Active optical device enabled by dielectric metamaterials
| DWPI Title: Active optical apparatus, has vertical column conformed to provide dielectric resonator including optical resonance at preset frequency, and quantum-well multi-layer constituting active medium characterized by optical transition |
| Abstract: An array of dielectric resonators is formed on a substrate. Each resonator includes an active medium having an optical transition that is operative in a process of photodetection or photoemission. The active media each include a quantum well multilayer. The dielectric resonators in the array are each dimensioned to provide a resonance that lies substantially at the frequency of the optical transition. |
| Use: Active optical apparatus. Uses include but are not limited to LED, laser, photo-detector, optical modulator and optical amplifier. |
| Advantage: The apparatus has ultra-low power consumption, and reduces loss from a resonator structure and realizes new-functionalities and improved level of performance offered by dielectric materials. |
| Novelty: The apparatus has an optical meta-material comprising a regular two-dimensional array of vertical columns overlying a substrate (10), where each of the vertical columns comprises a layered structure of semiconductor material that includes a quantum-well multi-layer (25) and an effective refractive index, and the layered structure is underlain by an optical confinement layer. The optical confinement layer comprises a confinement material. Each vertical column is conformed to provide a dielectric resonator including optical resonance at preset frequency. The quantum-well multi-layer constitutes an active medium characterized by one optical transition such that light is emitted and/or absorbed with the preset frequency, where the substrate and vertical columns comprise gallium arsenide, the confinement material comprises oxide of aluminum gallium arsenide, and the quantum-well multi-layers comprise alternating layers of gallium arsenide and indium arsenide. |
| Filed: 10/10/2018 |
| Application Number: US16156497A |
| Tech ID: SD 13585.2 |
| This invention was made with Government support under Contract No. DE-NA0003525 awarded by the United States Department of Energy/National Nuclear Security Administration. The Government has certain rights in the invention. |
| Data from Derwent World Patents Index, provided by Clarivate All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Clarivate content, including by framing or similar means, is prohibited without the prior written consent of Clarivate. Clarivate and its logo, as well as all other trademarks used herein are trademarks of their respective owners and used under license. |