Comprehensive deep learning model for 3D color holography.

Holography is a vital tool used in various applications from microscopy, solar energy, imaging, display to information encryption. Generation of a holographic image and reconstruction of object/hologram information from a holographic image using the current algorithms are time-consuming processes. Versatile, fast in the meantime, accurate methodologies are required to compute holograms performing color imaging at multiple observation planes and reconstruct object/sample information from a holographic image for widely accommodating optical holograms. Here, we focus on design of optical holograms for generation of holographic images at multiple observation planes and colors via a deep learning model, the CHoloNet. The CHoloNet produces optical holograms which show multitasking performance as multiplexing color holographic image planes by tuning holographic structures. Furthermore, our deep learning model retrieves an object/hologram information from an intensity holographic image without requiring phase and amplitude information from the intensity image. We show that reconstructed objects/holograms show excellent agreement with the ground-truth images. The CHoloNet does not need iteratively reconstruction of object/hologram information while conventional object/hologram recovery methods rely on multiple holographic images at various observation planes along with the iterative algorithms. We openly share the fast and efficient framework that we develop in order to contribute to the design and implementation of optical holograms, and we believe that the CHoloNet based object/hologram reconstruction and generation of holographic images will speed up wide-area implementation of optical holography in microscopy, data encryption, and communication technologies.

Wavefront shaping assisted design of spectral splitters and solar concentrators.

Spectral splitters, as well as solar concentrators, are commonly designed and optimized using numerical methods. Here, we present an experimental method to spectrally split and concentrate broadband light (420-875 nm) via wavefront shaping. We manage to spatially control white light using a phase-only spatial light modulator. As a result, we are able to split and concentrate three frequency bands, namely red (560-875 nm), green (425-620 nm), and blue (420-535 nm), to two target spots with a total enhancement factor of 715%. Despite the significant overlap between the color channels, we obtain spectral splitting ratios as 52%, 57%, and 66% for red, green, and blue channels, respectively. We show that a higher number of adjustable superpixels ensures higher spectral splitting and concentration. We provide the methods to convert an optimized phase pattern into a diffractive optical element that can be fabricated at large scale and low cost. The experimental method that we introduce, for the first time, enables the optimization and design of SpliCons, which is [Formula: see text] times faster compared to the computational methods.

Effective bandwidth approach for the spectral splitting of solar spectrum using diffractive optical elements.

Spectral splitting of the sunlight using diffractive optical elements (DOEs) is an effective method to increase the efficiency of solar panels. Here, we design phase-only DOEs by using an iterative optimization algorithm to spectrally split and simultaneously concentrate solar spectrum. In our calculations, we take material dispersion into account as well as the normalized blackbody spectrum of the sunlight. The algorithm consists of the local search optimization and is strengthened with an outperforming logic operation called MEAN optimization. Using the MEAN optimization algorithm, we demonstrate spectral splitting of a dichromatic light source at 700 nm and 1100 nm with spectral splitting efficiencies of 92% and 94%, respectively. In this manuscript, we introduce an effective bandwidth approach, which reduces the computational time of DOEs from 89 days to 8 days, while preserving the spectral splitting efficiency. Using our effective bandwidth method, we manage to spectrally split light into two separate bands between 400 nm - 700 nm and 701 nm - 1100 nm, with splitting efficiencies of 56% and 63%, respectively. Our outperforming and effective bandwidth design approach can be applied to DOE designs in color holography, spectroscopy, and imaging applications.

Adaptive Control of Necklace States in a Photonic Crystal Waveguide.

Resonant cavities with high quality factor and small mode volume provide crucial enhancement of light-matter interactions in nanophotonic devices that transport and process classical and quantum information. The production of functional circuits containing many such cavities remains a major challenge, as inevitable imperfections in the fabrication detune the cavities, which strongly affects functionality such as transmission. In photonic crystal waveguides, intrinsic disorder gives rise to high-Q localized resonances through Anderson localization; however their location and resonance frequencies are completely random, which hampers functionality. We present an adaptive holographic method to gain reversible control on these randomly localized modes by locally modifying the refractive index. We show that our method can dynamically form or break highly transmitting necklace states, which is an essential step toward photonic-crystal-based quantum networks and signal processing circuits, as well as slow light applications and fundamental physics.

Tuning out disorder-induced localization in nanophotonic cavity arrays.

Weakly coupled high-Q nanophotonic cavities are building blocks of slow-light waveguides and other nanophotonic devices. Their functionality critically depends on tuning as resonance frequencies should stay within the bandwidth of the device. Unavoidable disorder leads to random frequency shifts which cause localization of the light in single cavities. We present a new method to finely tune individual resonances of light in a system of coupled nanocavities. We use holographic laser-induced heating and address thermal crosstalk between nanocavities using a response matrix approach. As a main result we observe a simultaneous anticrossing of 3 nanophotonic resonances, which were initially split by disorder.

Measurement of the profiles of disorder-induced localized resonances in photonic crystal waveguides by local tuning.

Near the band edge of photonic crystal waveguides, localized modes appear due to disorder. We demonstrate a new method to elucidate spatial profile of the localized modes in such systems using precise local tuning. Using deconvolution with the known thermal profile, the spatial profile of a localized mode with quality factor (Q) > 105 is successfully reconstructed with a resolution of 2.5 µm.

Optimal all-optical switching of a microcavity resonance in the telecom range using the electronic Kerr effect.

We have switched GaAs/AlAs and AlGaAs/AlAs planar microcavities that operate in the "Original" (O) telecom band by exploiting the instantaneous electronic Kerr effect. We observe that the resonance frequency reversibly shifts within one picosecond when the nanostructure is pumped with low-energy photons. We investigate experimentally and theoretically the role of several parameters: the material backbone and its electronic bandgap, the quality factor, and the duration of the switch pulse. The magnitude of the frequency shift is reduced when the backbone of the central λ-layer has a greater electronic bandgap compared to the cavity resonance frequency and the frequency of the pump. This observation is caused by the fact that pumping with photon energies near the bandgap resonantly enhances the switched magnitude. We thus find that cavities operating in the telecom O-band are more amenable to ultrafast Kerr switching than those operating at lower frequencies, such as the C-band. Our results indicate that the large bandgap of AlGaAs/AlAs cavity allows to tune both the pump and the probe to the telecom range to perform Kerr switching without detrimental two-photon absorption. We observe that the magnitude of the resonance frequency shift decreases with increasing quality factor of the cavity. Our model shows that the magnitude of the resonance frequency shift depends on the pump pulse duration and is maximized when the duration matches the cavity storage time to within a factor two. In our experiments, we obtain a maximum shift of the cavity resonance relative to the cavity linewidth of 20%. We project that the shift of the cavity resonance can be increased twofold with a pump pulse duration that better matches the cavity storage time. We provide the essential parameter settings for different materials so that the frequency shift of the cavity resonance can be maximized using the electronic Kerr effect.

Dispersion of coupled mode-gap cavities.

The dispersion of a coupled resonator optical waveguide made of photonic crystal mode-gap cavities is pronouncedly asymmetric. This asymmetry cannot be explained by the standard tight binding model. We show that the fundamental cause of the asymmetric dispersion is the inherent dispersive cavity mode profile; i.e., the mode wave function depends on the driving frequency, not the eigenfrequency. This occurs because the photonic crystal cavity resonances do not form a complete set. We formulate a dispersive mode coupling model that accurately describes the asymmetric dispersion without introducing any new free parameters.

Dynamical electrical tuning of a silicon microsphere: used for spectral mapping of the optical resonances.

In this work, electrical square pulses at various duty cycles are applied to a silicon microsphere resonator in order to continuously tune the refractive index of a silicon microsphere and to map the optical resonance in the time domain. A continuous-wave semiconductor diode laser operating in the L-band is used for the excitation of the silicon microsphere optical resonances. The 90° transverse magnetically polarized elastic scattering signal is used to monitor the silicon microsphere resonances. We show that at a constant input laser wavelength, up to five high-quality-factor optical resonances can be scanned by dynamical electrical tuning of the silicon microsphere cavity.

All-optical switching of a microcavity repeated at terahertz rates.

We have repeatedly and reproducibly switched a GaAs-AlAs planar microcavity operating in the "original" telecom band by exploiting the virtually instantaneous electronic Kerr effect. We achieve repetition times as fast as 300 fs, thereby breaking the terahertz modulation barrier. The rate of the switching in our experiments is only determined by optics and not by material-related relaxation. Our results offer opportunities for fundamental studies of cavity quantum electrodynamics and optical information processing in the subpicosecond time scale.

On the pathway of photoexcited electrons: probing photon-to-electron and photon-to-phonon conversions in silicon by ATR-IR.

Photoexcitation and charge carrier thermalization inside semiconductor photocatalysts are two important steps in solar fuel production. Here, photoexcitation and charge carrier thermalization in a silicon wafer are for the first time probed by a novel, yet simple and user-friendly Attenuated Total Reflectance Infrared spectroscopy (ATR-IR) system.

Geometrically enhanced morphology-dependent resonances of a dielectric sphere.

The effect that geometrical resonances of orbiting internally reflecting rays have on the morphology-dependent resonances of microspheres is investigated heuristically and numerically using generalized Lorenz-Mie theory. Angularly resolved off-axis Gaussian beam elastic scattering spectra are presented. The results obtained show that the elastic scattering intensity of morphology-dependent resonances is noticeably enhanced in the vicinity of the geometrical resonance scattering angles.