Single-Pulse Measurement of Orbital Angular Momentum Generated by Microring Lasers.

Optical beams with helical phase fronts carry orbital angular momentum (OAM). To exploit this property in integrated photonics, micrometer-scale devices that generate beams with well-defined OAM are needed. Consequently, lasers based on microring resonators decorated with azimuthal grating elements have been investigated.

Active Mode Switching in Plasmonic Microlasers by Spatial Control of Optical Gain.

The pursuit of miniaturized optical sources for on-chip applications has led to the development of surface plasmon polariton lasers (plasmonic lasers). While applications in spectroscopy and information technology would greatly benefit from the facile and active tuning of the output wavelength from such devices, this topic remains underexplored. Here, we demonstrate optically controlled switching between predefined wavelengths within a plasmonic microlaser.

Optical Fourier surfaces.

Gratings and holograms use patterned surfaces to tailor optical signals by diffraction. Despite their long history, variants with remarkable functionalities continue to be developed. Further advances could exploit Fourier optics, which specifies the surface pattern that generates a desired diffracted output through its Fourier transform.

Room-Temperature Strong Coupling of CdSe Nanoplatelets and Plasmonic Hole Arrays.

Exciton polaritons are hybrid light-matter quasiparticles that can serve as coherent light sources. Motivated by applications, room-temperature realization of polaritons requires narrow, excitonic transitions with large transition dipoles. Such transitions must then be strongly coupled to an electromagnetic mode confined in a small volume.

Two-Dimensional Drexhage Experiment for Electric- and Magnetic-Dipole Sources on Plasmonic Interfaces.

Fifty years ago, Drexhage et al. showed how photon emission from an electric dipole can be modified by a nearby mirror. Here, we study the two-dimensional analog for surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs).

Colloidal-Quantum-Dot Ring Lasers with Active Color Control.

To improve the photophysical performance of colloidal quantum dots for laser applications, sophisticated core/shell geometries have been developed. Typically, a wider bandgap semiconductor is added as a shell to enhance the gain from the quantum-dot core. This shell is designed to electronically isolate the core, funnel excitons to it, and reduce nonradiative Auger recombination.

Polarization Multiplexing of Fluorescent Emission Using Multiresonant Plasmonic Antennas.

Combining the ability to localize electromagnetic fields at the nanoscale with a directional response, plasmonic antennas offer an effective strategy to shape the far-field pattern of coupled emitters. Here, we introduce a family of directional multiresonant antennas that allows for polarization-resolved spectral identification of fluorescent emission. The geometry consists of a central aperture surrounded by concentric polygonal corrugations.

Modal symmetries at the nanoscale: a route toward a complete vectorial near-field mapping.

We use symmetry considerations to understand and unravel near-field measurements, ultimately showing that we can spatially map three distinct fields using only two detectors. As an example, we create 2D field maps of the out-of-plane magnetic field and two in-plane fields for a silicon ridge waveguide. Furthermore, we are able to identify and remove polarization mixing of less than 1/30 of our experimental signals.