Gain-enhanced high-k transmission through metal-semiconductor hyperbolic metamaterials

Abstract

We analyze the steady-state transmission of high-momentum (high-k) electromagnetic waves through metal-semiconductor multilayer systems with loss and gain in the near-infrared (NIR). Using a semi-classical optical gain model in conjunction with the scattering matrix method (SMM), we study indium gallium arsenide phosphide (InGaAsP) quantum wells as the active semiconductor, in combination with the metals, aluminum-doped zinc oxide (AZO) and silver (Ag). Under moderate external pumping levels, we find that NIR transmission through Ag/InGaAsP systems may be enhanced by several orders of magnitude relative to the unpumped case, over a large angular and frequency bandwidth. Conversely, transmission enhancement through AZO/InGaAsP systems is orders of magnitude smaller, and has a strong frequency dependence. We discuss the relative importance of Purcell enhancement on our results and validate analytical calculations based on the SMM with numerical finite-difference time domain simulations.

Moosh: A Numerical Swiss Army Knife for the Optics of Multilayers in Octave/Matlab

“…The functions provided with Moosh are easy to reuse with optimization techniques, for instance. We are confident that Moosh will be useful to the optics community in the future [19,20]. Finally, we underline that the s polarization is actually equivalent to a 1D quantum problem for the wave function of a single particle, if the x coordinate is considered as being the time.…”

Photonics for Smart Cities

“…One of the candidates for enhanced emission and detection in these regimes is III-V semiconductors coupled to plasmonic inclusions [81][82][83]. The first luminescent hyperbolic metamaterial was developed recently by our group, operating at the C telecommunication band [84][85][86]. However, the capability of tuning the constituent materials allows, in principle, absorption and emission in the required atypical wavelengths.…”

Luminescent hyperbolic metasurfaces

“…In addition to mitigation of internal and insertion losses, theoretical studies have shown that losses in HMM may be compensated with gain 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 . These studies generally assume replacement of the passive constituent dielectric with an active gain material and have yielded encouraging results that include the possibility of signal amplification under particular conditions.…”

“…These studies generally assume replacement of the passive constituent dielectric with an active gain material and have yielded encouraging results that include the possibility of signal amplification under particular conditions. Namely, the signal frequency must be sufficiently far from the plasma frequency of the constituent metal 44 45 , whereas signal propagation should occur in the direction normal to the metal-dielectric interfaces 40 42 44 . Gain media considered have included organic dye molecules 40 41 42 43 , which are relatively easy to blanket deposit atop multilayer or nanowire array HMMs.…”

“…However, dyes generally suffer from a high propensity to photo-bleach, poor integration with electronics and low quantum yield at near-infrared frequencies. Inorganic semiconductors have also been considered as gain media 44 45 , the fabrication of which into multilayer structures with noble metals faces technical challenges, because semiconductor growth processes generally do not permit alternating deposition with metals. Nonetheless, good photo-stability, the potential for electrical gating or carrier injection using appropriately doped heterostructures and their high quantum efficiency makes III–V compounds an attractive gain media for HMMs operating at visible and near-infrared frequencies.…”