Publikationen

Lithium niobate on insulator (LNOI) has a great potential for photonic integrated circuits, providing substantial versatility in design of various integrated components. To properly use these components in the implementation of different quantum protocols, photons with different properties are required. In this paper, we theoretically demonstrate a flexible source of correlated photons built on the LNOI waveguide of a special geometry. This source is based on the parametric down-conversion (PDC) process, in which the signal and idler photons are generated at the telecom wavelength and have different spatial profiles and polarizations, but the same group velocities. Distinguishability in polarizations and spatial profiles facilitates the routing and manipulating individual photons, while the equality of their group velocities leads to the absence of temporal walk-off between photons. We show how the spectral properties of the generated photons and the number of their frequency modes can be controlled depending on the pump characteristics and the waveguide length. Finally, we discuss special regimes, in which narrowband light with strong frequency correlations and polarization-entangled Bell states are generated at the telecom wavelength.

The free exciton transition (near-band-edge emission, NBE) of ZnO at ≈388 nm can be strongly enhanced and even stimulated by an underlying photonic structure. 1D Photonic crystals, so-called distributed Bragg reflectors, are utilized to suppress the deep-level emission of ZnO (DLE, ≈500–530 nm). The reflector stacks are fabricated in a layer-by-layer procedure by wet-chemical synthesis. They consist of low-ε porous SiO2 layers and high-ε TiO2 layers. Varying the thickness of the SiO2 layers allows tuning the optical bandgap in a wide range between ≈420 and 800 nm. A ZnO layer is deposited on top of the reflector stacks by sol–gel synthesis. The spontaneous photoluminescence (PL) emission of the ZnO film is modulated by the photonic structure. When the optical bandgap of the reflector is in resonance with the deep-level emission of ZnO (DLE, ≈500–530 nm), then this defect-related emission mode is suppressed. Strong NBE emission is observed even when the ZnO layer does not show any NBE emission (due to low crystallinity) in the absence of the photonic structure. With this cost-efficient synthesis method, emitters for, e.g., luminescent gas sensors can be fabricated.

In this paper, silicon oxynitride films (SiON) grown by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition are investigated. As precursor gases silane (SiH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), nitrogen (N2) and ammonia (NH3) are used with different compositions. We find that for achieving high nitrogen content adding ammonia to the precursor mix is most efficient. Moreover, we investigate the balance between adsorption and desorption processes during film growth by investigating the film growth rate as a function of the substrate temperature. From these data we are able to determine an effective activation energy for the film growth, corresponding to the difference between adsorption and desorption energy. Finally, we have thoroughly investigated the optical properties of the films using spectroscopic ellipsometry. From these measurements, we suggest a parametrized model for the refractive index and extinction coefficient in a wide range of compositions based on a Cauchy- and a Lorentz-fit.

GaAs-(111)-nanostructures exhibiting second harmonic generation are new building blocks in nonlinear optics. Such structures can be fabricated through epitaxial lift-off using selective etching of Al-containing layers and subsequent transfer to glass substrates. Herein, the selective etching of (111)B-oriented AlxGa1−xAs sacrificial layers (10–50 nm thick) with different aluminum concentrations (x = 0.5–1.0) in 10\% hydrofluoric acid is investigated and compared with standard (100)-oriented structures. The thinner the sacrificial layer and the lower the aluminum content, the lower the lateral etch rate. For both orientations, the lateral etch rates are in the same order of magnitude, but some quantitative differences exist. Furthermore, the epitaxial lift-off, the transfer, and the nanopatterning of thin (111)B-oriented GaAs membranes are demonstrated. Atomic force microscopy and high-resolution X-ray diffraction measurements reveal the high structural quality of the transferred GaAs-(111) films.

Plasmonic nanoantennas for visible and infrared radiation strongly improve the interaction of light with the matter on the nanoscale due to their strong near-field enhancement. In this study, we investigate a double-resonant plasmonic nanoantenna, which makes use of plasmonic field enhancement, enhanced outcoupling of second harmonic light, and resonant lattice effects. Using this design, we demonstrate how the efficiency of second harmonic generation can be increased significantly by fully embedding the nanoantennas into nonlinear dielectric material ZnO, instead of placing them on the surface. Investigating two different processes, we found that the best fabrication route is embedding the gold nanoantennas in ZnO using an MBE overgrowth process where a thin ZnO layer was deposited on nanoantennas fabricated on a ZnO substrate. In addition, second harmonic generation measurements show that the embedding leads to an enhancement compared to the emission of nanoantennas placed on the ZnO substrate surface. These promising results facilitate further research to determine the influence of the periodicity of the nanoantenna arrangement of the resulting SHG signal.

Nonlinear Pancharatnam–Berry phase metasurfaces facilitate the nontrivial phase modulation for frequency conversion processes by leveraging photon‐spin dependent nonlinear geometric‐phases. However, plasmonic metasurfaces show some severe limitation for nonlinear frequency conversion due to the intrinsic high ohmic loss and low damage threshold of plasmonic nanostructures. Here, the nonlinear geometric‐phases associated with the third‐harmonic generation process occurring in all‐dielectric metasurfaces is studied systematically, which are composed of silicon nanofins with different in‐plane rotational symmetries. It is found that the wave coupling among different field components of the resonant fundamental field gives rise to the appearance of different nonlinear geometric‐phases of the generated third‐harmonic signals. The experimental observations of the nonlinear beam steering and nonlinear holography realized in this work by all‐dielectric geometric‐phase metasurfaces are well explained with the developed theory. This work offers a new physical picture to understand the nonlinear optical process occurring at nanoscale dielectric resonators and will help in the design of nonlinear metasurfaces with tailored phase properties.

Free from phase-matching constraints, plasmonic metasurfaces have contributed significantly to the control of optical nonlinearity and enhancement of nonlinear generation efficiency by engineering subwavelength meta-atoms. However, high dissipative losses and inevitable thermal heating limit their applicability in nonlinear nanophotonics. All-dielectric metasurfaces, supporting both electric and magnetic Mie-type resonances in their nanostructures, have appeared as a promising alternative to nonlinear plasmonics. High-index dielectric nanostructures, allowing additional magnetic resonances, can induce magnetic nonlinear effects, which, along with electric nonlinearities, increase the nonlinear conversion efficiency. In addition, low dissipative losses and high damage thresholds provide an extra degree of freedom for operating at high pump intensities, resulting in a considerable enhancement of the nonlinear processes. We discuss the current state of the art in the intensely developing area of all-dielectric nonlinear nanostructures and metasurfaces, including the role of Mie modes, Fano resonances, and anapole moments for harmonic generation, wave mixing, and ultrafast optical switching. Furthermore, we review the recent progress in the nonlinear phase and wavefront control using all-dielectric metasurfaces. We discuss techniques to realize all-dielectric metasurfaces for multifunctional applications and generation of second-order nonlinear processes from complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor-compatible materials.

The electronic band structures of hexagonal ZnO and cubic ZnS, ZnSe, and ZnTe compounds are determined within hybrid-density-functional theory and quasiparticle calculations. It is found that the band-edge energies calculated on the G0W0 (Zn chalcogenides) or GW (ZnO) level of theory agree well with experiment, while fully self-consistent QSGW calculations are required for the correct description of the Zn 3d bands. The quasiparticle band structures are used to calculate the linear response and second-harmonic-generation (SHG) spectra of the Zn–VI compounds. Excitonic effects in the optical absorption are accounted for within the Bethe–Salpeter approach. The calculated spectra are discussed in the context of previous experimental data and present SHG measurements for ZnO.

We successfully developed a process to fabricate freestanding cubic aluminium nitride (c-AlN) membranes containing cubic gallium nitride (c-GaN) quantum dots (QDs). The samples were grown by plasma assisted molecular beam epitaxy (MBE). To realize the photonic crystal (PhC) membrane we have chosen a triangular array of holes. The array was fabricated by electron beam lithography and several steps of reactive ion etching (RIE) with the help of a hard mask and an undercut of the active layer. The r/a- ratio of 0.35 was deter- mined by numerical simulations to obtain a preferably wide photonic band gap. Micro-photoluminescence (μ-PL) measurements of the photonic crystals, in particular of a H1 and a L3 cavity, and the emission of the QD ensemble were performed to characterize the samples. The PhCs show high quality factors of 4400 for the H1 cavity and about 5000/3000 for two different modes of the L3 cavity, respectively. The energy of the fundamental modes is in good agreement to the numerical simulations.

Microresonators containing quantum dots find application in devices like single photon emitters for quantum information technology as well as low threshold laser devices. We demonstrate the fabrication of 60 nm thin zinc-blende AlN microdisks including cubic GaN quantum dots using dry chemical etching techniques. Scanning electron microscopy analysis reveals the morphology with smooth surfaces of the microdisks. Micro-photoluminescence measurements exhibit optically active quantum dots. Furthermore this is the first report of resonator modes in the emission spectrum of a cubic AlN microdisk.

Whispering gallery modes (WGMs) were observed in 60 nm thin cubic AlN microdisk resonators containing a single layer of non-polar cubic GaN quantum dots. Freestanding microdisks were patterned by means of electron beam lithography and a two step reactive ion etching process. Micro-photoluminescence spectroscopy investigations were performed for optical characterization. We analyzed the mode spacing for disk diameters ranging from 2-4 lm. Numerical investigations using three dimensional finite difference time domain calculations were in good agreement with the experimental data. Whispering gallery modes of the radial orders 1 and 2 were identified by means of simulated mode field distributions.

We report an anisotropic formation of defects in cubic GaN grown on nano-patterned 3C-SiC/Si (001) by molecular beam epitaxy. Nano-patterning of 3C-SiC/Si (001) is achieved by nanosphere lithography and a reactive ion etching process. Atomic force microscopy and scanning electron microscopy show that the selectivearea- grown cubic GaN nucleates in two structurally different domains, which most probably originate from the substrate. In adjacent domains the formation of defects, especially hexagonal inclusions, is different and leads to two different surface morphologies. The dominant phase within these domains was measured by electron backscatter diffraction. Optical properties were investigated by micro-photoluminescence and cathodoluminescence spectroscopy.

Using a combined all-ultra-high-vacuum process employing lateral patterning with focused ion beams and molecular beam epitaxy, site-selective growth of single (In,Ga)As quantum dots is achieved. We have embedded such a layer of intentionally positioned quantum dots in the intrinsic region of a p-i-n junction so that the quantum dots can be driven electrically. In this contribution, we will present our results on the morphological properties of the ion-beam modified surface on which the quantum dot nucleation occurs together with a characterization of the electrical and optoelectronic properties. We will demonstrate that a single, individual quantum dot can directly be electrically addressed.

We have integrated individual (In,Ga)As quantum dots (QDs) using site-controlled molecular beam epitaxial growth into the intrinsic region of a p-i-n junction diode. This is achieved using an in situ combination of focused ion beam prepatterning, annealing, and overgrowth, resulting in arrays of individually electrically addressable (In,Ga)As QDs with full control on the lateral position. Using microelectroluminescence spectroscopy we demonstrate that these QDs have the same optical quality as optically pumped Stranski–Krastanov QDs with random nucleation located in proximity to a doped interface. The results suggest that this technique is scalable and highly interesting for different applications in quantum devices.

We numerically investigate the behavior of Whispering Gallery Modes (WGMs) in circularly shaped resonators like microdisks, with diameters in the range of optical vacuum wavelengths. The microdisk is embedded in an uniaxial anisotropic dielectric environment. By changing the optical anisotropy, one obtains spectral tunability of the optical modes. The degree of tunability strongly depends on the radial (azimuthal) mode order M (N). As the modes approach each other spectrally, anticrossing is observed, leading to a rearrangement of the optical states.

An intentional positioning of optically active quantum dots using site-selective growth by a combination of molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) and focused ion beam (FIB) implantation in an all-ultra-high-vacuum (UHV) setup has been successfully demonstrated. A square array of periodic holes on GaAs substrate was fabricated with FIB of 30 keV ions followed by an in situ annealing step. Subsequently, the patterned holes were overgrown with an optimized amount of InAs in order to achieve site-selective growth of the QDs on the patterned holes. Under well-optimized conditions, a selectivity of single quantum dot growth in the patterned holes of 52% was achieved. Thereafter, carrier injection and subsequent radiative recombination from the positioned InAs/GaAs self-assembled QDs was investigated by embedding the QDs in the intrinsic part of a GaAs-based p–i–n junction device. Electroluminescence spectra taken at 77 K show interband transitions up to the fifth excited state from the QDs.

GaAs-based semiconductor microdisks with high quality whispering gallery modes (Q44000) have been fabricated.A layer of self-organized InAs quantumdots (QDs) served as a light source to feed the optical modes at room temperature. In order to achieve frequency tuning of the optical modes, the microdisk devices have been immersed in 4 – cyano – 4´-pentylbiphenyl (5CB), a liquid crystal(LC) with a nematic phase below the clearing temperature of TC≈34°C .We have studied the device performance in the temperature rangeof T=20-50°C, in order to investigate the influence of the nematic–isotropic phase transition on the optical modes. Moreover,we havea pplied an AC electric field to the device,which leads in the nematic phase to a reorientation of the anisotropic dielectric tensor of the liquid crystal.This electrical anisotropy can be used to achieve electrical tunability of the optical modes.Using the finite-difference time domain (FDTD) technique with an anisotropic material model, we are able to describe the influence of the liquid crystal qualitatively.

Microdisks made from GaAs with embedded InAs quantum dots are immersed in the liquid crystal 4-cyano-4’-pentylbiphenyl (5CB). The quantum dots serve as emitters feeding the optical modes of the photonic cavity. By changing temperature, the liquid crystal undergoes a phase transition from the isotropic to the nematic state, which can be used as an effective tuning mechanism of the photonic modes of the cavity. In the nematic state, the uniaxial electrical anisotropy of the liquid crystal molecules can be exploited for orienting the material in an electric field, thus externally controlling the birefringence of the material. Using this effect, an electric field induced tuning of the modes is achieved. Numerical simulations using the finite-differences time-domain (FDTD) technique employing an anisotropic dielectric medium allow to understand the alignment of the liquid crystal molecules on the surface of the microdisk resonator.