Phonon-polaritonics: enabling powerful capabilities for infrared photonics

Here, we review the progress and most recent advances in phonon-polaritonics, an emerging and growing field that has brought about a range of powerful possibilities for mid- to far-infrared (IR) light. These extraordinary capabilities are enabled by the resonant coupling between the impinging light...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Nanophotonics (Berlin, Germany) Germany), 2019-10, Vol.8 (12), p.2129-2175
Main Authors: Foteinopoulou, Stavroula, Devarapu, Ganga Chinna Rao, Subramania, Ganapathi S., Krishna, Sanjay, Wasserman, Daniel
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Diagnostic systems
ENGINEERING
infrared light
Infrared radiation
Light diffraction
Magnetism
Metamaterials
Optical properties
phonon-polaritons
Phonons
photonic crystals
Photonics
plasmonics
Polaritons
superabsorbers
Surface waves
Thermal emission
Thermal imaging
Thermal management
THz gap
Two dimensional materials
Wave diffraction
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Summary:Here, we review the progress and most recent advances in phonon-polaritonics, an emerging and growing field that has brought about a range of powerful possibilities for mid- to far-infrared (IR) light. These extraordinary capabilities are enabled by the resonant coupling between the impinging light and the vibrations of the material lattice, known as phonon-polaritons (PhPs). These PhPs yield a characteristic optical response in certain materials, occurring within an IR spectral window known as the reststrahlen band. In particular, these materials transition in the reststrahlen band from a high-refractive-index behavior, to a near-perfect metal behavior, to a plasmonic behavior – typical of metals at optical frequencies. When anisotropic they may also possess unconventional photonic constitutive properties thought of as possible only with metamaterials. The recent surge in two-dimensional (2D) material research has also enabled PhP responses with atomically-thin materials. Such vast and extraordinary photonic responses can be utilized for a plethora of unusual effects for IR light. Examples include sub-diffraction surface wave guiding, artificial magnetism, exotic photonic dispersions, thermal emission enhancement, perfect absorption and enhanced near-field heat transfer. Finally, we discuss the tremendous potential impact of these IR functionalities for the advancement of IR sources and sensors, as well as for thermal management and THz-diagnostic imaging.
ISSN:2192-8606
2192-8614
2192-8614
DOI:10.1515/nanoph-2019-0232