In this letter we introduce a new type of infrared sensor, based on
thermocouple nanoantennas, which enables the energy detection and gathering in
the mid-infrared region. The proposed detector combines the Seebeck effect, as
a transduction mechanism, with the functionalities of the optical antennas for
optical sensing. By using finite-element numerical simulations we evaluate the
performance and optical-to-electrical conversion efficiency of the proposed
device, unveiling its potential for optical sensing and energy harvesting
applications.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, Invited paper at EUCAP 201
