LMI Seminar: Manipulating surface plasmon polaritons and light in nonlinear processes

Abstract:

The first half of our talk will be dedicated to surface plasmon polaritons manipulation. 

Surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) are electromagnetic waves which are coupled to collective electron oscillations in the metal and propagate along the metal-dielectric interface. The electric field decays exponentially normal to the dielectric metal plane, and in addition, the wave exhibits decay in the propagation direction. In our group, we are exploring ways to manipulate and control the propagation of these surface waves. Dror will present several methods that were developed during the last years, among them: Manipulation of binary grating couplers for an arbitrary excitation of plasmonic beams, dynamic plasmonic multi-level coupled systems, exploring the propagation of plasmonic waves on curved surfaces, and the ability to dynamically and actively control the propagation and shape using the thermo-optic effect.

The second half of our talk will discuss control of light by shaped nonlinear photonic crystals. Nonlinear photonic crystals are crystals with a high second order susceptibility, leading to an efficient nonlinear interaction between light and matter and giving rise to new frequencies. By tailoring the crystal properties, one can control the generated light's shape and frequency. Sivan will present methods for shaping the spatial shape and trajectory of the generated light developed in our group, as well as controlling the frequency of the light. Also, she will review how a carefully engineered crystal can lead to surprising results, such as the addition of a geometric phase to the light, Stern-Gerlach analogue effect and the control of different degrees of entanglement of single photons.