Thesis (Ph.D)--Electrical and Computer Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2010. / Committee Chair: Prof. Ali Adibi; Committee Member: Prof. Joseph Perry; Committee Member: Prof. Stephen Ralph; Committee Member: Prof. Thomas Gaylord. Part of the SMARTech Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Collection.

Optoelectronic devices operating in the mid-infrared spectral region are attracting increasing attention due to potential applications in a wide range of disciplines. For example, mid-infrared photodetectors play a key role in thermophotovoltaic (TPV) energy conversion, whereby a photovoltaic device is used to extract electrical power from heat radiation. This technology is attractive for waste heat harvesting and clean energy production in several different environments. Similarly, mid-infrared light sources are particularly useful for biochemical sensing and spectroscopy, where the distinctive absorption features of many molecular species of interest can be exploited for their sensitive identification and detection. Both devices are investigated in this thesis work. In the area of TPV energy conversion, I have studied the use of intersubband transitions in semiconductor quantum cascade structures as a means to overcome the fundamental limitations of existing TPV devices using mature InP-based technology. Very efficient coverage of the incident radiation spectrum and optimal current matching can be achieved using multiple quantum-cascade structures monolithically integrated with a p-n junction, by taking advantage of their intrinsic cascading scheme, spectral agility, and design flexibility. Numerical simulations indicate that this approach can effectively double the present state-of-the-art in TPV output electrical power. In the area of mid-infrared light sources, my work has focused on developing efficient light emitters based on tensilely strained Germanium nanomembranes (Ge NMs). These ultrathin (a few ten nanometers) single-crystal membranes are good candidates for the development of CMOS-compatible Group-IV light sources, by virtue of their ability to sustain large strain levels and in the process become direct-bandgap materials. My research efforts have concentrated on the development of optical cavities based on Ge NMs that can satisfy the mechanical flexibility requirement of this materials platform. In particular, photonic-crystal (PhC) cavities in the form of disconnected dielectric-column arrays have been designed and fabricated based on a novel membrane assembly method, producing clear cavity-mode features in NM photoluminescence spectra. / 2016-08-17T00:00:00Z

[pt] Reflectometria óptica de baixa coerência tem se tornado uma importante ferramenta para a caracterização de componentes ópticos e optoeletrônicos integrados, cujas dimensões são micrométricos. Este trabalho inclui os princípios básicos de reflectometria, um estudo aprofundado de reflectometria óptica de baixa coerência, uma revisão das técnicas demonstradas na literatura cientifíca e suas resoluções e, principalmente, uma nova topologia na montagem experimental. Esta nova topologia permite que as mediadas sejam feitas de maneira mais simples e eficaz. A resolução obtida ficou tão boa que permitiu a visualização dos modos de propagação TE E TM na cavidade de um laser semicondutor. / [en] Optical low Coherence Reflectometry has become an important tool for the characterization of optical and integrated optoeletronics components of dimensions on the micrometer scale. This work includes the basic principles of reflectometry, a detailed study of optical low coherence reflectometry, a review of the techniques reported in the literature and a new scheme for the experimental set-up. This new scheme has proved to be simpler and more efficient. In addition the high resolution achieved allowed the visual observation of the TE and TM propagation modes in the semiconductior cavity.

abstract: The larger tolerance to lattice mismatch in growth of semiconductor nanowires (NWs) offers much more flexibility for achieving a wide range of compositions and bandgaps via alloying within a single substrate. The bandgap of III-V InGaAsP alloy NWs can be tuned to cover a wide range of (0.4, 2.25) eV, appealing for various optoelectronic applications such as photodetectors, solar cells, Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs), lasers, etc., given the existing rich knowledge in device fabrication based on these materials. This dissertation explores the growth of InGaAsP alloys using a low-cost method that could be potentially important especially for III-V NW-based solar cells. The NWs were grown by Vapor-Liquid-Solid (VLS) and Vapor-Solid (VS) mechanisms using a Low-Pressure Chemical Vapor Deposition (LPCVD) technique. The concept of supersaturation was employed to control the morphology of NWs through the interplay between VLS and VS growth mechanisms. Comprehensive optical and material characterizations were carried out to evaluate the quality of the grown materials. The growth of exceptionally high quality III-V phosphide NWs of InP and GaP was studied with an emphasis on the effects of vastly different sublimation rates of the associated III and V elements. The incorporation of defects exerted by deviation from stoichiometry was examined for GaP NWs, with an aim towards maximization of bandedge-to-defect emission ratio. In addition, a VLS-VS assisted growth of highly stoichiometric InP thin films and nano-networks with a wide temperature window from 560◦C to 720◦C was demonstrated. Such growth is shown to be insensitive to the type of substrates such as silicon, InP, and fused quartz. The dual gradient method was exploited to grow composition-graded ternary alloy NWs of InGaP, InGaAs, and GaAsP with different bandgaps ranging from 0.6 eV to 2.2 eV, to be used for making laterally-arrayed multiple bandgap (LAMB) solar cells. Furthermore, a template-based growth of the NWs was attempted based on the Si/SiO2 substrate. Such platform can be used to grow a wide range of alloy nanopillar materials, without being limited by typical lattice mismatch, providing a low cost universal platform for future PV solar cells. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Chemistry 2018

Ce travail a été consacré à l'étude de composants optoélectroniques ultra-rapides pour le traitement de signaux RF jusqu'au domaine THz, ainsi qu'à l'étude de composants pour les faisceaux THz. Tout d'abord, le travail a porté sur des photo-commutateurs optoélectroniques fabriqués avec des semi-conducteurs ultrarapides. Le dispositif, éclairé par le battement de 2 faisceaux optiques et polarisé par une tension RF, réalise le mélange de ces fréquences. Les propriétés du dispositif (bande passante, efficacité, génération de fréquences…) ont été modélisées et les simulations ont été validées par des mesures expérimentales. Quand le signal RF est modulé par un signal « information », cette information peut être directement extraite en égalant fréquences RF et de battement optique. Le signal démodulé est très pur : ainsi nous avons mesuré une largeur spectrale à -3 dB de 11 Hz. D'autres matériaux pour la génération THz et la photo-commutation ultrarapide furent aussi étudiés, comme des boîtes quantiques en InAs. Enfin, nous avons réalisé une étude par spectroscopie THz dans le domaine temporel des propriétés de dispositifs métalliques sous-longueur d'onde pour la manipulation de faisceaux THz, comme des réseaux de trous dans une plaque métallique ou de filtres à grille, ainsi que de films nanométriques de graphène ou de nanotubes de carbone. / This PhD work was devoted to the study of ultrafast optoelectronic components for processing RF signals up to the THz range, and of related THz devices. First, we used a photoconductive switch, made of low-temperature grown GaAs, excited by the optical beating of two CW laser beams and biased by a RF signal. The switch serves as a frequency mixer, whose properties (bandwidth, efficiency, sideband generation…) were modeled and the simulation results were experimentally validated. When the RF signal is modulated by information, this information can be directly extracted by setting the beating frequency equal to the RF one. The demodulated signal exhibits a high spectral purity, 11 Hz bandwidth at -3 dB. Other materials for THz generation and fast photo-switching were also studied, like InAs quantum dots. Finally, we performed a THz time-domain spectroscopy study of metallic sub-wavelength devices for THz beam processing, like hole arrays and metallic mesh filters, as well as nanometric thin films of graphene and carbon nanotubes.

Orientadores: Ana Maria Frattini Fileti, João Alexandre F. R. Pereira / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Engenharia Quimica / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-04T07:22:16Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Delatore_Fabio_M.pdf: 5286633 bytes, checksum: fbfd34a4b52a79d151598a14f43c669f (MD5) Previous issue date: 2005 / Resumo: O presente trabalho descreve o desenvolvimento de um sistema óptico de detecção de bolhas em tubulações. Esta montagem foi realizado no Laboratório de Controle e Automação de processos de DESQ/FEQ/UNICAMP. As bolhas podem representar um problema em certos processos químicos, por exemplo, no caso de uma tubulação que alimenta uma bomba. Deseja-se exista somente líquido passando, pois bolhas geraria cavitação e também desgaste do rotor devido ao choque dessas bolhas de ar com o rotor e com as paredes internas da bomba, inutilizando-a em pouco tempo de uso. Um outro exemplo, em tubulações com líquidos quentes que alimentam um trocador de calor, a presença de bolhas faz com que a eficiência da troca térmica do equipamento diminua. O sistema óptico desenvolvido utilizou como emissor de luz, o laser e como receptor, um componente eletrônico chamado de fototransistor. Dois tipos de sensores ópticos foram desenvolvidos. O primeiro deles, o sensor pontual, utiliza apenas um emissor laser e um fototransistor. Já o segundo, chamado de sensor multiponto, utiliza quatro emissores laser e quatro fototransistores. Duas interfaces eletrônicas foram desenvolvidas. A interface do sensor pontual funciona com retenção do sinal de saída, ou seja, a saída não se altera até a passagem de uma nova bolha... Observação: O resumo, na íntegra, poderá ser visualizado no texto completo da tese digital / Abstract: This work describes the development of an optical system to detect bubbles on chemical industries pipelines. The experimental apparatus was assembled in the Processes Control and Automation Laboratory of DESQ/FEQ/UNICAMP. Bubbles may represent a problem in some processes. For example, the presence of bubbles in the liquid that feeds a centrifugal pump can cause a decrease in the pump efficiency and the rotor wearing down due to the friction forces. Another example can be found in pipes with hot fluid that feeds a heat exchanger. Bubble appearance will also decrease the heat transfer efficiency. The developed optical system employs the laser pointer pen as a light source (emitter) and an electronic component, called phototransistor, as a receiver. Two optical sensors were developed. The first one was assembled using just one emitter and one-receiver devices. The second one, called multipoint sensor, was developed using four emitters and four receivers. An electronic interface was successfully developed to connect the optical sensor on the Fieldbus network. For the one-emitter-sensor, the interface uses the latch feature so that the transmitter state does no change until a new event happens. On the multipoint sensor, the interface works as an asynchronous counter: for every bubble event, the counter in the software is increased by one... Note: The complete abstract is available with the full electronic digital thesis or dissertations / Mestrado / Sistemas de Processos Quimicos e Informatica / Mestre em Engenharia Química

À la frontière entre l'optoélectronique et la conception des systèmes optiques, les matrices de détecteurs possèdent aujourd'hui une forme plane, liée aux technologies standard de la microélectronique. Or, la courbure sphérique de la surface de détection permettrait un gain substantiel sur les systèmes optiques en termes de volume, de masse et finalement de coût. Cette solution est par ailleurs largement répandue dans le monde vivant (œil camérulaire humain, yeux composés des mouches, etc).Des travaux de thèse précédents ont mis en évidence l'intérêt de la rétine courbe bio-inspirée en réalisant une matrice de microbolomètres infrarouge hémisphérique.Pendant la thèse, le procédé de courbure de composants en silicium (e.g. les bolomètres) a été optimisé et stabilisé à l'aide d'un plan d'expérience et d'une simulation par éléments finis incluant l'anisotropie du silicium. Des formes sphériques convexe et concave sans défauts (pliures et méplat) ont été démontrées sur des puces carrées et rectangulaires en tirant profit de leur flexibilité aux faibles épaisseurs.D'autre part, un nouveau procédé de courbure pour les composants hybrides (flip-chip) a permis la réalisation de plusieurs matrices fonctionnelles de détecteurs quantiques en CdHgTe courbes. Des formes sphériques concaves, convexes et cylindriques concaves à des rayons compris entre 550 et 100 mm ont été obtenues avec succès malgré la fragilité mécanique du CdHgTe.Des mesures optoélectroniques nécessitant de multiples adaptations pour ces nouveaux composants courbes ont démontré leur bonne opérabilité (>97 %) en termes de courant photonique, réponse, bruit et courant d'obscurité. Une simulation par éléments finis de la mise en forme, intégrant l'anisotropie du CdHgTe, a permis de mettre en relation les contraintes et déformations avec les propriétés optoélectroniques de ce semi-conducteur II-VI. La localisation et l'émergence de lignes de glissement ainsi que l'identification des dislocations mises en jeu sont notamment discutées.Le premier prototype de caméra compacte infrarouge à détecteurs courbes a été réalisé et confirme le bon fonctionnement du composant et son potentiel. / At the optoelectronics and optical systems conception boundary, focal plane arrays have a planar shape because of microelectronics technologies. Yet spherical focal plane arrays would simplify optical systems conception and reduce volume, weight and total cost. This shape is widespread in Nature - human concave eye, arthropods convex compound eyes, etc.The advantages of the bio-inspired curved retina have been established in previous works, where a spherical infrared microbolometers array was manufactured.During this thesis, the silicium-based devices curving proccess (e.g. bolometers) has been optimised thanks to a design of experiments and a finite element simulation including silicium anisotropy. Convex and concave shapes without defects (folds and flat part) have been demonstrated with square and rectangular chips due to their flexibility at small thicknesses.Then, a new and different curving proccess for hybrid devices (flip-chip) was developed. Several curved CdHgTe focal plane arrays were obtained and fully fonctionnal. Concave and convex spherical shapes as well as concave cylindrical shapes have been successfully achieved despite a high CdHgTe fragility.Optoelectronic measurements such as photonic current, responsivity, noise and dark current were performed with some adaptation for curved devices. High operabilities have been demonstrated (> 97 %). In addition a finite element simulation of the proccess has been conducted with the CdHgTe anisotropy. Direct relations between induced stress and strain, and optoelectronic properties, have been proved in this II-VI semiconductor. Location and surfacing of slip lines as well as dislocations identification are discussed.Finally, a compact infrared camera prototype with a curved CdHgTe focal plane array has been manufactured for the first time. It confirms that the device is fully fonctionnal and has a great potential for high value applications.

Ce travail de thèse porte sur la croissance et sur la caractérisation optique de nanostructures à base d’antimoine sur substrats InP, en vue d’applications dans le domaine des télécommunications optiques. La transition inter-sous-bande est un processus ultrarapide qui permet la modulation de la lumière dans les réseaux de télécommunication optique. Durant cette thèse, une absorption inter-sous-bande dans le proche-infrarouge provenant de puits quantiques Ga0.47In0.53As/AlAs0.56Sb0.44 a été observée pour la première fois au laboratoire. Les analyses par microscopie électronique à effet tunnel sur la face clivée montrent cependant de nombreux déviations à l’idéalité de nos structures : mélange à l’échelle atomique aux interfaces entre GaInAs et AlAsSb, inhomogénéité de l’alliage GaInAs, incorporation non-intentionnel d’antimoine dans le GaInAs. Les puits quantiques InAs/AlAs0.56Sb0.44 sont potentiellement des objets de choix pour la réalisation de composants intersous- bande travaillant à 1,55 μm. Des puits quantiques InAs/AlAs0.56Sb0.44 contraint, exempt de défauts ont été obtenus par croissance assistée par effet surfactant de Sb. En symétrisant la contrainte induite par le dépôt d’InAs par l’insertion de couches nanométriques de AlAs dans les barrières, des multi-puits InAs/AlAs0.56Sb0.44 sans contrainte macroscopique ont été réalisés. L’effet de l’antimoine en surface sur la croissance de structure InAs/GaAs0.51Sb0.49 a également été étudié. En présence d’antimoine sur substrats InP d’orientation (001), le dépôt d’InAs conduit à la formation de puits quantiques. Par contre sur ceux orientés suivant (113)B des boites quantiques sont formées suivant le mode de croissance Volmer-Weber. Ces résultats sont discutés en termes d’effets cinétiques ou énergétiques de l’antimoine en surface. La modification de l’anisotropie de l’énergie de surface induite par l’antimoine permet d’interpréter nos résultats sur substrats (100) et (113) B. / This PhD work presents molecular beam epitaxy growth and optical studies on several Sb-nanostructures on InP substrate, for their potential use in optical telecommunication. Inter-subband transition in Ga0.47In0.53As/AlAs0.56Sb0.44 quantum well is a useful physical process for implementing ultrafast fulloptical modulations. Near-infrared inter-subband transition in this material was achieved and microscopic studies on this structure has revealed that the intermixing at GaInAs/AlAsSb interface, unintentional Sb incorporation in GaInAs layer and the inhomogeneity within GaInAs layer could prevent Ga0.47In0.53As/ AlAs0.56Sb0.44 multiple quantum wells from achieving intersubband transition in 1.55 μm optical telecommunication band. The strained InAs/AlAs0.56Sb0.44 quantum well is another material that has potential use in 1.55 μm full-optical modulation. 2 nm-thick defect-free InAs/AlAs0.56Sb0.44 was obtained under Sb surfactant-mediated growth, and by using strain compensation techniques, InAs/AlAs0.56Sb0.44 multiple quantum wells with zero net-strain were realized. The study of Sb-mediated growth is also carried on to InAs/GaAs0.51Sb0.49 nanostructures. The growths of such structures on InP (001) substrate has led to the formation of flat InAs layer, while high-density InAs/GaAs0.51Sb0.49 quantum dots were obtained on InP (113)B substrates under Volmer-Weber growth mode. We attribute such phenomena to the surfaceorientation dependent surfactant effect of Sb. Emission wavelength close to 2 μm was achieved with only 5 ML of InAs deposition, which makes these quantum dots attractive to InPbased mid-wave applications.

Orientador: Newton Cesário Frateschi / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Física Gleb Wataghin / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-28T23:46:00Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Rezende_GuilhermeForniasMachadode_M.pdf: 3592220 bytes, checksum: e91127c5e777f7e4dfeeff9c5257f907 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015 / Resumo: Microrressonadores óticos são blocos fundamentais para a integração fotônica. A busca por transmissão de sinais cada vez mais rápidos (atualmente, em dezenas de Gbps) faz com que novos projetos de combinações topológicas entre microanéis sejam exigidos constantemente. Quando aplicados ao processamento de sinais fotônicos, as características de um microrressonador ¿ a saber, espaçamento espectral livre, fator de qualidade e finesse ¿ costumam funcionar como figuras de mérito para avaliar sua capacidade de processamento, filtragem e modulação. Uma estratégia para o aumento da densidade espectral de resposta de transmissão utilizada neste trabalho consiste em acoplar microanéis menores no interior de um maior, mantendo-se o tamanho compacto original do ressonador maior. Neste trabalho, elaboramos uma ferramenta de projeto objetivando prever e descrever as características espectrais deste tipo de dispositivo. Para tanto, foram utilizados o Método de Matriz de Espalhamento, a Teoria de Modos Acoplados e a generalização e sistematização da Regra de Mason para o Ganho de Grafos Direcionais. Nossa ferramenta permite compreender as diferentes combinações de caminhos óticos executados pela luz no interior das cavidades, resolve analiticamente o espectro de transmissão de microanéis acoplados e providencia uma análise da potência ótica no interior de cada cavidade, provendo uma comparação eficiente com os resultados da Teoria de Modos Acoplados. Comparando as previsões teóricas com medidas de caracterização de dispositivos fabricados, encontramos a necessidade de reformulação das ideias dos chamados modos escuros ¿ os quais não são excitados dependendo da forma na qual o sistema é bombeado ¿ para descrição destes sistemas fotônicos / Abstract: Microring resonators are building block for photonic integration. The demand for faster signal transfer (nowadays, in the orders of Gbps) constantly requires new designs of topological combinations between microrings. When applied to photonic signal processing, their characteristics of free spectral range, quality factor and finesse are used as figure of merit in order to evaluate their capacity of processing, filtering and modulation. A strategy for enhancing the spectral density of transmission response, used in this work, consists in coupling smaller microrings inside a bigger one, keeping the original compact size of the bigger resonator unchanged. In this work, we elaborated a design tool in order to predict and describe the behavior of spectral characteristics of this kind of device. For that purpose, it was used the Scattering Matrix Method, the Coupled Mode Theory and the generalization and systematization of Mason¿s Rule for the Gain of Directional Graphs. Our tool provides a full understanding of all combinations of optical path inside the cavities, solve analytically the transmission spectrum of the coupled microrings and provides an optical power analysis inside each cavity, implying an efficient comparison with the results of Coupled Mode Theory. By comparing theoretical predictions with the measurements of characterization of fabricated devices, we found the necessity of reformulation of the ideas of the so-called dark states ¿ those which are not excited depending the way the system is pumped ¿ for describing theses photonic systems / Mestrado / Física / Mestre em Física / 131434-6/2013 / CNPQ

<div><div><div><p>Numerous fundamental quests and technological advances require trapping light waves. Generally, light is trapped by the absence of radiation channels or by forbid- ding access to them. Unconventional bound states of light, called bound states in the continuum (BICs), have recently gained tremendous interest due to their peculiar and extreme capabilities of trapping light in open structures with access to radiation. A BIC is a localized state of an open structure with access to radiation channels, yet it remains highly confined with, in theory, infinite lifetime and quality factor. There have been many realizations of such exceptional states in dielectric systems without loss. However, realizing BICs in lossy systems such as those in plasmonics remains a challenge. This thesis explores the realization of BICs in a hybrid plasmonic-photonic structure consisting of a plasmonic grating coupled to a dielectric optical waveguide with diverging radiative quality factors. The plasmonic-photonic system supports two distinct groups of BICs: symmetry protected BICs and Friedrich-Wintgen BICs. The photonic waveguide modes are strongly coupled to the gap plasmons in the grating leading to an avoided crossing behavior with a high value of Rabi splitting of 150 meV . Additionally, it is shown that the strong coupling significantly alters the band diagram of the hybrid system, revealing opportunities for supporting stopped light at an off-Γ wide angular span.</p><p>In another study, we demonstrate the design of a BIC-based all-dielectric metasurface and its application as a nanolaser. Metasurfaces have received an ever-growing interest due to their unprecedented ability to control light using subwavelength structures arranged in an ultrathin planar profile. However, the spectral response of meta- surfaces is generally broad, limiting their use in applications requiring high quality (Q) factors. In this study, we design, fabricate, and optically characterize metasur- faces with very high Q-factors operating near the BIC regime. The metasurfaces are coated with an organic lasing dye as an active medium, and their lasing action is experimentally characterized. The proposed BIC-based metasurfaces nanolaser have very favorable characteristics including low threshold, easily tunable resonances, polarization-independent response, and room temperature operation.</p><div><div><div><p>The second part of the thesis deals with the nonlinear phenomenon in nanopho- tonic structures. We developed an advanced full-wave framework to model nonlinear light-matter interactions. Rate equations, describing atomic relaxations and excita- tion dynamics, are coupled to the Maxwell equations using a Lorentzian oscillator that models the kinetics-dependent light-matter interaction in the form of averaged polarization. The coupled equations are discretized in space and time using a finite- difference time-domain method that provides a versatile multiphysics framework for designing complex structures and integrating diverse material models. The proposed framework is used to study gain dynamics in silver nanohole array, reverse saturable absorption dynamic in optical limiters, and saturable absorption in random lasers. This framework provides critical insights into the design of photonic devices and their complementary optical characterization, and serve as an invaluable utility for guiding the development of synthetic materials. It allows accurate physics-based numerical modeling and optimization of the devices with complex micro- and nano-structured materials and complex illumination sources such as non-paraxial structured beams.</p></div></div></div></div></div></div>