Collaborative Research: Active Plasmonics for Mid-Infrared Sensing

“该奖项是根据2009年美国复苏和再投资法案（公法111-5）资助的。“目的：该计划将展示基于半导体的调谐机制，用于中红外（中红外）等离子体结构的主动控制，以及这些机制与基于表面等离子体的传感应用设备的集成。这包括：1）开发基于等离子体的调谐机制，以控制具有中红外光学共振的等离子体结构的光谱特性; 2）研究平面等离子体表面上材料的增强中红外吸收;以及3）将可调谐等离子体材料集成到原型中红外传感系统中。等离子体激元领域对于显示技术、感测和光学互连中的应用（仅举几例）具有重要的当前兴趣。等离子体激元学的绝大多数研究都在可见光/近红外或太赫兹波长范围内，并且集中在无源器件上。然而，中红外是传感应用的技术重要波长范围，并且提供了将等离子体器件与传统半导体材料集成的可能性。这项研究具有变革性，因为它将1）推进对中红外表面等离子体增强吸收的理解，2）导致具有宽调谐范围的主动可调谐等离子体材料，3）展示用于光学传感应用的新型紧凑系统。有源等离子体激元器件的发展将导致新的紧凑型传感器系统，具有环境，医疗和工业传感应用。此外，拟议的工作包含一个重要的教育和推广组成部分，这将导致基于实验室的研究机会，本科生在马萨诸塞州洛厄尔和康涅狄格学院，以及K-12学生在洛厄尔公立学校系统。

"This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5)."Objective: This program will demonstrate semiconductor-based tuning mechanisms for active control of mid-infrared (mid-IR) plasmonic structures and the integration of these mechanisms with surface-plasmon based devices for sensing applications. This includes 1) development of semiconductor-based tuning mechanisms to control the spectral properties of plasmonic structures with optical resonances in the mid-infrared, 2) investigation of the enhanced mid-IR absorption of materials on planar plasmonic surfaces and finally 3) integration of tunable plasmonic materials into prototype mid-IR sensing systems.Intellectual Merit: The field of plasmonics is of significant current interest for applications in display technology, sensing, and optical interconnects, to name only a few. The vast majority of the research in plasmonics has been in the visible/near-IR or terahertz wavelength ranges, and has focused on passive devices. The mid-infrared, however, is a technologically important wavelength range for sensing applications, and offers the possibility of integrating plasmonic devices with traditional semiconductor materials. The proposed research is transformative in nature as it will 1) advance the understanding of surface-plasmon enhanced absorption in the mid-IR, 2) lead to actively tunable plasmonic materials with broad tuning ranges, and 3) demonstrate novel compact systems for optical sensing applications.Broader Impacts: The development of active plasmonic devices will lead to new compact sensor systems, with environmental, medical, and industrial sensing applications. In addition, the proposed work contains a significant education and outreach component, which will lead to laboratory-based research opportunities for undergraduates at UMass Lowell and Connecticut College, as well as K-12 students in the Lowell public school system.