CAREER: Photonic Integration of Silicon Nanoelectromechanical Systems

职业：硅纳米机电系统的光子集成本研究的目标是硅纳米机电系统的光子集成。该方法是利用纳米机电系统作为可移动光波导，将其纳米级运动转化为光信号。在这种方法中，光将在这些可移动的纳米机械波导器件中传播；利用光弹性效应和几何效应将器件运动转化为光调制。智力优势：该项目代表了光子集成和纳米机电系统鲁棒运行的新方法。从科学的角度来看，这项研究将在纳米尺度上揭示硅中电磁场和弹性场的相互作用。为此，将进行严谨的建模和实验工作。从技术的角度来看，纳米机电系统的光学集成将创造一套全新的纳米器件，纳米光电机械系统，能够通过强大的片上传感器进行超快速和超灵敏的操作。这项研究对社会的广泛影响有几个不同的方面。这里开发的纳米器件有望在生物医学传感、光机械信号处理和基础计量学中找到大量应用。本研究研究的基础和技术问题可能对新兴的硅纳米光子学领域具有重要意义。这些外展活动将以拥有大量少数族裔和高危学生的公立学校为目标，重点是纳米技术和机器人教育，以丰富他们的教育经验。面向研究生和本科生的课程开发将导致纳米技术研究方法和成果的传播。

CAREER: PHOTONIC INTEGRATION OF SILICON NANOELECTROMECHANICAL SYSTEMS (NEMS)The objective of this research is the photonic integration of silicon nanoelectromechanical systems. The approach is to transduce the nanoscale motion of these nanoelectromechanical systems into optical signals by using them as movable optical waveguides. In this approach, light will travel inside these movable nanomechanical waveguide devices; photoelastic effect along with geometrical effects will be harvested to convert device motion into optical modulations. Intellectual merit:This project represents a novel approach towards the photonic integration and robust operation of nanoelectromechanical systems. From a scientific point of view, the proposed research will shed light upon the interaction of electromagnetic and elastic fields in silicon at the nanoscale. To this end, rigorous modeling and experimental work will be carried out. From a technological point of view, optical integration of nanoelectromechanical systems will create a whole new set of nanodevices, nano-opto-electro-mechanical systems, capable of ultrafast and ultrasensitive operation with robust, on-chip transducers. The broader impacts of this research to society have several different facets. The nanodevices developed here are expected to find a host of applications in biomedical sensing, optomechanical signal processing, and fundamental metrology. The fundamental and technological issues studied in this research may be of importance for the burgeoning field of silicon nanophotonics. The outreach activities will target public schools with large minority and at-risk student populations and focus on nanotechnology and robotics education in order to enrich their educational experience. Curriculum development for graduate and undergraduate students will result in the dissemination of nanotechnology research methods and findings.