EAGER: Collaborative Proposal: Novel Approaches for Generating and Controlling Light in the Optical No-Man's Land of the Far-IR

摘要标题：在远红外光学无人区产生和控制光的新方法内容：非技术：Reststrahlen带是光谱中材料由于晶体晶格的集体振动而对光有强烈吸收的那部分。尽管这一波段因材料而异，但它通常落在20-60微米的波长之间，并有效地阻止了在光谱的这一远红外部分发展任何重要的光学基础设施。从某种意义上说，雷斯特拉伦波段是最后的光学边界之一。该项目的创新之处不仅在于我们为开发Reststrahlen波段的光学和光电子材料和器件建立了一套工具，还在于它的目标是通过勾勒出一系列潜在的R-Optics应用和技术，为进一步的Reststrahlen波段探索奠定基础。在这样做的过程中，我们希望为这一未知的波长范围建立一个光学基础设施的框架，展示在这些长波长上产生、操作和控制光的技术，同时也加深对这种长波长光学和光电子器件在各种生物、化学、医疗和国防应用中的潜在应用的理解。技术：EIGER的主要内容将是一项整合的理论、计算和实验工作，以(A)展示一系列材料系统的声子增强热发射，并利用自聚焦和转向表面改善声子辅助的光收集，(B)通过i)控制自由载流子以调整声子材料的介电常数来扩大Reststrahlen频带的覆盖范围，ii)在GaN中进行同位素工程，以及(C)产生并检测半导体量子级联器件中非平衡声子群的光发射，以便潜在地开发电泵浦Reststrahlen带源。我们将在Reststrahlen波段开发空间和光谱选择性热源，以及控制材料Reststrahlen波段光学性质的机制。与此同时，我们将演示基于使用量子级联器件产生准粒子的源。我们还将研究一系列材料系统，以建立一个材料(和材料属性)库，用于开发Reststrahlen波段应用的复合光学材料。我们的许多器件和材料将通过分子束外延生长，所有材料和复合材料都将通过傅立叶变换红外和拉曼光谱进行表征，这是温度、材料组成和/或几何形状以及电(或光)泵浦功率的函数。为期18个月的热切希望的最终结果是雄心勃勃的：为迄今服务不足、基本上避免的波长范围发展一个光学和光电基础和框架。

Abstract Title: Novel Approaches for Generating and Controlling Light in the Optical No-Man's Land of the Far-IRAbstract Content:Nontechnical: The Reststrahlen Band is the portion of the optical spectrum where materials have strong absorption of light resulting from collective vibrations of the crystal lattice. Though this band varies between materials, it generally falls between the wavelengths of 20-60 microns, and has effectively precluded the development of any significant optical infrastructure in this far-IR portion of the optical spectrum. In some sense, the Reststrahlen Band is one of the last optical frontiers. This EAGER program's innovative approach lies not only in our efforts to build a tool-set for the development of optical and optoelectronic materials and devices in the Reststrahlen band, but also in its goal of laying the foundation for further Reststrahlen band exploration by delineating a set of potential R-Optics applications and technologies. In doing so, our desire is to build the framework of an optical infrastructure for this unexplored wavelength range, demonstrating techniques for generating, manipulating, and controlling light at these long wavelengths, but also developing an understanding of the potential applications of such long-wavelength optical and optoelectronic devices for a variety of biological, chemical, medical and defense applications. Technical: The primary thrust of the EAGER will be an integrated theoretical, computational, and experimental effort to (a) demonstrate phonon-enhanced thermal emission from a range of material systems, and improve phonon-assisted light collection using self-focusing and steering surfaces, (b) expand coverage of the Reststrahlen band by i) control of free-carriers to tailor the permittivity of phononic materials and ii) isotope engineering in GaN, and (c) generate and detect optical emission from non-equilibrium phonon populations in semiconductor quantum-cascade-like devices, for the potential development of electrically-pumped Reststrahlen band sources. We will develop spatially and spectrally selective thermal sources in the Reststrahlen band, as well as mechanisms for controlling materials' Reststrahlen band optical properties. At the same time, we will look to demonstrate sources based on quasiparticle generation using quantum cascade-like devices. We will also investigate a range of material systems in order to build a library of materials (and material properties) for the development of composite optical materials for Reststrahlen band applications. Many, though not all, of our devices and materials will be grown by Molecular Beam Epitaxy, and all materials and composites will be characterized by Fourier transform infrared and Raman spectroscopy, as a function of temperature, material composition and/or geometry, and electrical (or optical) pumping power. The end result of the 18-month EAGER is ambitious: the development of an optical and optoelectronic foundation and framework for a heretofore underserved and mostly avoided wavelength range.