On chip shapeable optical tweezers

International audience; Particles manipulation with optical forces is known as optical tweezing. While tweezing in free space with laser beams was established in the 1980s, integrating the optical tweezers on a chip is a challenging task. Recent experiments with plasmonic nanoantennas, microring resonators, and photonic crystal nanocavities have demonstrated optical trapping. However, the optical field of a tweezer made of a single microscopic resonator cannot be shaped. So far, this prevents from optically driven micromanipulations. Here we propose an alternative approach where the shape of the optical trap can be tuned by the wavelength in coupled nanobeam cavities. Using these shapeable …

Analysis of the Bloch mode spectra of surface polaritonic crystals in the weak and strong coupling regimes: grating-enhanced transmission at oblique incidence and suppression of SPP radiative losses

The Bloch mode spectrum of surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) on a finite thickness metal film has been analyzed in the regimes of weak and strong coupling between SPP modes on the opposite film interfaces. The SPP mode dispersion and associated field distributions have been studied. The results have been applied to the description of the light transmission through thick and thin periodically structured metal films at oblique incidence. In contrast to normal incidence, all SPP Bloch modes on a grating structure participate in the resonant photon tunnelling leading to the transmission enhancement. However, at the angle of incidence corresponding to the crossing of different symmetry film SPP …

Determination of the spatial extension of the surface-plasmon evanescent field of a silver film with a photon scanning tunneling microscope.

A photon scanning tunneling microscope is employed to probe the surface-plasmon field in the evanes- cent region of a silver film for p (parallel to the plane of incidence) and s (perpendicular to the plane of incidence) polarizations of the light beam at several angles of incidence near the critical angle. The in- teraction between the field and the probe is measured and compared to theoretical calculations involving a single four-media model. A systematic analysis of images obtained for several positions of the optical fiber above the film is presented and it is shown that, for tip-to-sample distances smaller than half the wavelength of the incoming light, the collected intensity curves a…

The interaction of surface plasmon polaritons with a silver film edge.

A prism coupling arrangement is used to excite surface plasmons at the surface of a thin silver film and a photon scanning tunnelling microscope is used to detect the evanescent field above the silver surface. Excitation of the silver/air mode of interest is performed at lambda1 = 632.8 nm using a tightly focused beam, while the control of the tip is effected by exciting a counter-propagating surface plasmon field at a different wavelength, lambda2 = 543.5 nm, using an unfocused beam covering a macroscopic area. Propagation of the red surface plasmon is evidenced by an exponential tail extending away from the launch site, but this feature is abruptly truncated if the surface plasmon encount…

Étude en champ proche optique de cristaux photoniques bidimensionnels sur membrane suspendue

Nous presentons une etude experimentale en champ proche optique d'un cristal photonique 2D inscrit dans une membrane suspendue photoluminescente emettant a 1.5 μm. Les images obtenues mettent en evidence le guidage de la PL par la membrane, l'effet de bande interdite photonique ainsi que l'inhibition de l'emission de PL a l'interieur du cristal photonique.

Near-field spectroscopy of low-loss waveguide integrated microcavities

International audience; A scanning near-field spectroscopy method is used to observe loss reduction and Q-factor enhancement due to transverse-mode profile matching within photonic-crystal microcavities. Near-field measurements performed directly on cavity modes are compared with three-dimensional calculations and quantitative agreement is observed. (c) 2006 American Institute of Physics.

Near-field probing of active photonic-crystal structures

We report a study of the optical near field of an active integrated component operating near the 1.55-mum telecommunications wavelength. The device is based on a two-dimensional photonic crystal etched in a suspended InP membrane. Topographic as well as optical information is collected by use of a scanning near-field optical microscope in collection mode, providing information about the local distribution of the losses.

Near-field control of optical bistability in a nanocavity

Micro- and nanocavities allow for strong light confinement in very small volume [1]. They give opportunities for new experiments such as cavity quantum electrodynamics, waveguiding, light slowing or trapping…[2] The increase of the electromagnetic (EM) field in the cavity enhances the interaction between light and matter, resulting in the possible observation of nonlinear effects [3]. Several studies have recently been published on the observation and characterisation of nonlinear silicon cavities [4]. As a step further, we propose and demonstrate the feasibility of an innovative way to mechanically control the bistable operating regime of a nanovavity. Using a near-field tip, we switch the…

Nano-manipulation of confined electromagnetic fields with a near-field probe

International audience

Optical field molding within near-field coupled twinned nanobeam cavities

Twinned high Q nanobeam cavities can be optically coupled while being placed in the optical near-field of each other. They form then a new optical system which supports discrete field maps addressable by wavelength selection.

First Specifications of a PSTM Working In the Infrared

One of the most promising extension of the photon scanning tunneling microscope (PSTM) is its use as a locally resolved spectroscopic tool. The infrared (IR) spectral window offers a wide variety of interesting applications since many materials have a well-defined signature in this range. We have undertaken the experimental modifications that are necessary to operate the existing PSTM’s in the IR domain. In this work, we present preliminary data obtained with two IR light sources: an extended source (Globar type) and the free electron IR laser source (CLIO) available at LURE (Orsay). In both cases, the evanescent field has been detected with a fluoride glass optical fiber and the characteri…

Ridge-enhanced optical transmission through a continuous metal film

Optical transmission through a continuous (without holes) metal film with a periodic structure of metal or dielectric ridges on one or both interfaces was numerically studied. The dependencies of the transmission on the ridge width and height as well as the ridge arrangements on the opposite interfaces were investigated in weak- and strong-coupling regimes. The transmission enhancement was shown to depend on the relative position of the ridge gratings on the opposite interfaces of a film, confirming the role of resonant tunneling processes involving states of the surface polariton Bloch modes.

Etude en champ proche optique du tapis d'invisibilité de Li/Pendry

Photon Scanning Tunneling Microscopy and Reflection Scanning Microscopy

The Photon Scanning Tunneling Microscope (PSTM) is the photon analogue to the Electron Scanning Tunneling Microscope (ESTM). It uses the evanescent field due to the total internal reflection (TIR) of a light beam in a prism modulated by a sample attached to the prism. The exponential decay of the evanescent field is characterized by the penetration depth dp and depends on the angle of incidence θ, the wavelength and polarization of the incident beam. Changes in intensity are monitored by a probe tip scanned over the surface, and the data are processed to generate an image of the sample. Images produced by a prototype instrument are shown to have a vertical resolution of about 3 A and a late…

First images obtained in the near infrared spectrum with the photon scanning tunneling microscope

Abstract First images obtained in the near infrared spectrum with a photon scanning tunneling microscope are presented. The intensity of the light collected by the fibertip, at λ = 1.3 λm , which is a function of the separation between the tip and the sample surface is in agreement with that predicted by the theory. Images of quartz and silicon oxide are presented and the latter is compared with that obtained by an atomic force microscope.

Imaging of surface plasmon propagation and edge interaction using a photon scanning tunneling microscope

We report the direct imaging of surface plasmon propagation on thin silver films using the photon scanning tunneling microscope. It is found that the surface plasmon remains tightly confined in the original launch direction with insignificant scattering to other momentum states. A propagation length of 13.2 \ensuremath{\mu}m is measured at \ensuremath{\lambda}=632.8 nm. We also present images showing the interaction of a surface plasmon with the edge of the metal film supporting it. The most remarkable feature is the absence of specularly reflected beam.

Local excitation of surface plasmon polaritons at discontinuities of a metal film: Theoretical analysis and optical near-field measurements

Nonresonant excitation of surface plasmon polaritons at discontinuities of a gold film is numerically studied and experimentally observed with scanning near-field optical microscopy. It is shown that surface polaritons can be effectively launched at the edges of a metal film illuminated at an angle of incidence greater than the resonant angle of surface polariton excitation. The electromagnetic near-field distribution over a thin metal film exhibits significantly different features under resonant and nonresonant excitations due to different surface polariton excitation mechanisms. In the latter case the field distribution is determined by the interference of the excitation light and surface…

Numerical simulations of photon scanning tunneling microscopy: role of a probe tip geometry in image formation

Abstract Numerical simulations of two-dimensional probe–object system emulating a photon scanning tunnelling microscope are presented. R -matrix propagation algorithm incorporated into the differential method was used to achieve an extended capability to rigorously model a realistic system consisting of both a probe and a sample. Influence of the probe tip parameters on image formation in scanning near-field microscopy has been investigated. Coupling of the near-field to a single-mode probe and formation of a guided fundamental mode in a probe were investigated for various probe widths and lengths. The influence of the probe taper shape and apex size on near-field images was studied for sin…

Numerical study on localized defect modes in two-dimensional lattices: a high Q-resonant cavity

Abstract The spectral widths and the quality factors of defect modes localized for different defects structures formed in a 2D photonic crystal composed of a square lattice of circular rods of indium antimonide (InSb) are theoretically investigated. It is first shown that some factors such as the lattice nature, the line defect orientation, the nature and the defect width have a significant influence on the optical properties of the studied structures and can improve the Q factor and defect peak transmission intensity. Particularly, the transmission spectra of the defects calculated by means the transfer-matrix-method for a particular structure of eight line defects introduced in its center…

Far-Field Optical Control of a Movable Subdiffraction Light Grid

International audience; We demonstrate experimentally a subdiffraction light pattern, with a period down to 150 nm, at the surface of an optimized silicon nanostructured thin film. We show, using near-field and far-field characterization, that this subdiffraction pattern can be translated and rotated just by changing the illumination angle. The movable high frequency light pattern paves the way for subdiffraction resolution surface imaging microscopy without scanning near-field probes.

Resolution of the photon scanning tunneling microscope: influence of physical parameters

Abstract The photon scanning tunneling microscope (PSTM) is the photon analogue of the electron scanning tunneling microscope (ESTM). It uses the evanescent field due to total internal reflection (TIR) of a light beam in a prism modulated by a sample placed on the base of the prism. Our experimental results shown details which present a lateral size as small as 200 A. The PSTM axial resolution is more difficult to evaluate. It is a function of the roughness of the sample. For very smooth samples, images shown an axial resolution of about 10 A. At last we discuss how both lateral and axial resolution can be affected by several parameters such as the tip surface distance and the roughness of …

Analysis of photon-scanning tunneling microscope images of inhomogeneous samples: determination of the local refractive index of channel waveguides

Channel waveguides are imaged by a photon-scanning tunneling microscope (PSTM). The polarization of the light and its orientation with respect to the guide axis are shown to be very important parameters in the analysis of the images of such samples. We simulated image formation for the plane of incidence parallel to the axis of the guide. Our theoretical results are qualitatively in agreement with our measurements. These results show the ability of the PSTM to give information about the local refractive-index variations of a sample.

An Evanescent Field Optical Microscope

We present a new form of optical microscope. An evanescent field is produced in the lower index medium of an ATR system and modulated by a sample deposited on the hypotenuse of the prism. A sharpened fiber optic probes this field and gives information about the topography of the surface.

Optical tweezing using tunable optical lattices along a few-mode silicon waveguide

International audience; Fourteen years ago, optical lattices and holographic tweezers were considered as a revolution, allowing for trapping andmanipulating multiple particles at the same time using laser light. Since then, near-field optical forces have arousedtremendous interest as they enable efficient trapping of a wide range of objects, from living cells to atoms, in integrateddevices. Yet, handling at will multiple objects using a guided light beam remains a challenging task for current on-chipoptical trapping techniques. We demonstrate here on-chip optical trapping of dielectric microbeads and bacteria usingone-dimensional optical lattices created by near-field mode beating along a f…

How light gets through periodically nanostructured metal films: a role of surface polaritonic crystals

The physical origin of the enhanced optical transmission of periodically structured films related to surface plasmon polaritons is discussed from first principles. The enhancement of transmission through smooth, randomly rough and periodically nanostructured films is considered. Analysis shows that any metal (or dielectric) nanostructured film can exhibit enhanced transmission in certain spectral ranges corresponding to surface plasmon (or phonon) polariton Bloch mode states on a periodic structure. Resonant tunnelling via these states is responsible for the transmission enhancement. The properties of surface polaritonic crystals are analogous to those of photonic crystals and can find nume…

Imaging of test quartz gratings with a photon scanning tunneling microscope Experiment and theory

We use the differential formalism of the electromagnetic theory of gratings to interpret the images of test sinusoidal or lamellar quartz gratings obtained with a photon scanning tunneling microscope. The period of the grating is 0.5 μm, and the height of the rule is 0.2 μm. It is shown that the images depend strongly on several parameters, such as polarization or angle of incidence, with respect to the ruling direction. A systematic study of the isointensity lines above the gratings as a function of polarization is presented, and it is shown that the image contrast can be increased or decreased depending on the sample–probe distance. To model the interaction of the fiber probe with the ele…

Experimental demonstration of Bloch mode parity change in photonic crystal waveguide

We experimentally show coupling between two photonic crystal waveguide Bloch modes having a different parity. A monomode ridge waveguide etched in a silicon-on-insulator substrate and connecting to the photonic crystal waveguide allows us to excite the even Bloch mode. Transmission measurements, performed on a broad spectral range, show the even mode propagation along the defect line. Then, spectrally resolved near-field patterns obtained by using a scanning near-field optical microscope in collection mode for wavelengths, inside and outside the multimode region of the photonic crystal waveguide, clearly demonstrate coupling phenomenon between even and odd modes.

Discontinuity induced angular distribution of photon plasmon coupling

Metal-dielectric transitions are important structures that can display a host of optical characteristics including excitation of plasmons. Metal-dielectric discontinuities can furthermore support plasmon excitation without a severe condition on the incident angle of the exciting photons. Using a semi-infinite thin gold film, we study surface plasmon (SP) excitation and the associated electromagnetic near-field distribution by recording the resulting plasmon interference patterns. In particular, we measure interference periods involving SPs at the scanable metal/air interface and the buried metal/glass one. Supported by optical near-field simulations and experiments, we demonstrate that the …

Subwavelength imaging of field confinement in a waveguide-integrated photonic crystal cavity

A photonic crystal microcavity is designed to obtain an original field distribution inside the cavity and the structure is etched inside a silicon-on-insulator waveguide. Spectral location of the photonic band gap and cavity resonance are identified by using transmittance measurements and by analyzing the light collected by a scanning near-field optical microscope probe exactly positioned on the center of the cavity. The results obtained with the two techniques are in very good agreement. Then the near-field distribution above the device is mapped and light confinement inside the cavity is evidenced. Moreover, this confined light presents some remarkable patterns which clearly correspond to…

Computation of near field diffraction by a dielectric grating: a comparison with experiments

We use an eigenmode method to compute the near field diffracted by one-dimensional dielectric gratings. We present a set of easily programmable recurrence relations that give the diffracted field from the incident one. The numerical results are compared with the experimental images obtained with the Photon Scanning Tunneling Microscope (PSTM).

Assembly of microparticles by optical trapping with a photonic crystal nanocavity

International audience; In this work, we report the auto-assembly experiments of micrometer sized particles by optical trapping in the evanescent field of a photonic crystal nanocavity. The nanocavity is inserted inside an optofluidic cell designed to enable the real time control of the nanoresonator transmittance as well as the real time visualization of the particles motion in the vicinity of the nanocavity. It is demonstrated that the optical trap above the cavity enables the assembly of multiple particles in respect of different stable conformations.

Optofluidic taming of a colloidal dimer with a silicon nanocavity

International audience; We report here the optical trapping of a heterogeneous colloidal dimer above a photonic crystal nanocavity used as an on-chip optical tweezer. The trapped dimer consists of a cluster of two dielectric microbeads of different sizes linked by van der Waals forces. The smallest bead, 1 μm in diameter, is observed to be preferentially trapped by the nanotweezer, leaving the second bead untrapped. The rotational nature of the trapped dimer Brownian motion is first evidenced. Then, in the presence of a fluid flow, control of its orientation and rotation is achieved. The whole system is found to show high rotational degrees of freedom, thereby acting as an effective flow-se…

Reflection scanning microscopy.

To image nontransparent samples we have utilized a special type of scanning-probe microscope that is referred to here as a reflection scanning microscope. The reflection scanning microscope provides a method for producing a scanned point light source as well as a system for collecting the light that is reflected by the sample. The system, which uses an optical fiber coupler, is easily installed on an existing photon scanning tunneling microscope. A calculation of the coupling coefficient between the natural propagation mode of the optical fiber and the light that is reflected by the sample is presented along with a comparison between calculated and measured values of the intensity of the li…

Characterization of single-mode graded-index fibers: A new method based on transverse offset splice loss

A method of characterization has been proposed for single-mode graded-index fibers using knowledge of the power transmission coefficient at the splice as a function of transverse offset. The method utilizes an analytical expression for the power transmission coefficient based on a highly accurate variational approximation for the LP01 mode developed earlier. The method accurately predicts the profile shape parameter and the normalized frequency of the fiber. © 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Recent Experimental Results with the PSTM: - Observation of a Step on a Quartz Surface. - Spatial Spectroscopy of Microwaveguides

The Photon Scanning Tunneling Microscope (PSTM) is based on the frustration of the total internal reflected beam by the end of an optical fiber. Till today it has been used to obtain topographic information generally for smooth samples. In this paper we report two different kinds of experimental results. First, when the sample is in the form of a step, our measurements demonstrate how the images, obtained in the constant intensity mode, depend on the orientation of the incident beam of light with respect to the step. Next, we show that the first derivative of the collected intensity with respect to the probe-sample distance at each point of the sample yields to a new kind of image named her…

Coupling evanescently low loss Silicon-on-insulator (SOI) ridge waveguides(WGs) including high Q nanocavities: For light control

We have fabricated a multislotted optical nanoresonator with several spatial field distributions which are all addressable by the wavelength. The reported structure consists in an array of evanescently coupled single mode photonic crystal nanocavities. By using a scanning near-field optical microscope, we quantify the morphology of the different optical mode volumes and show that they consist in grids of light confined at the subwavelength scaleOver the last recent years, optical microcavities have proven their ability to slow down, control and even trap light inside an ultra small volume. Several approaches have led to quality factor (Q) records allowing to reach high photon life-time for …

Sample–tip coupling efficiencies of the photon-scanning tunneling microscope

The photon-scanning tunneling microscope is the photon analog to the electron-scanning tunneling microscope. It uses the evanescent field due to the total internal reflection of a light beam in a prism, modulated by a sample attached to the prism. The exponential decay of the evanescent field is characterized by the penetration depth dp and depends on the angle of incidence θ, the wavelength, and the polarization of the incident beam. The 1/e decay lengths range from 150 to 265 nm as deduced from the expression of the electric-field intensity in the rarer medium for θ = π/2. If we place another optically transparent medium near the surface, frustrated total reflection occurs. It is shown th…

Quantum Monte Carlo study of the alternating extended Peierls–Hubbard model applied to the trans-polyacetylene

Abstract The one-dimensional alternating Peierls–Hubbard model is especially interesting as nontrivial model for conjugated polymer chains, such as polyacetylene. We study this model for chains of 64 sites using the determinantal method based on Hubbard–Stratonovich transformation. We obtain the first electronic energies and their mean fluctuations at half-filling as a function of the on-site electron–electron interaction (both short and long range U, V coupling are considered). We also study the effect of the electron–electron interaction on the dimerization by investigating some of the important correlation functions, such as spin–spin correlation, on-site charge and the specific heat. Th…

Selective excitation of bright and dark plasmonic resonances of single gold nanorods.

Plasmonic dark modes are pure near-field resonances since their dipole moments are vanishing in far field. These modes are particularly interesting to enhance nonlinear light-matter interaction at the nanometer scale because radiative losses are mitigated therefore increasing the intrinsic lifetime of the resonances. However, the excitation of dark modes by standard far field approaches is generally inefficient because the symmetry of the electromagnetic near-field distribution has a poor overlap with the excitation field. Here, we demonstrate the selective optical excitation of bright and dark plasmonic modes of single gold nanorods by spatial phase-shaping the excitation beam. Using two-p…

Computation of the field diffracted by a local surface defect: application to tip–sample interaction in the photon scanning tunneling microscope

We use a method based on the Fourier transform of the electromagnetic field to compute the field diffracted by a local deformation of a plane boundary surface. We give a complete development of each step of the technique. To show the interaction that exists between the probe of a near-field optical microscope and the observed sample, we use the model of a truncated cone-shaped tip above a rectangular surface defect. We compute the electrical intensity along a line located between the tip and the local surface defect. We show the influence of the polarization of the incident wave and the effect of the position of the tip with respect to the position of the surface defect.

Coupling evanescently low loss Silicon-on-insulator ridge waveguides including high Q nanocavities for light control

Summary form only given. In this work, we propose an innovative way to achieve an air-slotted nanocavities by coupling evanescently low loss Silicon-on-insulator (SOI) ridge waveguides(WGs) including high Q nanocavities exhibiting an ultrasmall modal volume V. We first show that coupling two WGs allows us to achieve a field confinement within the air slot as low as lambda/30 while preserving a high group index of the guided modes. Then we demonstrate that merging such coupled WGs with state-of-the-art high-Q/small V nanocavities is a robust way to achieve a single compact (1 µm × 3 µm) air-slotted resonator on substrate. Finally, we extend the concept to multiple air-slotted resonator syste…

Analysis of image formation with a photon scanning tunneling microscope

International audience; The photon scanning tunneling microscope (PSTM) is based on the frustration of a total internal reflected beam by the end of an optical fiber. Until now it has been used to obtain topographic information, generally for smooth samples. We report theoretical as well as experimental results on the observation of a step on a quartz substrate with the PSTM. These results demonstrate the effects on image formation of the distance between the fiber tip and the sample surface, the orientation of the incident beam with respect to the step, the polarization, and the coherence of the light. Good agreement exists between numerical simulations and experiments. We show that a pert…