An exciton-polariton bolometer for terahertz radiation detection

Abstract

We experimentally investigate the feasibility of a bolometric device based on exciton-polaritons. Initial measurements presented in this work show that heating – via thermal expansion and bandgap renormalization – modifies the exciton-polariton propagation wavevector making exciton-polaritons propagation remarkably sensitive to thermal variations. By theoretical simulations we predict that using a single layer graphene absorbing layer, a THz bolometric sensor can be realized by a simple exciton-polariton ring interferometer device. The predicted sensitivity is comparable to presently existing THz bolometric devices with the convenience of being a device that inherently produces an optical signal output.

Phonon-Polaritons in Lead Halide Perovskite Film Hybridized with THz Metamaterials

“…Polaritons are quasi-particles formed when photons are coherently coupled with excitation materials, such as phonons, excitons, and surface plasmons. − The polariton has a strong impact in various fields, such as efficient energy conversion, high-efficiency second-harmonic generation, enhanced Raman scattering, optical transistors, superfluidity, quantized vortices, Bose–Einstein condensation at room temperature, and polariton lasers. − For example, exciton-polaritons in strongly coupled quantum well microcavities can undergo stimulated scattering, which promises the energy-efficient generation of coherent light by polariton lasers. , In general, the Bragg cavity structure was introduced to couple the electromagnetic waves efficiently to the excitation materials at the desired frequency. , Conversely, the phonon in solid systems has well-defined resonant energy ranging from mid-infrared to terahertz (THz) frequency range. − Therefore, phonon-polaritons based on novel functional materials could provide an efficient quantum level system with extreme light–matter interaction, which is essential for the development of tunable sources and detectors, optical filters, and qubits operating in the far-infrared frequency range. − In particular, surface phonon-polaritons have been introduced as an attractive alternative to plasmonics because of the long lifetime and low losses of optical phonons. − …”

High-angle optically accessible Brewster cavity exciton-polaritons

“…Finally, an optimized sample design is proposed allowing for an improved quality factor and efficient coupling with QWs. All these results demonstrate the high potential of these structures for the study of propagating polaritons at high k which have proved to be very useful for the realization of interferometric [26] and gating [10] devices. Furthermore, similar to SBW and waveguide structures, they require fewer growth steps compared to conventional MCs, with an extra advantage of this high k mode being within the light cone and being easily accessible.…”

Fast Switching of Bolometric and Self‐Powered Effects in 2H‐NbSe2 for High‐Efficiency Low‐Energy Photon Harvesting

“…Photodetectors play a crucial role in a plethora of modern optoelectronic technologies in our daily life and it depends on various light-induced effects to transform electromagnetic radiation into electrical signals, thus expanding its usage in spectral time, and operating temperature. [8][9][10] The rectification-type detectors, Schottky barrier detectors (SBD), are the most sensitive uncooled terahertz detectors reported to date. Nonetheless, these detectors suffer considerable drawbacks imposed by the complex fabrication processes, and their performance is hardly improved beyond the electric cutoff frequency.…”

“…[ 5–7 ] The current commercial thermal‐type terahertz detectors, such as Golay cell, thermocouple, and pyroelectric and bolometric detectors, are unable to attain a reasonable trade‐off between sensitivity, operating time, and operating temperature. [ 8–10 ] The rectification‐type detectors, Schottky barrier detectors (SBD), are the most sensitive uncooled terahertz detectors reported to date. Nonetheless, these detectors suffer considerable drawbacks imposed by the complex fabrication processes, and their performance is hardly improved beyond the electric cutoff frequency.…”