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Light and motion

Cavities learn to adapt

Nature Photonics volume 1, pages 616–618 (2007)Cite this article

When tiny optical cavities are coupled together on the nanoscale, optical forces can dominate. A new proposal from researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology provides a way of harnessing these forces, leading to microcavities that can mechanically adapt their geometry.

Controlling the properties of light using mechanical devices is standard practice in the laboratory. Conversely, light has been used to generate mechanical forces that can then be exerted on dielectric materials. Closing the loop on the interplay between mechanical devices and their control of light, Peter Rakich and colleagues propose a method of trapping and controlling optical resonances through the use of opto–mechanical potentials (page 658 of this issue1). This intriguing concept could lead to a new class of reconfigurable optical devices.

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Figure 1: When two identical resonators are brought into close proximity, their fundamental optical modes interact.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Mihaela Dinu is at Alcatel-Lucent's Bell Laboratories, 791 Holmdel-Keyport Road, Holmdel, New Jersey 07733, USA. mdinu@alcatel-lucent.com,

    Mihaela Dinu

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  1. Mihaela Dinu
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Dinu, M. Cavities learn to adapt. Nature Photon 1, 616–618 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1038/nphoton.2007.211

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nphoton.2007.211

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