Theory for Quantum Correlations in Extreme Nanoplasmonic Devices

当光照射到纳米尺寸的金属结构上时，金属中的自由电子集体振荡，产生“等离子激元”，它可以将光集中在极小的体积内。如果分子被放置在这个体积中，光(等离子激元)和分子(物质)以如此快的速度持续交换能量，以至于它们在室温下混合在一起形成杂化状态(强耦合区域)。多个分子与等离子体激元模式相互作用，可以形成非常复杂的量子态，目前还没有很好的理解。这个项目研究了多个分子与等离子体相互作用，并建立了理论工具来模拟它们的动力学。

When light illuminates nano-sized metallic structures, the free electrons in the metal collectively oscillate, creating `plasmons', which can concentrate light at extremely small volumes. If molecules are placed in this volume, the light (plasmon) and molecule (matter) continuously exchange energy at such rapid rate that they blend together to form hybrid states at room temperature (strong coupling regime). Multiple molecules interacting with the plasmon modes can form very complex quantum states that are not well understood yet. This project investigates the interaction of multiple molecules with plasmons, and builds the theoretical tools to model their dynamics.