Organic photonics

Could a practical green laser diode finally be within sight? The latest research looks optimistic.

The organic photonics industry has come of age in the past few years. Nadya Anscombe speaks to Marc Baldo from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA, about the advances that have been made and the challenges that remain.

Hong Tang from Yale University spoke to Nature Photonics about how attractive and repulsive optical forces in nanophotonic waveguides could help advance integrated photonics and optomechanical systems.

A triangular array of silicon nanostructures is experimentally demonstrated to function as an optical cloaking device, operating in the near-infrared at a wavelength of 1550 nm. This approach could, in principle, be extended to larger areas using fabrication techniques such as nanoimprinting.

Attractive and repulsive optical forces between coupled photonic waveguides are demonstrated – previously, only attractive forces had been observed. The sign of the force can be controlled by varying the relative phase between the guided modes. This effect could be used in planar light-force devices on a CMOS-compatible platform.

Arbitrary phase control within a single photon wave packet is demonstrated and verified by two-photon quantum interference measurements. Combined with the previously demonstrated ability to control a single photon's amplitude, frequency and polarization, the phase shaping presented here allows for the complete control of single-photon wave packets.

Applying external pressure to a sample molecule via the apex of a sharp nanotip allows tip-enhanced Raman imaging of molecules with a spatial resolution of 4 nm.

All-optical wavelength routing based on optical gradient force in mechanically compliant spoked resonators is demonstrated over a wavelength range that is 3,000 times greater than the resonator linewidth. A switching time of less than 200 ns, a tuning efficiency of 309 GHz mW⁻¹ and 100% channel-quality preservation over the entire tuning range is achieved.

The acceleration of charged particles to ultra-high energies by intense laser pulses could be made a reality by petawatt laser facilities. Laser-based approaches promise a low-cost, compact and simple alternative, compared with conventional accelerators.

The demonstration of all-optical switching by confining light and cold rubidium atoms in a hollow-core photonic band-gap fibre may help bring the goal of single-photon switching closer to reality.

The successful control of the phase of light within a single photon wavepacket paves the way to a range of applications in quantum information science.

Researchers at Nichia Corporation have demonstrated green InGaN-based lasers grown on c-plane sapphire, with lifetimes capable of supporting commercial applications.

The tenth anniversary of the optical frequency comb, an enormously important tool in metrology, was celebrated at this year's CLEO/IQEC conference in Baltimore.

German company Novaled has built a business around a doping technology that increases the efficiency of organic LEDs. Its materials have broken many efficiency records and are being used in a wide range of applications, reports Nadya Anscombe.

With efficiencies continually improving, polymer solar-cell technology is now leaving the lab and entering the marketplace. Many challenges remain, however, including the development of reliable manufacturing processes and improvement of the lifetimes of these low-cost, flexible cells.

Two-photon polymerization is a 3D nanoscale manufacturing tool that offers great potential for rapid prototyping and the manufacture of photonic devices, tissue scaffolds and biomechanical parts.

Eighteen years after the development of the first polymer-based LED display, the technology has finally matured and polymer OLED televisions are just around the corner.