Search arXivSearch

arXiv · 2212.01684

Magnetoplasmonics: current challenges and future opportunities

Abstract

Plasmonics represents a unique approach to confine and enhance electromagnetic radiation well below the diffraction limit, bringing a huge potential for novel applications, for instance in energy harvesting, optoelectronics, and nanoscale biochemistry. To achieve novel functionalities, the combination of plasmonic properties with other material functions has become increasingly attractive. In this Perspective, we review the current state of the art, challenges, and future opportunities in nanoscale magnetoplasmonics, an emerging area aiming to merge magnetism and plasmonics in confined geometries to control either plasmons, electromagnetic-induced collective electronic excitations, using magnetic properties, or magnetic phenomena with plasmons. We begin by highlighting the cornerstones of the history and principles of this research field. We then provide our vision of its future development by showcasing raising research directions in mid-infrared light-driven spintronics and novel materials for magnetoplasmonics, such as transparent conductive oxides and hyperbolic metamaterials. As well, we provide an overview of recent developments in plasmon-driven magnetization dynamics, nanoscale optomagnetism and acousto-magnetoplasmonics. We conclude by giving our personal vision of the future of this thriving research field.

Explore related subjects

Keep this discovery

Explore connections, maps & timelines

BibTeXRIS

Nicolò Maccaferri, Alessio Gabbani, Francesco Pineider, Terunori Kaihara, Tilaike Tapani, Paolo Vavassori. 2022-12-03. Magnetoplasmonics: current challenges and future opportunities. https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0136941

Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.

KEEP EXPLORING

Related papers

The Information Rate of Fiber-Wireless Communication Systems Based on Photonic Generation of RF Signals

High-capacity fiber-wireless communication systems operating at high frequencies increasingly rely on photonic generation of radio-frequency (RF) signals. In these systems, optical signals are transmitted over optical fibers and detected by photodetectors, where RF signals are generated at frequencies equal to the difference between the optical carrier frequencies. A major performance-limiting impairment is the phase noise of the generated RF signals, which originates from the phase noise of the optical sources. In this paper, we develop comprehensive probabilistic models for the two principal configurations of fiber-wireless communication systems employing photonic RF generation. Based on these models, we propose an efficient numerical framework for calculating the information rate (IR). Numerical simulations are performed to validate the efficiency of the proposed algorithm and the results provide design guidelines for high-performance fiber-wireless systems.

physics.optics

Automatic Optical Alignment Using Projective Geometry

Aligning and maintaining complex optical beam paths is a central challenge across experimental science, because it is a high-dimensional task with strong cross-coupling between controls, often in systems with limited physical access. We present an automated hardware-software framework that resolves this alignment challenge using low-cost, retro-fittable motorized mounts driven by projective-geometry models and a photodiode-fed optimizer. A compact forward model describes the beam path to paraxial order with only the physical mirror angles left free, so it can be rapidly ($\sim$ms) numerically inverted to return the required mirror angles for a desired beam trajectory. A photodiode-fed optimizer then fine-tunes this geometric starting point, and converged mirror settings are tabulated for retrieval in milliseconds and actuation in seconds. We experimentally demonstrate the performance of this approach on a retro-reflected lattice atom-transport system, yielding improvements in both speed and precision over manual alignment. This framework reduces the manual effort required to align complex beam paths, enables programmable optical control in experiments with limited physical access, and enhances the scalability of complex optical architectures.

physics.optics

Limits on the free-space group velocity of optical wave packets incorporating angular dispersion. Part~I, conventional angular dispersion: tutorial

A plane-wave optical pulse travels in free space at a group velocity $c$ (the speed of light in vacuum) measured along its propagation axis. It is sometimes thought that spatially structuring the field in free space reduces the group velocity below $c$ because -- intuitively -- the oblique wave vectors undergirding the wave packet increase the average group delay. Here we show that spatiotemporally structuring a pulsed optical beam (or wave packet) can yield -- in principle -- arbitrary group velocities in free space in contradistinction to this commonly held intuition. We devote our attention here to pulses endowed with angular dispersion (AD) where the propagation angle is wavelength dependent. This class of wave packets is particularly pertinent because their group velocity is constant over the transverse field profile and along the propagation axis, thereby yielding an unambiguous group delay. However, significant deviation of the AD-induced group velocity in free space from~$c$ inevitably requires a large numerical aperture that lies deep in the non-paraxial regime, and such wave packets experience AD-induced group-velocity dispersion. The formulation presented here captures a broad range of results, connecting them in a single framework. In Part~II of this tutorial, we describe recently identified `non-differentiable AD' (associated with propagation-invariant space-time wave packets) that helps circumvent the limits associated with conventional (differentiable) AD as outlined here.

physics.optics