Cette thèse porte sur la propagation d’ondes non-linéaires dans des métamatériaux acoustiques unidimensionnels. Plus précisément, nous voulons étudier les interactions entre les non-linéarités, les pertes et la dispersion. Ce travail combine des calculs analytiques, des simulations numériques et des résultats expérimentaux. En particulier, nous concentrons notre analyses sur deux phénomènes : la génération du second harmonique et la formation de solitons acoustiques. Deux types différents de métamatériaux sont étudiés : (i) un guide d’onde chargé par une distribution périodique de trous latéraux (milieu à densité effective négative) et (ii) un guide d’onde chargé périodiquement par des  plaques élastiques encastrées (milieu à masse effective négative). En s’appuyant sur une analogie électroacoustique et sur la théorie des lignes de transmission, un modèle discret de la propagation est développé pour chaque système. L’approximation des grandes longueurs d’ondes est ensuite utilisée pour obtenir une modèle continu permettant d’établir une équation non-linéaire, dispersive et dissipative pour la propagation. Cette dernière est analysée à l’aide de la méthode des perturbations conduisant à une expression analytique pour la génération du second harmonique. De plus, la méthode des échelles multiples est utilisée pour obtenir les diverses solutions de solitons d’enveloppe (bright, dark et gray) présents dans les systèmes. Les prédictions analytiques sont corroborées par des simulations numériques directes et des mesures de la génération de second harmonique sont effectuées mettant en lumière un bon accord avec le modèle théorique. / The subject of this PhD thesis is the propagation of nonlinear waves in 1D acoustic metamaterials. More specifically we aim to study the interplay between nonlinearity, loss and dispersion. Our studies combine analytical calculations, numerical simulations and experimental results. In particular we focus our analysis on two main phenomena: the second harmonic generation and the formation of solitary waves. Two different acoustic metamaterials are studied: (i) A waveguide loaded with a periodic distribution of side holes (featuring negative effective bulk modulus) and (ii) a waveguide periodically loaded with clamped elastic plates (featuring negative effective mass density). Relying on the electroacoustic analogy and the transmission line approach, we derive a discrete lattice model for each system. The corresponding long wavelength, continuum approximation of the lattice models, leads to a nonlinear, dispersive and dissipative wave equation. From the latter, by utilising a perturbation method, we obtain analytical results regarding the second harmonic generation. Furthermore with the use of a multiple scale analysis we find various envelope (bright, gap, black and gray) soliton solutions supported by the acoustic metamaterial. The analytical predictions are corroborated by direct numerical simulations. We finally perform experiments on an acoustic waveguide loaded with a periodic distribution of side holes and measure the second harmonic generation in close agreement with our theoretical predictions.

<div>Miniaturization of optical components with low power consumption fabricated using a CMOS foundry process can pave the way for dense photonic integrated circuits and on-chip quantum information processing. Optical waveguides, modulators/switches, and single-photon detectors are the key components in any photonic circuits, and miniaturizing them is challenging. This requires strong control of evanescent waves to reduce the cross-talk and bending loss as well as low mode volumes to increase light-matter interaction.</div><div><br></div><div><div>In this thesis, we propose a paradigm shift in light connement strategy using transparent all-dielectric metamaterials. Our approach relies on controlling the optical</div><div>momentum of evanescent waves, an important electromagnetic property overlooked in photonic devices. For practical applications, we experimentally demonstrate</div><div>photonic skin-depth engineering on a silicon chip to conne light and to reduce the cross-talk and bending loss in a dense photonic integrated circuit.</div></div><div><br></div><div><div>We demonstrate that due to the strong light connement in the proposed waveguides, it is possible to miniaturize and integrate superconducting nanowire singlephoton detectors (SNSPDs) into a silicon chip. The timing jitter and dark-count</div><div>rate in these miniaturized SNSPDs can be considerably reduced. Here, we propose a theoretical model to understand the fundamental limits of these nanoscale SNSPDs and the trade-off between timing jitter, dark-count, and quantum effciency in these detectors. We propose experimental tests to verify the validity of our model.</div></div><div><br></div><div><div>Switching/modulating cavity Purcell factor on-chip is challenging, so we have proposed a nonlinear approach to switch Purcell factors in epsilon near zero (ENZ) materials. We demonstrate fourfold change in the Purcell factor with a switching time of 50 fs. The work in this thesis can lead to a unique platform for on-chip quantum nanophotonics.</div></div>

L’objet de cette étude concerne l’exploration, à la fois sur le plan théorique et expérimental, de la possibilité d’utilisation des métamatériaux pour des applications dans le domaine de la photonique aux longueurs d’onde télécoms (λ=1.5µm). L’un des principaux objectifs adressés dans le cadre de la thèse est de réaliser l’ingénierie de l’indice effectif en utilisant des résonances des plasmons de surface localisés des métamatériaux métallo-diélectriques. Deux cas particulièrement importants du point de vue de la réalisation technologique sont considérés :• Propagation en espace libre quand une onde lumineuse sous incidence normale ou oblique interagit avec une surface diélectrique recouverte d’une monocouche de métamatériaux.• Propagation dans une configuration guide d’onde avec une monocouche de métamatériaux à la surface d’un guide d’onde en Silicium.Les résultats des modélisations et des mesures expérimentales montrent que les propriétés optiques d’une mono-couche de métamatériau peuvent être décrites par celle d’une couche homogène avec un certain indice effectif. L’épaisseur de cette couche est égale à celle des motifs métalliques, à condition qu’elle soit inférieure à quelques dizaines de nm. Pour des faibles facteurs de remplissage en surface, l’indice de réfraction d’une telle couche suit l’approximation de Maxwell-Garnett. Cet indice effectif ne dépend pas de l’angle d’incidence ni de l’orientation de la polarisation de la lumière (perpendiculaire ou dans le plan d’incidence). Au voisinage de la fréquence de résonance pour un facteur de remplissage de métamatériau de 20% en surface on obtient un indice de réfraction très élevé : neff=10. Cet indice de réfraction est plusieurs fois supérieur à celui qu’on trouve dans des matériaux naturels. L’adaptation de cette approche à configuration guidée à utiliser une structure hybride composée d’une couche de métamatériau à la surface d’un guide d’onde en Silicium. Les travaux réalisés ont permis de démontrer la possibilité d’effectuer l’ingénierie de l’indice effectif et de contrôler le niveau des pertes d’un tel guide d’onde hybride en utilisant des métamatériau métallo-diélectriques à base des fils d’Au de 200X50X50nm. Le contraste d’indice au voisinage de la ligne de la résonance donné par des modélisations et confirmé expérimentalement est de ±1.5, soit plus que ce que l’on peut obtenir avec un guide Silicium gravé. Ce résultat représente une première démonstration sur le plan international de fonctionnement des métamatériaux en configuration guidée.De plus, en contrôlant l’orientation des motifs de métamatériaux, on peut réaliser un indice anisotrope. Les résultats obtenus ouvrent des perspectives très prometteuses pour la réalisation de dispositifs en optique guidée utilisant les transformations d’espace. / The subject of the PhD thesis deals with metamaterials for photonic applications. The main objective is to investigate the potential of metallic metamaterials for building optical functions at NIR optical frequencies. A significant part of the work is focused on the engineering of the metamaterials effective index associated with localized plasmon resonances. Two configurations of particular importance for fabrication technology are considered:• Free space light propagation, with the incident electromagnetic wave interacting with single metafilms at either normal or oblique incidence. • Guided wave configuration, with single metamaterial layer placed on top of dielectric waveguide.For the free space configuration, the validity of the effective medium approach was investigated both numerically and experimentally with the example of metamaterials composed of either gold cut wires or split ring resonators and continuous wires on silicon substrate. On the basis of these examples it was shown that the metafilm behavior is indeed analogous to that of a homogeneous layer. The thickness of this layer is that of the deposited metal. The validity of this conclusion was verified with respect to a number of criteria consistent with the Maxwell-Garnett approximation. It was shown in particular that near the resonance frequency the effective index of the metafilm layer can reach very high values neff=10 that cannot be attained with natural materials.The effective medium approach developed for a single metamaterial layer in free space configuration was further extended to a guided wave configuration. The objective is to achieve an efficient control over the flow of light in the waveguide using effective index variations induced by metamatarial resonances. The possibility of achieving a significant effective index variation with a silicon slab waveguide covered by 200X50X50nm cut wires was investigated by numerical modeling and confirmed by experimental results. The magnitude of local index variation in the vicinity of the resonance frequency deduced from experimental data is as high as ±1.5. The possibility for controlling the local effective index at the nanoscale can be used in transformation optics applications. The hybrid metamaterial guided wave configuration may become a promising alternative to the bulk multi-layers metamaterial structures in the near infrared domain.

Ce travail de thèse constitue une contribution originale et importante à la compréhension de la transformation d’espace et ouvre la voie au design de nouvelles structures éléctromagnétiques. Le couplage entre cette technique innovante et les métamatériaux a permis la réalisation de prototypes aux propriétés uniques. C’est ainsi que nous avons pu concevoir une cape d’invisibilité polygonale, un adapteur de modes ou encore une antenne directive ou isotrope. La fabrication de notre antenne très directive par cette méthode est le seul prototype dans la littérature qui allie le contrôle de la permittivité et la perméabilité à partir de résonnateurs électriques et magnétiques. Ce contrôle ultime de la lumière à partir d’une ingénierie de l’espace trouvera son utilité dans la recherche fondamentale mais aussi pour les ingénieurs et dévellopeurs recherchant plus de précision dans leur conception de dispositifs électromagnétiques. / This phD work is an original and important contribution to the understanding of transformation optics and paves the way to the design of new electromagnetic structures. The coupling between this innovative technique and metamaterials has led to prototypes with unique properties. We have thus developed an invisibility polygonal cloak, an electromagnetic taper, a directional antenna and isotropic source. The realization of our high-directive antenna with this method is the only prototype in the literature that combines controlled variations of the permittivity and permeability from electric and magnetic resonators. The ultimate control of light from an engineering space will find its usefulness in fundamental research but also for engineers and developers who are looking for more precision in the design of electromagnetic devices.

This thesis presents studies on a novel ‘meta-material’ as a potential candidate to replace the traditional Electro-Optic crystals (GaP, ZnTe) used in ultrashort bunch monitors for electron/positron accelerators. This study is aimed at showing the linear and non-linear optical properties of such materials, and creating a toolbox for both optical characterisation and manipulation of their properties using an ultra-short pulsed laser. The material studied throughout this thesis is a composite of silver nanoparticles (a “nanocomposite”) embedded within soda-lime glass. The Surface Plasmon Resonance (SPR) is a feature of these particles that is responsible for its unique optical properties. It is shown in this work how SPR is utilised for shape modification of silver nanoparticles with the use of a ps- pulsed laser with various laser beam polarisations. The impact of linear polarisation irradiation is investigated. It is found that multipulse irradiation has the effect of elongating nanoparticles to form prolate spheroids, which results in a dichroic effect on the composite as a whole, caused by the anisotropic SPR band shift. It is also shown that changing the laser polarisation from linear to radial and/or azimuthal changes the character of the reshaped nanoparticles. It was observed that a localised change of ellipsoid orientation is achieved, resulting in a non-directionally-dependent SPR band shift. Second Harmonic Generation (SHG) has been observed from reshaped nanoparticles embedded in soda-lime glass. A comparison of the effect was made between ps-pulsed reshaped, fs-pulsed reshaped and mechanically stretched samples containing silver nanoparticles. Multiphoton Absorption Induced Luminescence (MAIL) was observed along with the SHG and characterised for the various laser polarisation components. The dependence of the aforementioned effects on the elongated nanoparticle aspect ratio was shown to have a great impact. A novel method for reshaped nanoparticles characterisation is presented. It is based on the laser-induced SHG and MAIL signal and is proved to give a precise measurement of the nanoparticle shape and orientation. Frequency Resolved Optical Gating (FROG) measurement of a fs-pulse is measured with great accuracy, in the case where the BBO nonlinear crystal is replaced by the reshaped nanoparticle composite. This was demonstrated to be caused by the anisotropic SHG of the ellipsoidal nanoparticles. Preliminary THz based measurements were performed as a part of a feasibility study of the application of these composites in the EO-based detection of ultrashort electron bunches. Future work is suggested in order to achieve more efficient EO detection.

Este trabalho tem por objetivo o estudo de dispersão de pulsos ultracurtos em estruturas metamateriais para a faixa de micro-ondas. Como é bem sabido, os metamateriais são estruturas altamente dispersivas em qualquer faixa de frequências. Essas características dispersivas são normalmente tratadas como deletérias para a propagação de pulsos. Entretanto, nesta dissertação é demonstrado que essas mesmas características podem produzir efeitos benéficos em certas aplicações. Para isso é realizada uma análise teórica detalhada das características de dispersão de células metamateriais de diferentes geometrias. Adicionalmente, é investigada a propagação de um pulso gaussiano em meios metamateriais infinitos com o objetivo de melhor compreender fenomenologia por trás dos efeitos de dispersão nesses materiais. É também apresentado um novo procedimento de homogeneização de metamateriais que permite descrever estes meios de maneira mais precisa e com menor custo computacional que métodos encontrados na literatura. Esse método é baseado em modelos materiais conhecidos, como os de Lorentz e Drude. Este trabalho também apresenta uma nova abordagem para compressão de pulsos e compensação de dispersão por meio da propagação de pulsos de micro-ondas chirpados em metamateriais no regime de refração negativa. Para conseguir esse efeito, são investigadas placas de metamateriais com espessuras de 1, 3, 5 e 7 células metamateriais utilizando o método das diferenças finitas no domínio do tempo (FDTD) juntamente com técnicas de extração de parâmetros. É demonstrado que com o controle do chirp inicial do pulso, em associação com a densidade/geometria das células metamateriais e de sua resposta em frequência, é possível não só compensar o alargamento temporal desses pulsos devido à dispersão cromática como também realizar a compressão temporal por um fator de 2. / The goal of this work is to study the dispersion of ultra-short microwave pulses in metamaterials structures. It is well known that metamaterials are highly dispersive structures in any frequency range. These dispersive characteristics are normally treated as deleterious to pulse propagation. However, in this dissertation it is demonstrated that these characteristics can produce beneficial effects in certain applications. This assertion is addressed through a theoretical analysis of the dispersion of metamaterials cells of different geometries. In addition, it is investigated the propagation of a gaussian pulse through an infinite homogeneous metamaterial structure aiming at improving our understanding of the phenomenology behind dispersion effects in such media. It is also presented a new homogenization procedure for metamaterials that allows these media to be described in a more realistic manner and with computational cost lower than those currently found in the literature. This procedure is based on well known material models, such as Drude and Lorentz models. This work also introduces an efficient technique for pulse compression and dispersion compensation via propagation of chirped microwave pulses through metamaterials in the negative refraction regime. To accomplish this, it is investigated infinitely wide metamaterial slabs with thicknesses of 1, 3, 5, and 7 cells with a finite difference in time domain method together with a parameter extraction technique. It is demonstrated that by controlling the chirp of the initial pulse, in association with the metamaterial cell density/geometry and frequency response, it is possible not only to compress the pulse (by a factor of 2), but also to compensate pulse broadening due to chromatic dispersion.

Plasmonics, the science of the excitation of surface plasmon polaritons (SPP) at the metal-dielectric interface under intense beam radiation, has been studied for its immense potential for developing numerous nanophotonic devices, optical circuits and lab-on-a-chip devices. The key feature, which makes the plasmonic structures promising is the ability to support strong resonances with different behaviors and tunable localized hotspots, excitable in a wide spectral range. Therefore, the fundamental understanding of light-matter interactions at subwavelength nanostructures and use of this understanding to tailor plasmonic nanostructures with the ability to sustain high-quality tunable resonant modes are essential toward the realization of highly functional devices with a wide range of applications from sensing to switching. We investigated the excitation of various plasmonic resonance modes (i.e. Fano resonances, and toroidal moments) using both optical and terahertz (THz) plasmonic metamolecules. By designing and fabricating various nanostructures, we successfully predicted, demonstrated and analyzed the excitation of plasmonic resonances, numerically and experimentally. A simple comparison between the sensitivity and lineshape quality of various optically driven resonances reveals that nonradiative toroidal moments are exotic plasmonic modes with strong sensitivity to environmental perturbations. Employing toroidal plasmonic metasurfaces, we demonstrated ultrafast plasmonic switches and highly sensitive sensors. Focusing on the biomedical applications of toroidal moments, we developed plasmonic metamaterials for fast and cost-effective infection diagnosis using the THz range of the spectrum. We used the exotic behavior of toroidal moments for the identification of Zika-virus (ZIKV) envelope proteins as the infectious nano-agents through two protocols: 1) direct biding of targeted biomarkers to the plasmonic metasurfaces, and 2) attaching gold nanoparticles to the plasmonic metasurfaces and binding the proteins to the particles to enhance the sensitivity. This led to developing ultrasensitive THz plasmonic metasensors for detection of nanoscale and low-molecular-weight biomarkers at the picomolar range of concentration. In summary, by using high-quality and pronounced toroidal moments as sensitive resonances, we have successfully designed, fabricated and characterized novel plasmonic toroidal metamaterials for the detection of infectious biomarkers using different methods. The proposed approach allowed us to compare and analyze the binding properties, sensitivity, repeatability, and limit of detection of the metasensing devices

<p>In all attempts to analyze and realize Left-Handed materials, so far, most researchers have used the same idea of extracting only some or certain behaviors of Metamaterials from a set of unit cells gathered together in a designed order. Nevertheless meeting all criteria in order to consider a media as real double-negative material has never come true.</p><p>Starting with criticizing and arguing the validity of calling any set of unit cells as a medium of propagation, the work at hand will go further demonstrating analogies between a medium which could be assigned permittivity or permeability factors and the medium consisting a set of unit cells.</p><p>After presenting the critical analysis on previous studies in the field, here it is shown that it is impossible to build Metamaterials using any number of passive unit cells. A deep insight into the concept of phase and group velocities as well as Poynting’s vector will reveal weakness of the public perception of their relation with each other. Unlike the past and current trend in analyzing these two velocities in meta-materials, they will be proven to possess the same direction.</p><p>Moreover, in this work, a solid proof over violation of energy conservation in the intersection plane between a normal material and a Left Handed material is presented which requires us to believe and accept generation of energy at this plane. This view will consequently leave meaningless all attempts to build meta-materials by passive elements.</p><p>In present work a method is proposed at which a material with positive permittivity and permeability can behave like and yield all characteristics of Metamaterials only if the foregoing parameters, while remaining positive, can vary and be governed by the magnitude of the electromagnetic field. Independence of this method from frequency broadens the range of its application and also the interest it may attract.</p>

The study of optical phenomena related to the strong electromagnetic response of noble metals (silver (Ag) and gold (Au) being most popular) over the last couple of decades has led to the emergence of a fast growing research area called plasmonics named after 'surface plasmons' which are electron density waves that propagate along the interface of a metal and a dielectric medium. Surface plasmons are formed by the coupling of light to the electrons on the metal surface subject to the fulfillment of certain physical conditions and they are bound to the metal surface. Depending on whether the metallic medium is a continuous film or a structure having dimensions less than or comparable to the wavelength of the exciting light, propagating or localized surface plasmons can be excited. The structure can be either a hole or an arbitrary pattern in a metal film, or a metallic particle. An array of subwavelength structures can behave as an effective homogeneous medium to incident light and this is the basis of a new class of media known as metamaterials. Metallic metamaterials enable one to engineer the electromagnetic response to  incident light and provide unconventional optical properties like negative refractive index as one prominent example. Metamaterials exhibiting negative index (also called negative index materials (NIMs)) open the door for super resolution imaging  and development of invisibility cloaks. However, the only problem affecting the utilization of plasmonic media to their fullest potential is the intrinsic loss of the metal, and it becomes a major issue especially at visible-near infrared (NIR) frequencies. The frequency of the surface plasmon is the same as that of the exciting light but its wavelength could be as short as that of X-rays. This property allows light of a given optical frequency to be conned into very small volumes via subwave lengthmetallic structures, that can be used to develop ecient sensors, solar cells, antennas and ultrasensitive molecular detectors to name a few applications. Also, interaction of surface plasmons excited in two or more metallic subwavelength structures in close proximity inuences the far-eld optical properties of the overall coupled system. Some eects of plasmonic interaction in certain coupled particles include polarization conversion, optical activity and transmission spectra mimicking electromagnetically-induced transparency (EIT) as observed in gas based atomicsy stems. In this thesis, we mainly focus on the optical properties of square arrays of certain plasmonic structures popularly researched in the last decade. The structures considered are as follows: (1) subwavelength holes of a composite hole-shape providing superior near-eld enhancement such as two intersecting circles (called' double hole') in an optically thick Au/Ag lm, (2) double layer shnets, (3) subwavelength U-shaped particles and (4) rectangular bars. The entire work is based on electromagnetic simulations using time and frequency domain methods. Au/Ag lms with periodic subwavelength holes provide extraordinarily high transmission of light at certain wavelengths much larger than the dimension of the perforations or holes. The spectral positions of the maxima depend on the shape of the hole and the intra-hole medium, thereby making such lms function as a refractive index sensor in the transmission mode. The sensing performance of the double-hole geometry is analyzed in detail and compared to rectangular holes. Fishnet metamaterials are highly preferred when it comes to constructing a NIM at optical frequencies. A shnet design that theoretically oers a negative refractive index with least losses at telecommunication wavelengths (1.4 1.5 microns) is presented. U-shaped subwavelength metallic particles, in particular single-slit split-ring resonators (SSRRs), provide a large negative response to the magnetic eld of light at a specic resonance frequency. The spectral positions of the structural resonances of the U-shaped particle can be found from its array far field transmission spectrum at normal incidence. An effort is made to clarify our understanding of these resonances with the help of localized surface plasmon modes excited in the overall particle. From an application point of view, it is found that a planar square array of SSRRs eectively functions as an optical half-wave waveplate at the main resonance frequency by creating a polarization in transmission that is orthogonal to that of incident light. A similar waveplate eect can be obtained purely by exploiting the near-eld interaction of dierently oriented neighbouring SSRRs. The physical reasons behind polarization conversion in dierent SSRR-array systems are discussed. A rectangular metallic bar having its dipolar resonance in the visible-NIR is called a nanoantenna, owing to its physical length in the order of nanometers. The excitation of localized surface plasmons, metal dispersion and the geometry of the rectangular nanoantenna make an analytical estimation of the physical length of the antenna from the desired dipolar resonance dicult. A practical map of simulated resonance values corresponding to a variation in geometrical parameters of Au bar is presented. A square array of a coupled plasmonic system comprising of three nanoantennas provides a net transmission response that mimicks the EIT effect. The high transmission spectral window possesses a peculiar dispersion profile that enables light with frequencies in that region to be slowed down. Two popular designs of such plasmonic EIT systems are numerically characterized and compared. / <p>QC 20121017</p>

In all attempts to analyze and realize Left-Handed materials, so far, most researchers have used the same idea of extracting only some or certain behaviors of Metamaterials from a set of unit cells gathered together in a designed order. Nevertheless meeting all criteria in order to consider a media as real double-negative material has never come true. Starting with criticizing and arguing the validity of calling any set of unit cells as a medium of propagation, the work at hand will go further demonstrating analogies between a medium which could be assigned permittivity or permeability factors and the medium consisting a set of unit cells. After presenting the critical analysis on previous studies in the field, here it is shown that it is impossible to build Metamaterials using any number of passive unit cells. A deep insight into the concept of phase and group velocities as well as Poynting’s vector will reveal weakness of the public perception of their relation with each other. Unlike the past and current trend in analyzing these two velocities in meta-materials, they will be proven to possess the same direction. Moreover, in this work, a solid proof over violation of energy conservation in the intersection plane between a normal material and a Left Handed material is presented which requires us to believe and accept generation of energy at this plane. This view will consequently leave meaningless all attempts to build meta-materials by passive elements. In present work a method is proposed at which a material with positive permittivity and permeability can behave like and yield all characteristics of Metamaterials only if the foregoing parameters, while remaining positive, can vary and be governed by the magnitude of the electromagnetic field. Independence of this method from frequency broadens the range of its application and also the interest it may attract.