SC235 Nanophotonics: Materials, Fabrication and Characterization

Sunday, October 11, 2009
9:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
Joseph W. Haus, Andrew Sarangan, Qiwen Zhan; Univ. of Dayton, USA
Level: Advanced Beginner (basic understanding of topic is necessary to follow course material)

Course Description

Nanophotonics is an emerging multidisciplinary field that deals with optics on the nanoscale. Recent progress in nanophotonics has created new and exciting technological opportunities. The interaction of light with nanoscale matter can provide greater functionality for photonic devices and render unique information about their structural and dynamical properties.

This nanophotonics course examines the key issues of optics on the nanometer scale. The course covers novel materials such as photonic crystals, quantum dots, plasmonics, and metamaterials and their applications; it then identifies and explains selected fabrication and synthesis techniques. Photonic devices that exploit nanoscale effects, such as nonlinear optical effects and quantum confinement, will be discussed. Finally, various nanocharacterization techniques used in metrology, nondestructive evaluation and biomedical applications will be explained.

Benefits and Learning Objectives

This course should enable you to:

  • Explain the basic linear and nonlinear optical properties of photonic crystals and metals.
  • Learn how nanoscale effects are exploited in photonic devices.
  • Discuss nanofabrication and design tools.
  • Learn the principles of nanocharacterization tools.
  • Describe computational and modeling techniques used in nanophotonics.
  • Identify the latest advances in the field of nanophotonics

Intended Audience

This course is intended for optics professionals who are interested in learning the fundamentals of nanoscale light-matter interactions, nanophotonic devices, fabrication, synthesis and nanocharacterization techniques.

Instructor Biographies

Joseph W. Haus is professor and director of the Electro-Optics Program at the University of Dayton. His current research is concentrated on the linear and nonlinear optical properties of photonic crystals, especially novel photonic sensors, modulators and coherent light sources from THz to UV based on electromagnetic resonance effects. Andrew M. Sarangan is an associate professor of the Electro-Optics Graduate Program at the University of Dayton. His research interests are in the general area of semiconductor devices, integrated optics and computational electromagnetics. His current research is focused on photonic crystals devices, specifically on novel nanophotonic resonator structures for applications in diode lasers and detectors. Qiwen Zhan is an associate professor of the Electro-Optics Graduate Program at the University of Dayton. He received his M.S. and Ph.D. in electrical engineering from the University of Minnesota. Zhan's research interests are in the general area of physical optics, including nanophotonics, optical metrology and sensors techniques. His current research focuses on developing new polarization sensing and manipulation techniques for nanotechnology applications.