METATUNE · TUNABLE NONLINEAR METAMATERIALS

Tunable non-linear metamaterials

Thanks to the Marie Curie Fellowship I worked in a theoretical model devoted to the description of non-linear phenomenous in metamaterials. The performed research can have important repercussions in solar cell devices as well as in sensing science. We also proposed a new class of metamaterials that present negative refraction properties that can have tremendous consequences in the design of high-resolution microscopies strongly aimed. Following the plan in my proposal, during my Marie Curie project I have worked in a new theoretical approach to nonlinearity in metamaterials by means of a Green dyadic method and in to develop a numerical tool for that. As planned, I started reviewing the literature and the various method and techniques usually adopted in non-linear metamaterials. Following, I built a new approach based on the Green dyadic method. I explored the limitations of that model and compared with analytical situations. The work done can be divided in two main parts: in the first part, I have built a general approach to the light scattering by arbitrary linear structures; in the second part, I have introduced the nonlinearities. The developed theory works very well when the non-linearity it is very small, but gives results less accurate for more extreme situations when the non-linearity play an important role. Interestingly, studying the nonlinear case I discovered important aspects and applications of the linear problem that were unknown in connection with Fano resonances, negative refraction in metamaterials and solar-cell applications. These results were published in 10 peer-reviewed international journals, some of them with a high impact, in particular, two publications were highlighted in Nature Chemistry (Angew. Chem., 50(50):11985-11989, 2011) and Nature Photonics (Nano Lett., 11(7):2835-2840, 2011). As well as these results were disseminated in six international conferences. It is important to highlight that we managed to understand and describe analytically the interaction of sharp resonances with plasmonic modes that gives Fano resonances (2) (very relevant in linear and nonlinear metamaterials) as well as to propose a new kind of metamaterials that make possible to observe negative refraction in the optical range (1). The research of this first year allowed me to build a collaboration with four important groups: The C. Phillips and N. J. Ekins-Daukes groups at the Imperial College London, the group of U. Wiesner at Cornell and the group of M.H. Hong in Singapore.

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