlling the direction and magnitude of current flow in electronic devices, including diodes, transistors, and photovoltaic cells.
In Schottky junctions, where the semiconductor is n-type, applying a positive voltage to the metal relative to the semiconductor reduces its Fermi...
709