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Third harmonic generation from the gold/amorphous silicon hybrid metasurface
Yang Li1,2, Guanqing Zhang2, Yutao Tang2
1School of Biomedical Engineering, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, China.
Nanophotonics (Berlin, Germany)
|December 16, 2024
Summary
Researchers developed a hybrid metal-silicon metasurface to boost third harmonic generation (THG) signals from amorphous silicon (α-Si) by 370 times. This advancement offers potential for advanced silicon photonic devices compatible with CMOS technology.
Area of Science:
- Photonics
- Materials Science
- Nanotechnology
Background:
- Silicon's nonlinear optical properties are crucial for all-optical switches and modulators.
- All-dielectric silicon photonic crystals offer high nonlinearity but lack CMOS compatibility.
- Existing silicon photonic devices face challenges in practical application due to fabrication and integration issues.
Purpose of the Study:
- To propose a novel metal-silicon hybrid metasurface for enhanced third harmonic generation (THG).
- To investigate the integration of amorphous silicon (α-Si) within a gold plasmonic nanocavity for improved nonlinear optical performance.
- To overcome the limitations of all-dielectric devices by leveraging CMOS-compatible materials and structures.
Main Methods:
- Fabrication of a metal-silicon hybrid metasurface comprising a gold plasmonic nanocavity and an amorphous silicon (α-Si) film.
- Integration of the α-Si film within the gold nanocavity to enhance light-matter interaction.
- Tuning the periods of gold meta-atoms to optimize the plasmonic resonance and THG efficiency.
- Experimental measurement and comparison of THG signals from the hybrid metasurface versus a planar α-Si film.
Main Results:
- Achieved a significant enhancement in third harmonic generation (THG) signal by a factor of approximately 370 compared to a planar α-Si film.
- Demonstrated the effectiveness of the metal-silicon hybrid metasurface in boosting nonlinear optical properties.
- Confirmed the strong light confinement and field enhancement within the gold plasmonic nanocavity interacting with the α-Si film.
Conclusions:
- The proposed metal-silicon hybrid metasurface effectively generates strong third harmonic signals from amorphous silicon.
- This approach offers a promising route for developing highly nonlinear silicon photonic devices with enhanced performance.
- The demonstrated technology holds potential for practical applications in all-optical switching and modulation, compatible with mature CMOS technology.
