Collaborative Research: Phase-Change Materials for Strong Optical Modulation and Nonvolatile Optical Memory

非技术描述：操纵光束特性的能力改变了我们对物理宇宙的理解。人们正在探索光束来处理信息，探测固体的性质，并了解大脑如何响应外部刺激并与之相互作用。以不寻常的方式与光相互作用的新材料通常是增强光与物质有效耦合的基石。该项目研究了新材料系统在操纵光的新兴设备中的潜力。研究目标是探索薄膜材料的光学和电子特性，这些薄膜材料在室温附近具有可控的相变，可以通过改变电子结构来系统地诱导，以用于光学存储器的潜在应用。该项目是材料科学家和光子学“光的研究”工程师之间的合作，将多学科技能结合在一起，致力于结合新薄膜材料的纳米光子学前沿课题。该项目培养研究生和本科生在材料科学，纳米光子学和光电子学之间的交叉点进行研究。该项目吸引了不同的学生进行跨学科研究，包括材料生长，设备设计，计算机建模，洁净室纳米制造以及材料/设备的光学/电子表征。技术说明：该项目研究了电子掺杂钙钛矿作为新型相变材料的潜力，用于光学存储器所需的未来光调制器件，具有多个状态的脑启发光子器件。该合作项目的研究目标是阐明电子掺入过程的非挥发性的基本机制和可靠性，并了解通过光学途径研究的相变速度的限制。该研究小组使用薄膜材料合成，电子衍射，载流子传输测量，光学显微镜和光谱学的组合来研究选定的钙钛矿氧化物的纳米结构和光学特性。研究小组使用“超表面”，这是光学天线的二维阵列，以最大限度地提高强烈限制的光和相变材料薄膜之间的相互作用。该项目涉及不同的研究生和本科生在纳米光子学的前沿课题工作。材料科学家和光子学研究人员之间的合作增强了研究经验，拓宽了参与学生的技术视野。

Non-technical Description: The ability to manipulate properties of light beams has changed our understanding of the physical universe. Light beams are being explored to process information, probe the nature of solids and understand how the brain responds to and interacts with external stimuli. New materials that interact with light in unusual ways often form the cornerstone for enhancing the effective coupling of light to matter. The project investigates the potential of new material systems in emerging devices that manipulate light. The research goal is to explore optical and electronic properties of thin film materials that have a controllable phase change near room temperature that can be systematically induced by changing the electronic structure for potential applications in optical memories. The project is collaborative between materials scientists and photonics "study of light" engineers to bring multi-disciplinary skills together to work on cutting-edge topics in nanophotonics incorporating new thin film materials. The project trains graduate and undergraduate students to carry out research at the intersection between materials science, nanophotonics, and optoelectronics. The project engages diverse students in interdisciplinary research that encompasses materials growth, device design, computer modeling, cleanroom nanofabrication, and optical/electronic characterization of materials/devices. Technical Description: This project investigates the potential of electron-doped perovskites as novel phase-changing materials for future light modulation devices needed for optical memory, brain-inspired photonic devices with multiple states. The research goals of this collaborative project are to elucidate the fundamental mechanisms and reliability of non-volatility of the electron incorporation process and to understand the limits on the speed of phase change studied by optical routes. The research team uses a combination of thin film materials synthesis, electron diffraction, carrier transport measurements, optical microscopy and spectroscopy to study the nanostructure and optical properties of selected perovskite oxides. The research team uses "metasurfaces", which are two-dimensional arrays of optical antennas, to maximize the interaction between intensely confined light and thin films of phase-change materials. The project involves diverse graduate and undergraduate students to work on frontier topics in nanophotonics. Collaborations between materials scientists and photonics researchers enhances the research experience and broaden the technical horizons of the participating students.