Stimuli-Responsive Phase Change Materials: Optical and Optoelectronic Applications

Abstract

Stimuli-responsive materials offer a large variety of possibilities in fabrication of solid- state devices. Phase change materials (PCMs) undergo rapid and drastic changes of their optical properties upon switching from one crystallographic phase to another one. This peculiarity makes PCMs ideal candidates for a number of applications including sensors, active displays, photonic volatile and non-volatile memories for information storage and computer science and optoelectronic devices. This review analyzes different examples of PCMs, in particular germanium–antimonium tellurides and vanadium dioxide (VO2) and their applications in the above-mentioned fields, with a detailed discussion on potential, limitations and challenges.

Nanomaterials based on phase change materials for antibacterial application

“…In recent years, nanoparticles based on PCM have been widely used in biomedical research due to their excellent biocompatibility, sustained release, high abundance, low cost, and outstanding targeting properties. [17][18][19] PCM can serve as carriers for various drugs and protect them from pre-release or deactivation during circulation. The excellent PCM for biomedical application has the following properties: (1) High loading capacity for delivered drugs.…”

Bi2O2Se-based integrated multifunctional optoelectronics

“…4,[12][13][14][15] Furthermore, in some study, phase change materials have been used to demonstrate optoelectronic memory. [16][17] Charge trapping plays a vital role in the implementation of optical memory. The charge trapping characteristics of graphene and MoS 2 were studied by graphene/hBN/MoS 2 structures showing different hysteresis curves with variations in the thickness of the MoS 2 layers.…”

Ultra-compact right-angle curved waveguide optical modulator based on vanadium dioxide

“…According to the actual application, ultra-fast modulation time, ultra-low control power, high modulation efficiency, and ultra-compact footprint are the four most important performance indicators of optical modulators [1][2][3]. The new generation of optical devices is moving towards a high degree of integration, enabling dynamic tuning of devices at low power consumption while further reducing footprint and improving system performance [4][5][6][7][8]. Therefore, the researchers overcome this obstacle by introducing phase-change materials (PCMs) that can modulate their optical properties through relatively low external stimuli, such as direct heating [9], applying voltage [10], or laser pulses [11].…”