2,072 research outputs found
Strategy for designing broadband epsilon-near-zero metamaterial with loss compensation by gain media
A strategy is proposed to design the broadband gain-doped epsilon-near-zero
(GENZ) metamaterial. Based on the Milton representation of effective
permittivity, the strategy starts in a dimensionless spectral space, where the
effective permittivity of GENZ metamaterial is simply determined by a pole-zero
structure corresponding to the operating frequency range. The physical
structure of GENZ metamaterial is retrieved from the pole-zero structure via a
tractable inverse problem. The strategy is of great advantage in practical
applications and also theoretically reveals the cancellation mechanism
dominating the broadband near-zero permittivity phenomenon in the spectral
space
Ab initio theory of Fano resonances in plasmonic nanostructures and metamaterials
An ab initio theory for Fano resonances in plasmonic nanostructures and
metamaterials is developed using Feshbach formalism. It reveals the role played
by the electromagnetic modes and material losses in the system, and enables the
engineering of Fano resonances in arbitrary geometries. A general formula for
the asymmetric resonance in a non-conservative system is derived. The influence
of the electromagnetic interactions on the resonance line shape is discussed
and it is shown that intrinsic losses drive the resonance contrast, while its
width is mostly determined by the coupling strength between the non-radiative
mode and the continuum. The analytical model is in perfect agreement with
numerical simulations.Comment: 13 pages, 5 figure
Multidimensional optical fractionation with holographic verification
The trajectories of colloidal particles driven through a periodic potential
energy landscape can become kinetically locked in to directions dictated by the
landscape's symmetries. When the landscape is realized with forces exerted by a
structured light field, the path a given particle follows has been predicted to
depend exquisitely sensitively on such properties as the particle's size and
refractive index These predictions, however, have not been tested
experimentally. Here, we describe measurements of colloidal silica spheres'
transport through arrays of holographic optical traps that use holographic
video microscopy to track individual spheres' motions in three dimensions and
simultaneously to measure each sphere's radius and refractive index with
part-per-thousand resolution. These measurements confirm previously untested
predictions for the threshold of kinetically locked-in transport, and
demonstrate the ability of optical fractionation to sort colloidal spheres with
part-per-thousand resolution on multiple characteristics simultaneously.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures. Accepted for publication in Physical Review
Letter
Tungsten nuclear rocket, phase II, part 1 Final report, Jan. 16 - Jun. 15, 1966
Critical experiments and nuclear analyses of tungsten water moderated nuclear rocket reacto
RAFCON: a Graphical Tool for Task Programming and Mission Control
There are many application fields for robotic systems including service
robotics, search and rescue missions, industry and space robotics. As the
scenarios in these areas grow more and more complex, there is a high demand for
powerful tools to efficiently program heterogeneous robotic systems. Therefore,
we created RAFCON, a graphical tool to develop robotic tasks and to be used for
mission control by remotely monitoring the execution of the tasks. To define
the tasks, we use state machines which support hierarchies and concurrency.
Together with a library concept, even complex scenarios can be handled
gracefully. RAFCON supports sophisticated debugging functionality and tightly
integrates error handling and recovery mechanisms. A GUI with a powerful state
machine editor makes intuitive, visual programming and fast prototyping
possible. We demonstrated the capabilities of our tool in the SpaceBotCamp
national robotic competition, in which our mobile robot solved all exploration
and assembly challenges fully autonomously. It is therefore also a promising
tool for various RoboCup leagues.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figure
Direct generation of charge carriers in c-Si solar cells due to embedded nanoparticles
It is known that silicon is an indirect band gap material, reducing its
efficiency in photovoltaic applications. Using surface plasmons in metallic
nanoparticles embedded in a solar cell has recently been proposed as a way to
increase the efficiency of thin film silicon solar cells. The dipole mode that
dominates the plasmons in small particles produces an electric field having
Fourier components with all wave numbers. In this work, we show that such a
field creates electron-hole-pairs without phonon assistance, and discuss the
importance of this effect compared to radiation from the particle and losses
due to heating.Comment: 1 figur
Circuit elements at optical frequencies: nano-inductors, nano-capacitors and nano-resistors
We present some ideas for synthesizing nanocircuit elements in the optical
domain using plasmonic and non-plasmonic nanoparticles. Three basic circuit
elements, i.e., nano-inductors, nano-capacitors, and nano-resistors, are
discussed in terms of small nanostructures with different material properties.
Coupled nanocircuits and parallel and series combinations are also envisioned,
which may provide road maps for the synthesis of more complex nanocircuits in
the IR and visible bands. Ideas for the optical implementation of right-handed
and left-handed nano-transmission lines are also forecasted.Comment: 14 pages, 5 figures, submitted to Physical Review Letter
Electromagnetic multipole theory for optical nanomaterials
Optical properties of natural or designed materials are determined by the
electromagnetic multipole moments that light can excite in the constituent
particles. In this work we present an approach to calculate the multipole
excitations in arbitrary arrays of nanoscatterers in a dielectric host medium.
We introduce a simple and illustrative multipole decomposition of the electric
currents excited in the scatterers and link this decomposition to the classical
multipole expansion of the scattered field. In particular, we find that
completely different multipoles can produce identical scattered fields. The
presented multipole theory can be used as a basis for the design and
characterization of optical nanomaterials
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