Circularly polarized, long-wave-infrared nanoantennas

Gergo P. Szakmany; Gary H. Bernstein; David Burghoff; Edward C. Kinzel; Alexei O. Orlov; Wolfgang Porod; David Strobel; Stephen M. White

doi:10.1117/12.2606384

7 March 2022 Circularly polarized, long-wave-infrared nanoantennas

Gergo P. Szakmany, Gary H. Bernstein, David Burghoff, Edward C. Kinzel, Alexei O. Orlov, Wolfgang Porod, David Strobel, Stephen M. White

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 12000, Terahertz, RF, Millimeter, and Submillimeter-Wave Technology and Applications XV; 1200004 (2022) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2606384
Event: SPIE OPTO, 2022, San Francisco, California, United States

Abstract

Polarization information regarding solar radiation is not readily available in the mid- to far-infrared regimes. Conventional thermal IR detectors capture intensity with a loss of specific spectral and polarization information. Thermoelectrically coupled nanoantennas (TECNAs) capture infrared radiation by using an antenna that provides the capability for spectral, polarization, and angle-of-incidence selectivity. The nanoantenna resonantly absorbs the incident IR radiation and heats the hot junction of a nanothermocouple, which provides an output voltage that is proportional to the intensity. This is accomplished with minimal thermal mass, and provides μs response times. Here we present TECNAs with log-spiral antennas that are capable of distinguishing left- and right-handed circular polarization (LHCP/RHCP) in the long-waveinfrared. The log-spiral TECNAs are suspended above quasi-hemispherical cavities etched into a Si substrate. The cavity thermally isolates the nanoantenna from the substrate and focuses the incident radiation onto it. Simulations show electromagnetic (EM) fields and resulting thermal distributions along the antennas for different polarizations. When the handedness of the EM polarization matches that of the antenna, the EM field is concentrated at the center of the antenna, while for opposite polarization it is concentrated toward the antenna leads. As a result, the temperature increase at the center of the nanoantenna for the two polarization directions is different. This provides an extinction ratio V_RHCP/V_LHCP ~ 4.

Conference Presentation

Citation Download Citation

Gergo P. Szakmany, Gary H. Bernstein, David Burghoff, Edward C. Kinzel, Alexei O. Orlov, Wolfgang Porod, David Strobel, and Stephen M. White "Circularly polarized, long-wave-infrared nanoantennas", Proc. SPIE 12000, Terahertz, RF, Millimeter, and Submillimeter-Wave Technology and Applications XV, 1200004 (7 March 2022); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2606384

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