Materials World Network: Novel Material Platforms with Reduced Dimensionality for Next Generation Ferroelectric Photonics

材料世界网络：用于下一代铁电光子学的降维新型材料平台

• 批准号: 1008075
• 负责人: Volkmar Dierolf
• 金额: $ 33.45万
• 依托单位: Lehigh University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2010
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2010-07-01 至 2015-06-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1008075&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Materials; World; Network; Novel; Material

NON-TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION: Ferroelectric materials are found in countless, widespread applications, e.g.: as barcode readers in grocery checkouts and as the devices that make today's Internet possible. Many of these applications exploit the ability to reduce the size of the relevant device features to micron dimensions and to tailor properties of the material by properly arranging ferroelectric domains. However, existing devices are based on bulk crystals or wafers with thicknesses of 0.5 mm or more. This limits the ability to produce devices that are more compact in size or are easily tunable in their function. This work aims at developing the materials foundations for new platforms with reduced dimensionality to overcome these limitations. The PI of this Materials World Network grant collaborates with two groups in Germany (Prof. Karsten Buse, University of Bonn and Prof. Detlef Kip, Helmut Schmidt University Hamburg) which are supported by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation). Through this international program, undergraduate, graduate and post-doctoral scholars acquire a unique perspective in interacting globally through travel exchanges and workshops involving all participating organizations. Undergraduate research and exchange is a strong element of this collaboration involving Lehigh's undergraduate students and targeting especially underrepresented students. The team also contributes to the Lehigh Science Outreach program by organizing annual outreach workshops for high school studentsTECHNICAL DETAILS: The project focuses on the development of two novel material platforms: (1) The lithium-niobate-on-insulator platform (LNOI) utilizing 3 inch wafer-sized crystal slices and photonic wires with optical confinement below 1 micron. (2) Single domain nanocrystals in sizes between 10-100 nm. The multifaceted approach of the team spans from solving basic science questions about the changes in bulk properties due to the reduced dimensionality and the increased role of surfaces and interfaces, to the development of specially adapted methods for domain patterning and the alignment of ferroelectric nanoparticles, to the demonstration of devices such as a cw-THz source and other nonlinear frequency converters. The team exploits its expertise in the fabrication of wafer-scale lithium-niobate-on-silicon-oxide as well as in preparation of mono-disperse lithium niobate nanocrystals and will utilize surface sensitive characterization methods such as near-field UV-Raman spectroscopy, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy and low energy ion scattering. The possibility of manipulating the orientation of nanocrystals will be studied in a novel optical tweezers instrument, which allows 3D control of light polarization and in situ Raman characterization.

非技术描述：铁电材料有着无数广泛的应用，例如：作为杂货店收银台中的条形码阅读器以及作为使当今互联网成为可能的设备。许多这些应用都利用了将相关器件特征的尺寸减小到微米尺寸的能力，并通过正确排列铁电域来定制材料的特性。然而，现有器件基于厚度为 0.5 毫米或以上的块状晶体或晶圆。这限制了生产尺寸更紧凑或功能更容易调整的设备的能力。这项工作旨在开发降维新平台的材料基础，以克服这些限制。该材料世界网络资助的 PI 与德国的两个小组（波恩大学的 Karsten Buse 教授和汉堡赫尔穆特·施密特大学的 Detlef Kip 教授）合作，这两个小组得到了 Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft（DFG，德国研究基金会）的支持。通过这个国际项目，本科生、研究生和博士后学者通过所有参与组织的旅行交流和研讨会获得了全球互动的独特视角。本科生研究和交流是此次合作的重要组成部分，该合作涉及理海大学的本科生，特别针对代表性不足的学生。该团队还为高中生举办年度外展研讨会，为理海大学科学外展计划做出贡献。技术细节：该项目重点开发两个新型材料平台：(1) 绝缘体上铌酸锂平台 (LNOI)，采用 3 英寸晶圆大小的晶体切片和光学限制在 1 微米以下的光子线。 (2)尺寸在10-100 nm之间的单域纳米晶体。该团队的多方面方法涵盖从解决由于维度降低和表面和界面作用增加而导致的体特性变化的基础科学问题，到开发用于域图案化和铁电纳米颗粒排列的专门方法，再到演示连续波太赫兹源和其他非线性频率转换器等设备。该团队利用其在晶圆级氧化硅上铌酸锂制造以及单分散铌酸锂纳米晶体制备方面的专业知识，并将利用表面敏感表征方法，例如近场紫外拉曼光谱、高分辨率透射电子显微镜和低能离子散射。我们将在新型光镊仪器中研究操纵纳米晶体方向的可能性，该仪器可以对光偏振进行 3D 控制并进行原位拉曼表征。