Search Results (34)

Active control of multi-mode light–matter interactions is crucial for advancing quantum photonic technologies. Although triple-mode plasmon–exciton systems involving two distinct excitonic transitions offer a pathway to multi-level polaritonic states, achieving reversible electrical tuning at room temperature remains challenging. Here, we numerically investigate an electrically tunable triple-mode strong-coupling system comprising a J-aggregate-coated Au@Ag nanorod coupled with monolayer WS₂. The simulated spectra show a UPB–LPB energy separation of approximately 239 meV near the zero-detuning condition. A modest gate voltage (2.0 V to 3.8 V) selectively modulates the middle and lower polariton branches over ∼46 meV, while the upper branch remains largely unaffected. This selective control is elucidated via a triple-mode coupled-oscillator model and Hopfield coefficient analysis, linking the polariton response to the excitonic composition. These results establish a framework for electrically reconfigurable multi-level polaritonic devices, offering potential for ultracompact optical modulators, high-sensitivity multiplexed sensors, and programmable quantum photonic circuits. Full article

This study proposes an effective method for realizing broadband-infrared (IR)-equivalent absorption using a metasurface constructed by shaping a metal–insulator–metal structure leading to a semi-opened nanocavity. The metasurface architecture is formed according to an optimized structural configuration and mature micro–nano-fabrication flow. Both the surface travelling and localized resonant wavefield accumulation excited by incident lightwaves in a broad wavelength range of 1–14 μm can be efficiently manipulated based on a dipole molecule antenna responding mechanism. An electromagnetic wavefield shielding effect within the semi-opened nanocavity and the standing-wave formation around the metasurface near-field based on an arrayed titanium–dielectric–titanium structure are examined in detail. The measured IR spectral absorption characteristics reveal that the metasurfaces based on an arrayed top titanium cap with the featured dimensions of 2.0 μm and 2.4 μm can be used to achieve an average equivalent IR absorptivity higher than 80% and 82%, respectively, across a broad wavelength range of 1.29–14 μm, which covers the traditional short-, medium- and long-wave IR bands. Full article

Quantum dots combine advantages such as strong processability via solution methods, wide color gamut coverage, and precise emission color coordinates, making them highly promising for applications in optoelectronic devices. However, they face limitations such as insufficient fluorescence intensity and low far-field extraction efficiency. Plasmonic nanocavities based on metallic nanostructures offer an efficient platform for regulating light–matter interactions. In this study, we constructed a tilted plasmonic nanocavity structure composed of a silver nanocube, CdSe/CdS nanorods, and a single-crystal silver microplate. An Al₂O₃ isolation layer prepared via atomic layer deposition was used to control the nanocavity gap, precisely matching the plasmonic resonance mode with the 620 nm fluorescence emission of the quantum dots. This coupling system significantly enhances the radiative rate in the emission band and the electric field strength in the excitation band, achieving a 187-fold luminescence enhancement of the quantum dot. Additionally, leveraging the nano-antenna effect, the fluorescence exhibits upward directional emission. Experimental and simulation results confirm the high-efficiency enhancement and directional control of quantum dot fluorescence by the tilted nanocavity, providing new insights for the integrated application of quantum dots in displays, quantum communication, and other fields. Full article

This paper presents a novel Double Buried-Window Junctionless Field-Effect Transistor (DBW-FET) designed for high-sensitivity, label-free biosensing applications. The proposed device integrates two buried windows, one N-type and one P-type, beneath the active channel within the buried oxide layer, along with two nanocavities serving as biomolecular recognition sites. The dual buried windows form two depletion regions that enhance electrostatic coupling, suppress short-channel effects, and improve biomolecular sensitivity. Numerical simulations using Silvaco TCAD Atlas were performed to investigate device performance under various biomolecular binding conditions. Results show that the DBW-FET exhibits higher drain current, lower subthreshold swing, and improved sensitivity compared with a conventional junctionless FET (C-FET). Furthermore, a machine-learning-assisted optimization framework employing Gaussian Process Regression (GPR) and Bayesian Optimization (BO) was implemented to identify optimal buried window parameters. The optimized design achieved a 20–25% improvement in current sensitivity while maintaining low leakage. These findings demonstrate that the proposed DBW-FET offers a promising and Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor (CMOS)-compatible architecture for next-generation nanoscale biosensors. Full article

Supported metal catalysts are extensively applied in the heterogeneous catalysis field. However, metal species are prone to migration and aggregation during catalytic reactions due to their high surface energy, which leads to deactivation. In recent years, the use of porous materials, particularly zeolites, to anchor metal species has gained significant attention. By confining metal single atoms, subnanometer metal clusters, and nanoparticles within the pores or nanocavities of these materials, the dispersion and stability of the metal species can be greatly enhanced, thereby improving the catalytic performance. This review systematically discussed the synthesis principles and diverse methodologies to fabricate zeolite-encapsulated metal catalysts. It further outlined their catalytic applications across various catalysis fields, emphasizing enhanced stability and selectivity enabled by confinement effects. Finally, the review provided critical perspectives on future developments, addressing challenges in precise structural control and scalability for industrial implementation. Full article

Rare earth-doped upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) can convert low-energy photons (NIRs) into high-energy photons (visible light), offering advantages such as low background signal, good stability, and excellent biocompatibility. However, exploring a strategy to combine the advantages of high efficiency, low cost, and easy fabrication of a plasmonics–UCNPs system is still a challenge. Here, we reported a metal–dielectric–metal (MDM)-type plasmonic platform based on the aluminum metasurface, which can efficiently enhance the luminescence intensity of magnetic and non-magnetic rare earth-doped UCNPs. Attributed to the strong local field effect of the nanocavities formed by the aluminum anti-transmission layer at the bottom, the fluorescence of the two types of UCNPs in such a platform can be enhanced by over 1000 folds compared with that in the conventional substrate. It is found that the deposited UCNPs amount and the aluminum pillar size can both impact the enhancement. We confirmed that the constructed MDM nanocavities could enhance and regulate the local field strength, and the optimum enhancement can be achieved by choosing proper parameters. All these findings provide an efficient way of exploring the plasmon-enhanced UCNPs luminescence system with low cost, high efficiency, and easy fabrication and can be promising in the fields of biosensing and photovoltaic devices. Full article

A fully quantum, numerically accurate methodology is presented for the simulation of the exciton dynamics and time-resolved fluorescence of cavity-tuned two-dimensional (2D) materials at finite temperatures. This approach was specifically applied to a monolayer WSe${}_2$ system. Our methodology enabled us to identify the dynamical and spectroscopic signatures of polaronic and polaritonic effects and to elucidate their characteristic timescales across a range of exciton–cavity couplings. The approach employed can be extended to simulation of various cavity-tuned 2D materials, specifically for exploring finite temperature nonlinear spectroscopic signals. Full article

An arrayed nanocavity-shaped architecture consisting of the key GdFe film and SiO₂ dielectric layer is constructed, leading to an efficient infrared (IR) absorption metasurface. By carefully designing and optimizing the film system configuration and the surface layout with needed geometry, a desirable IR radiation absorption according to the spatial magnetic plasmon modes is realized experimentally. The simulations and measurements demonstrate that GdFe-based nanocavity-shaped metasurfaces can be used to achieve an average IR absorption of ~81% in a wide wavelength range of 3–14 μm. A type of the patterned GdFe-based nanocavity-shaped metasurface is further proposed for exciting relatively strong spatial electromagnetic wavefields confined by a patterned nanocavity array based on the joint action of the surface oscillated net charges over the charged metallic films and the surface conductive currents including equivalent eddy currents surrounding the layered GdFe and SiO₂ materials. Intensive IR absorption can be attributed to a spatial electromagnetic wavefield excitation and resonant accumulation or memory residence according to the GdFe-based nanocavity-shaped array formed. Our research provides a potential clue for efficiently responding and manipulating and storing incident IR radiation mainly based on the excitation and resonant accumulation of spatial magnetic plasmons. Full article

Monolayer two-dimensional transition metal dichalcogenide (TMD)-based materials have become one of the ideal platforms for the study of multibody interactions due to their rich excitonic complexes. The coupling between optical nanocavity and material has become an important means for manipulating the optical properties of materials, but there are few studies on the coupling of nanocavities and the multi-body effect in materials. In this study, we investigate the optical properties of silver nanodisk (Ag ND) arrays covering a monolayer WS₂. In the experimental sample, we observed a ~114.3-fold photoluminescence enhancement of charged biexciton in the heterostructure region, as compared to the monolayer WS₂ region, a value which is much higher than those for exciton (~2.2-fold) and trion (~16.4-fold), a finding which is attributed to the Fano resonant coupling between monolayer WS₂ and the Ag ND. By means of time-resolved spectroscopy, we studied the carrier dynamics in the hybrid system. Our findings reveal that resonant coupling promotes the formation and radiation recombination processes of the charged biexciton, significantly reducing the radiative recombination lifetime by ~15-fold, which is much higher than the measurement in exciton (~2-fold). Our results provide an opportunity to understand the multibody physics of coupling with nanocavities, which could facilitate the application of multi-body excitons in the fields of light-emitting devices and lasers, etc. Full article

Surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) has garnered substantial attention due to its ability to achieve single-molecule sensitivity by utilizing metallic nanostructures to amplify the exceedingly weak Raman scattering process. However, the introduction of metal nanostructures can induce a background continuum which can reduce the ultimate sensitivity of SERS in ways that are not yet well understood. Here, we investigate the impact of laser irradiation on both Raman scattering and backgrounds from self-assembled monolayers within nanoparticle-on-mirror plasmonic nanocavities with variable geometry. We find that laser irradiation can reduce the height of the monolayer by inducing an irreversible change in molecular conformation. The resulting increased plasmon confinement in the nanocavities not only enhances the SERS signal, but also provides momentum conservation in the inelastic light scattering of electrons, contributing to the enhancement of the background continuum. The plasmon confinement can be modified by changing the size and the geometry of nanoparticles, resulting in a nanoparticle geometry-dependent background continuum in SERS. Our work provides new routes for further modifying the geometry of plasmonic nanostructures to improve SERS sensitivity. Full article

Al₂O₃ coatings are the most promising candidate material for mitigating (lead-bismuth eutectic) LBE corrosion at elevated temperatures, but preventing inward diffusion of Pb, Bi, and O for the ceramic coating remains a critical challenge. Here, we have fabricated an amorphous Al₂O₃ coating with an ultra-dense structure by continuous high-power magnetron sputtering (C-HPMS). After LBE corrosion at 550 °C for 2000 h, nanocavities induced by the phase transformation from amorphous to γ-Al₂O₃ provide the diffusion path for Fe, O, Pb, and Bi in which the corrosion products, such as Fe₃O₄, PbO₂, or their mixed oxides, form. Furthermore, the diffusion of Pb to the substrate and Cr segregation at the interface between the coating and substrate are observed for the sample exposed to LBE at 550 °C for 4000 h. Additionally, the hardness and interface bonding strength are enhanced after LBE corrosion. Moreover, pit corrosion was found to be the main failure mode of coating, and pits that merged with each other induced large area failure at a temperature of 650 °C. The corrosion mechanism of Al₂O₃ includes element diffusion, phase transformation, and chemical reaction. This work not only provides a deep understanding of the corrosion mechanism of amorphous Al₂O₃ coatings, but also shows the optimization method on the corrosion resistance of Al₂O₃ coating. Full article

The supramolecular approach is becoming increasingly dominant in biomimetics and chemical catalysis due to the expansion of the enzyme active center idea, which now includes binding cavities (hydrophobic pockets), channels and canals for transporting substrates and products. For a long time, the mimetic strategy was mainly focused on the first coordination sphere of the metal ion. Understanding that a highly organized cavity-like enzymatic pocket plays a key role in the sophisticated functionality of enzymes and that the activity and selectivity of natural metalloenzymes are due to the effects of the second coordination sphere, created by the protein framework, opens up new perspectives in biomimetic chemistry and catalysis. There are two main goals of mimicking enzymatic catalysis: (1) scientific curiosity to gain insight into the mysterious nature of enzymes, and (2) practical tasks of mankind: to learn from nature and adopt from its many years of evolutionary experience. Understanding the chemistry within the enzyme nanocavity (confinement effect) requires the use of relatively simple model systems. The performance of the transition metal catalyst increases due to its retention in molecular nanocontainers (cavitins). Given the greater potential of chemical synthesis, it is hoped that these promising bioinspired catalysts will achieve catalytic efficiency and selectivity comparable to and even superior to the creations of nature. Now it is obvious that the cavity structure of molecular nanocontainers and the real possibility of modifying their cavities provide unlimited possibilities for simulating the active centers of metalloenzymes. This review will focus on how chemical reactivity is controlled in a well-defined cavitin nanospace. The author also intends to discuss advanced metal–cavitin catalysts related to the study of the main stages of artificial photosynthesis, including energy transfer and storage, water oxidation and proton reduction, as well as highlight the current challenges of activating small molecules, such as H₂O, CO₂, N₂, O₂, H₂, and CH₄. Full article

High-resolution nanoparticle sensing is very important, and many schemes have been proposed to achieve this goal. Circular nanocavities in which surface plasmon polariton (SPP) whispering gallery mode (WGM) resonances were excited were designed to sense particles of ultra-small size and with high resolution. Localized surface plasmon resonances (LSPRs) were excited when a metal particle was set in the circular cavity. The SPP WGM split into symmetric mode (SM) and antisymmetric mode (ASM) due to the LSPRs scattering into the SPPs. The strong coupling between SM resonance and LSPRs generated positive and opposite modes, which were sensitive to the variation in nanoparticle size and position. Even a small nanometer-sized metal particle introduced LSPRs and produced mode splitting. The WGM mode splitting induced by LSPRs reduced the sensing limit. The simulation results show that 1 nm changes in nanoparticle radius and position led to SM 11.8 nm and 10.2 nm wavelength shifts, respectively. This means that variations of 0.09 nm in size and 0.1 nm in position can be sensed with a 1 nm spectral resolution. The strong coupling between SPP WGM and LSPRs can be applied to sense at a subnanometer resolution. Full article

The surface plasmon resonance (SPR) and localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) can be used to enhance the generation of the hot electrons in plasmon metal nanocavity. In this paper, Pd nanomembrane (NMB) is sputtered on the surface of Si nanosphere (NS) on glass substrate to form the Si@Pd core-Ω shell nanocavity. A plasmon-Mie resonance is induced in the nanocavity by coupling the plasmon resonance with the Mie resonance to control the optical property of Si NS. When this nanocavity is excited by near-infrared-1 (NIR-1, 650 nm–900 nm) femtosecond (fs) laser, the luminescence intensity of Si NS is dramatically enhanced due to the synergistic interaction of plasmon and Mie resonance. The generation of resonance coupling regulates resonant mode of the nanocavity to realize multi-dimensional nonlinear optical response, which can be utilized in the fields of biological imaging and nanoscale light source. Full article

Realizing strong laser–matter interaction in a heterostructure consisting of two-dimensional transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs) and an optical nanocavity is a potential strategy for novel photonic devices. In this paper, two core-Ω shell nanostructures, Si@WS₂ core-Ω shell nanostructure on glass/Si substrates, are briefly introduced. A strong laser–matter interaction occurred in the Si@WS₂ core-Ω shell nanostructure when it was excited by femtosecond (fs) laser in the near-infrared-1 region (NIR-1, 650 nm–950 nm), resulting in a resonance coupling between the electric dipole resonance (EDR) of the Si nanosphere (NS) and the exciton resonance of the WS₂ nanomembrane (NMB). The generation of resonance coupling regulates the resonant mode of the nanostructure to realize the multi-dimensional nonlinear optical response, which can be utilized in the fields of biological imaging and nanoscale light source. Full article