No Arabic abstract
We investigate the wave-optical light scattering properties of deformed thin circular films of constant thickness using the discrete-dipole approximation. Effects on the intensity distribution of the scattered light due to different statistical roughness models, model dependant roughness parameters, and uncorrelated random small-scale porosity of the inhomogeneous medium are studied. The usability of discrete-dipole approximation to rough-surface scattering problems is evaluated by considering thin films as computationally feasible rough-surface analogs. The effects due to small-scale inhomogeneity of the scattering medium are compared with the analytic approximation by Maxwell Garnett and the results are found to agree with the approximation.
This document takes existing derivations of scattering loss from rough surfaces, and makes them more accessible as a tool to derive the total scattering loss from a rough mirror given its true surface profile. It does not contain any new results and is therefore not intended for submission to a scientific journal in the near future. A rough mirror will diffusively reflect part of an incident wave, limiting the effective specular reflectivity of the mirror. This in turn will limit the finesse of an optical resonator using this mirror. We ask this reflectivity depends on the roughness, in the limit of small roughness. The derivation we will use is based off a detailed and well-written book by JA Ogilvy which is almost always out of the library on loan, is out of print, and we cant find any second-hand copies on the internet. Note that nowhere does Ogilvy use the phrase Debye-Waller factor. We outline how this derivation of scattering loss can be used in practice to calculate the scattering loss given a high-precision experimental measure of mirror profile.
The use of specific symmetry properties of the optical second-harmonic generation (the s,s-exclusion rule) has allowed us to observe high-contrast hyper-Rayleigh interference patterns in a completely diffuse light - an effect having no analog in case of linear (Rayleigh) scattering.
We report on simulations of capillary filling of high-wetting fluids in nano-channels with and without obstacles. We use atomistic (molecular dynamics) and hydrokinetic (lattice-Boltzmann) approaches which point out clear evidence of the formation of thin precursor films, moving ahead of the main capillary front. The dynamics of the precursor films is found to obey a square-root law as the main capillary front, z^2(t) ~ t, although with a larger prefactor, which we find to take the same value for the different geometries (2D-3D) under inspection. The two methods show a quantitative agreement which indicates that the formation and propagation of thin precursors can be handled at a mesoscopic/hydrokinetic level. This can be considered as a validation of the Lattice-Boltzmann (LB) method and opens the possibility of using hydrokinetic methods to explore space-time scales and complex geometries of direct experimental relevance. Then, LB approach is used to study the fluid behaviour in a nano-channel when the precursor film encounters a square obstacle. A complete parametric analysis is performed which suggests that thin-film precursors may have an important influence on the efficiency of nanochannel-coating strategies.
We demonstrate integrated optomechanical circuits with high mechanical quality factors prepared from nanocrystalline diamond thin films. Using chemomechanical polishing, the RMS surface roughness of as grown polycrystalline diamond films is reduced below 3nm to allow for the fabrication of high-quality nanophotonic circuits. By integrating free-standing nanomechanical resonators into integrated optical devices, efficient read-out of the thermomechanical motion of diamond resonators is achieved with on-chip Mach-Zehnder interferometers. Mechanical quality factors up to 28,800 are measured for four-fold clamped optomechanical resonators coupled to the evanescent near-field of nanophotonic waveguides. Our platform holds promise for large-scale integration of optomechanical circuits for on-chip metrology and sensing applications.
Tunable terahertz plasmons are essential for reconfigurable photonics, which have been demonstrated in graphene through gating, though with relatively weak responses. Here, we demonstrate strong terahertz plasmons in graphite thin films via infrared spectroscopy, with dramatic tunability by even a moderate temperature change or an in-situ bias voltage. Meanwhile, through magneto-plasmon studies, we reveal that massive electrons and massless Dirac holes make comparable contributions to the plasmon response. Our study not only sets up a platform for further exploration of two-component plasmas, but also opens an avenue for terahertz modulation through electrical bias or all-optical means.