Microwatt volatile optical bistability via nanomechanical nonlinearity
Microwatt volatile optical bistability via nanomechanical nonlinearity
Metastable optically controlled devices (optical flip-flops) are needed in data storage, signal processing, and displays. Although nonvolatile memory relying on phase transitions in chalcogenide glasses has been widely used for optical data storage, beyond that, weak optical nonlinearities have hindered the development of low-power bistable devices. This work reports a new type of volatile optical bistability in a hybrid nano-optomechanical device, comprising a pair of anchored nanowires decorated with plasmonic metamolecules. The nonlinearity and bistability reside in the mechanical properties of the acoustically driven nanowires and are transduced to the optical response by reconfiguring the plasmonic metamolecules. The device can be switched between bistable optical states with microwatts of optical power and its volatile memory can be erased by removing the acoustic signal. The demonstration of hybrid nano-optomechanical bistability opens new opportunities to develop low-power optical bistable devices.
bistability, metamaterial, nanomechanics, nanowire, nonlinear mechanics, nonlinear optics, optomechanics, plasmonics, reconfigurable metamaterials, nanophotonics, metamaterials
Papas, Dimitrios
cff74106-c632-4f06-a2ff-55b204fab699
Ou, Jun-Yu
3fb703e3-b222-46d2-b4ee-75f296d9d64d
Plum, Eric
50761a26-2982-40df-9153-7aecc4226eb5
Zheludev, Nikolai
32fb6af7-97e4-4d11-bca6-805745e40cc6
23 June 2023
Papas, Dimitrios
cff74106-c632-4f06-a2ff-55b204fab699
Ou, Jun-Yu
3fb703e3-b222-46d2-b4ee-75f296d9d64d
Plum, Eric
50761a26-2982-40df-9153-7aecc4226eb5
Zheludev, Nikolai
32fb6af7-97e4-4d11-bca6-805745e40cc6
Papas, Dimitrios, Ou, Jun-Yu, Plum, Eric and Zheludev, Nikolai
(2023)
Microwatt volatile optical bistability via nanomechanical nonlinearity.
Advanced Science, 10 (18), [2300042].
(doi:10.1002/advs.202300042).
Abstract
Metastable optically controlled devices (optical flip-flops) are needed in data storage, signal processing, and displays. Although nonvolatile memory relying on phase transitions in chalcogenide glasses has been widely used for optical data storage, beyond that, weak optical nonlinearities have hindered the development of low-power bistable devices. This work reports a new type of volatile optical bistability in a hybrid nano-optomechanical device, comprising a pair of anchored nanowires decorated with plasmonic metamolecules. The nonlinearity and bistability reside in the mechanical properties of the acoustically driven nanowires and are transduced to the optical response by reconfiguring the plasmonic metamolecules. The device can be switched between bistable optical states with microwatts of optical power and its volatile memory can be erased by removing the acoustic signal. The demonstration of hybrid nano-optomechanical bistability opens new opportunities to develop low-power optical bistable devices.
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Bistability - Accepted Manuscript
- Accepted Manuscript
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Bistability - Accepted Supplementary Information
- Accepted Manuscript
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Advanced Science - 2023 - Papas - Microwatt Volatile Optical Bistability via Nanomechanical Nonlinearity
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More information
Accepted/In Press date: 14 April 2023
e-pub ahead of print date: 26 April 2023
Published date: 23 June 2023
Additional Information:
This work is supported by the UK's Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (grant EP/M009122/1) and Singapore Ministry of Education (grant MOE2016-T3-1-006 (S)).
For the purpose of open access, the author has applied a CC BY public copyright licence to any Author Accepted Manuscript version arising from this submission.
Keywords:
bistability, metamaterial, nanomechanics, nanowire, nonlinear mechanics, nonlinear optics, optomechanics, plasmonics, reconfigurable metamaterials, nanophotonics, metamaterials
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 476739
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/476739
ISSN: 2198-3844
PURE UUID: cb151847-facc-4036-bf87-b8ea779bfc38
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Date deposited: 12 May 2023 16:59
Last modified: 17 Mar 2024 03:25
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Author:
Dimitrios Papas
Author:
Jun-Yu Ou
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