New Frontiers in Ultrafast High-Field Plasmonics, Nonlinear Nanoplasmonics, Plasmoelectronics, and THz Spinplasmonics

在十亿分之一秒(飞秒)、十亿分之一米(纳米)设备中发生的光-物质相互作用现象，在纳米尺寸金属结构(纳米等离子体)内部和附近的非凡和奇异的光行为，以及通过电子自旋(自旋等离子体)的量子性质在金属中进行的光操纵，继续影响着科学中的许多领域，并推动我们的技术。从根本上说，这些相互作用表现为光子和电子的光量子之间的相互作用。然而，这些领域一直在独立发展，需要集成到一个单一平台上。这项提议利用了这些正在出现的机会，并带来了这些领域提供的好处。 在这一框架下，我们将光驱动电子和结构的独特纳米级特性与其固有的超快响应相结合，以研究：强光场如何与物质相互作用，以及当光在纳米结构中被压缩时，其强度如何增强。我们将利用这种相互作用，以前所未有的效率从硅纳米等离子体结构中产生可见光，并在超小腔中操纵光，以便与纳米电子设备集成。我们还将探索一个新的领域(等离子体电子学)，在这个领域中，电流是由金属-电介质界面(即等离子体)上的光振荡引起的。这一现象是光控纳米电子平台的前奏。 这项提议描绘了新技术的新领域。要让纳米等离子体来补充纳米电子学，就需要有类似于关键电子元件的基于光的设备。其中一个这样的元件是随机存取存储器(RAM)--用于存储数据的计算机存储器。然而，到目前为止，RAM只能通过电信号激活，这限制了它的速度和多功能性。受我们最近发现的非易失性光控随机存取存储器的鼓舞，我们计划研究这一有趣的数据存储现象，并开发用于用光存储数据的新的奇异材料。同样，太赫兹(THz)自旋等离子体的创新--其中高频光被选择性地用于操纵和控制用于信息处理的电子自旋--是光-物质相互作用的一个有趣的新范例。我们计划全面了解光驱动电子自旋输运的物理学，并开发用于紧凑和高功率太赫兹辐射产生的先进磁性材料。 这项研究的结果不仅通过揭示各种现象和材料的新的有趣的物理来促进我们的知识，而且还为未来的创新技术播下了种子。除了绘制上述边界图外，这项研究还将为学生提供在加拿大高科技行业中备受追捧的尖端技术和独特动手技能的强大培训。

Light-matter interaction phenomena occurring at one millionth of one billionth of a second (femtosecond), ultra small billionth of a metre (nanometre) devices, extraordinary and exotic light behavior inside and at the vicinity of nanometer-sized metal structures (nanoplasmonics), and light manipulation in metals through the quantum property of electron spin (spinplasmonics) continue to influence numerous fields in science and advance our technology. Fundamentallly, these interactions manifest themselves as interplays between light quanta of photons and electrons. However, these fields have been independently evolving and need to be integrated onto a single platform. This proposal takes advantage of such emerging opportunities and brings the benefits offered by these fields. Under this umbrella, we combine unique nanoscale properties of light-driven electrons and structures with their inherent ultrafast response to investigate: how intense light field interacts with matter and how its intensity is enhanced when light is squeezed in nanostructures. We will exploit this interaction to generate visible light from silicon nanoplasmonic structures at unprecedented efficiency and manipulate light in ultra small cavities for integration with nanoelectronic devices. We will also explore a new field (plasmoelectronics) wherein electrical current is induced by light oscillations on a metal-dielectric interface (i.e. plasmons). This phenomenon is a prelude for the light-controlled nanoelectronics platform. This proposal charts new frontiers in novel technologies. For nanoplasmonics to complement nanoelectronics, there needs to be light-based devices analogous to key electronic components. One such element is a random access memory (RAM) -a computer memory being used to store data. However, to date RAM is only activated using electrical signals which limit its speed and versatility. Encouraged by our recent discovery of a non-volatile light-controlled random access memory, we plan to study this intriguing phenomenon for data storage and develop new exotic materials for application where light is used to store data. Likewise, innovation in terahertz (THz) spinplasmonics-where high frequency light is selectively used to manipulate and control electron spin for information processing- is a new intriguing paradigm for light-matter interaction. We plan to achieve full understanding of the physics of light-driven electron spin transport and develop advanced magnetic materials for compact and high-power THz radiation generation. The outcomes of this research not only advance our knowledge by unveiling new interesting physics of various phenomena and materials, but it also plants the seeds for future innovative technologies. Along with charting the aforementioned frontiers, the research will provide the students with strong training in cutting-edge technologies and unique hand-on skills that are highly sought after in the Canadian high-tech industry.