Nanoscale Photodetector Shows Promise To Improve The Capacity Of Photonic Circuits

Researchers at the University of Rochester have fabricated a device in which light can induce a current using a silver nanowire — an important step toward harnessing light to speed up the next generation of circuits

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Photonic circuits, which use light to transmit signals, are markedly faster than electronic circuits. Unfortunately, they’re also bigger. It’s difficult to localize visible light below its diffraction limit, about 200-300 nanometers, and as components in electronic semiconductors have shrunk to the nanometer scale, the photonic circuit size limitation has given electronic circuits a significant advantage, despite the speed discrepancy.

“Detection of Optical Plasmons Using an Atomically-Thin Semiconductor”

Now researchers at the University of Rochester have demonstrated a key achievement in shrinking photonic devices below the diffraction limit — a necessary step on the road to making photonic circuits competitive with today’s technology. The scientists developed a nanoscale photodetector that uses the common material molybdenum disulfide to detect optical plasmons — travelling oscillations of electrons below the diffraction limit — and successfully demonstrated that light can drive a current using a silver nanowire.

“Our devices are a step towards miniaturization below the diffraction limit,” said Kenneth Goodfellow, a graduate student in the laboratory of the Quantum Optoelectronics and Optical Metrology Group, The Institute of Optics, University of Rochester, New York. “It is a step towards using light to drive, or, at least complement electronic circuitry for faster information transfer.”

The team will present their work at the Frontiers in Optics, The Optical Society’s annual meeting and conference in San Jose, California, USA, on 22 October 2015.

The device expands on previous work demonstrating that light could be transmitted along a silver nanowire as a plasmon and re-emitted at the other end, which was covered with atomically-thin flakes of molybdenum disulfide (MoS₂). When re-emitted, the light corresponded to the band gap of MoS₂, rather than solely to the laser’s wavelength, demonstrating that the plasmons effectively nudged the electrons in MoS₂ into a different energy state.

“The natural next idea would be to see if this type of device would be able to be used as a photodetector,” Goodfellow said.

To do this, the group transferred a silver nanowire coated at one end with MoS₂ onto a silicon substrate and deposited metal contacts onto that same end with electron beam lithography. They then connected the device to equipment to control its bias, or fixed, voltage and to measure the current running through it.

When the uncovered end of the wire was exposed to a laser, the energy was converted into plasmons, a form of electromagnetic wave that travels through oscillations in electron density. This energy electronically excited an electron once it reached the molybdenum disulfide-covered end, effectively generating a current.

By scanning the wire bit-by-bit with a laser — a process known as raster scanning — the researchers were able to measure current at each point along the wire, finding that it was sensitive to the polarization of the incoming light and was at its strongest when the light was polarized parallel to the wire. They also found that the device was sensitive to the laser’s excitation wavelength, and performance was limited at shorter wavelengths due to ineffective plasmon propagation and at longer wavelengths due to the band gap of molybdenum disulfide.

“Full photonic circuits are some time in the future, but this work helps to feed the current effort,” Goodfellow said.

Future work for the group includes reducing potential contamination in device assembly by transitioning to a complete dry transfer of wires and MoS₂ onto prefabricated electrodes, as well as gaining better control of the MoS₂ doping process to add additional charge carriers and improve the device’s efficiency.

About the Presentation

The presentation, “Detection of Optical Plasmons Using an Atomically-Thin Semiconductor,” by Kenneth Goodfellow, will take place from 15:30 – 17:00, Thursday, 22 October 2015, in The Fairmont Hotel, San Jose, California, USA.

Media Registration: A media room for credentialed press and analysts will be located on-site in The Fairmont Hotel, 18-22 October 2015. Media interested in attending the event should register on the FiO website media center: Media Center.

About FiO/LS

Frontiers in Optics (FiO) 2015 is The Optical Society’s (OSA) 99th Annual Meeting and is being held with Laser Science, the 31th annual meeting of the American Physical Society (APS) Division of Laser Science (DLS). The two meetings unite the OSA and APS communities for five days of quality, cutting-edge presentations, in-demand invited speakers and a variety of special events spanning a broad range of topics in optics and photonics—the science of light—across the disciplines of physics, biology and chemistry. The exhibit floor will feature leading optics companies, technology products and programs. More information at: www.FrontiersinOptics.org.

About The Optical Society

Founded in 1916, The Optical Society (OSA) is the leading professional organization for scientists, engineers, students and entrepreneurs who fuel discoveries, shape real-life applications and accelerate achievements in the science of light. Through world-renowned publications, meetings and membership initiatives, OSA provides quality research, inspired interactions and dedicated resources for its extensive global network of optics and photonics experts. OSA is a founding partner of the National Photonics Initiative and the 2015 International Year of Light. For more information, visit: www.osa.org.

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