Mid-infrared tunable metamaterials

摘要

A mid-infrared tunable metamaterial comprises an array of resonators on a semiconductor substrate having a large dependence of dielectric function on carrier concentration and a semiconductor plasma resonance that lies below the operating range, such as indium antimonide. Voltage biasing of the substrate generates a resonance shift in the metamaterial response that is tunable over a broad operating range. The mid-infrared tunable metamaterials have the potential to become the building blocks of chip based active optical devices in mid-infrared ranges, which can be used for many applications, such as thermal imaging, remote sensing, and environmental monitoring.

主权项

1. An optical device, comprising a metamaterial and a circuit adapted to apply a bias voltage to the metamaterial, wherein:
the metamaterial comprises a doped semiconductor substrate and an array of resonators overlying the substrate; the array of resonators comprises a two-dimensional repeating pattern of electrically interconnected resonator units; each said unit is dimensioned to have at least one resonant frequency responsive to stimulation by at least one frequency of electromagnetic radiation in a range of operating frequencies at least 15 THz; the bias circuit is adapted to apply the bias voltage between the substrate and the array of resonators; the substrate has a semiconductor plasma resonance lying below the operating frequency range; and the array of resonators is electromagnetically coupled at least at one said resonant frequency to the substrate; and each resonator unit is conformed as two or more electromagnetically coupled resonator arms having different resonant frequencies.