Collaborative Research: Active Plasmonics for Mid-Infrared Sensing

该奖项是根据2009年《美国复苏和再投资法案》(公法111-5)资助的。目标：该计划将展示基于半导体的调谐机制，用于主动控制中红外(MID-IR)等离子体结构，以及这些机制与基于表面等离子体的传感应用设备的集成。这包括1)开发基于半导体的调谐机制来控制具有中红外光学共振的等离子体结构的光谱特性，2)研究材料在平面等离子体表面增强的中红外吸收，最后3)将可调等离子体材料集成到原型中红外传感系统中。智能优点：等离子体领域在显示技术、传感和光学互连等方面具有重要的当前应用兴趣，仅举几例。等离子体激元的研究绝大多数是在可见光/近红外或太赫兹波长范围内进行的，并且主要集中在无源器件上。然而，中红外是传感应用中技术上重要的波长范围，为等离子体器件与传统半导体材料的集成提供了可能性。这项研究在本质上是革命性的，因为它将1)促进对中红外表面等离子体增强吸收的理解，2)导致具有宽可调范围的主动可调等离子体材料，以及3)展示用于光学传感应用的新型紧凑型系统。广泛影响：有源等离子体器件的发展将导致新的紧凑型传感器系统，具有环境、医疗和工业传感应用。此外，拟议工作包含一个重要的教育和外联部分，这将为马萨诸塞州大学洛厄尔分校和康涅狄格学院的本科生以及洛厄尔公立学校系统的K-12学生提供实验室研究机会。

"This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5)."Objective: This program will demonstrate semiconductor-based tuning mechanisms for active control of mid-infrared (mid-IR) plasmonic structures and the integration of these mechanisms with surface-plasmon based devices for sensing applications. This includes 1) development of semiconductor-based tuning mechanisms to control the spectral properties of plasmonic structures with optical resonances in the mid-infrared, 2) investigation of the enhanced mid-IR absorption of materials on planar plasmonic surfaces and finally 3) integration of tunable plasmonic materials into prototype mid-IR sensing systems.Intellectual Merit: The field of plasmonics is of significant current interest for applications in display technology, sensing, and optical interconnects, to name only a few. The vast majority of the research in plasmonics has been in the visible/near-IR or terahertz wavelength ranges, and has focused on passive devices. The mid-infrared, however, is a technologically important wavelength range for sensing applications, and offers the possibility of integrating plasmonic devices with traditional semiconductor materials. The proposed research is transformative in nature as it will 1) advance the understanding of surface-plasmon enhanced absorption in the mid-IR, 2) lead to actively tunable plasmonic materials with broad tuning ranges, and 3) demonstrate novel compact systems for optical sensing applications.Broader Impacts: The development of active plasmonic devices will lead to new compact sensor systems, with environmental, medical, and industrial sensing applications. In addition, the proposed work contains a significant education and outreach component, which will lead to laboratory-based research opportunities for undergraduates at UMass Lowell and Connecticut College, as well as K-12 students in the Lowell public school system.