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Micromachines
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Photon-Driven Technologies: Exploring the Latest Advancements
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Photon-Driven Technologies: Exploring the Latest Advancements

A special issue of Micromachines (ISSN 2072-666X). This special issue belongs to the section "A：Physics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 September 2023) | Viewed by 26264

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Seemesh Bhaskar

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Guest Editor
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Holonyak Micro and Nanotechnology Laboratory, Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana−Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801, USA
Interests: bionano-inspired approaches; photonics; nano-engineering; photonic crystals; luminescence; plasmonics; raman spectroscopy; microfluidics; sustainable nanotechnology; frugal science; point-of-care diagnostics
Dr. Deepshikha Arora

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Engineering Product Development, Singapore University of Technology and Design, 8 Somapah Road, Building 1.714, Singapore 487372, Singapore
Interests: colloidal nanocrystals; perovskite nanocrystals; oriented attachment; deterministic positioning of QDs; strong coupling; fluorescence microscopy
Dr. Sabyasachi Chakrabortty

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. Department of Chemistry, SRM University-AP Amaravati, Andhra Pradesh 522240, India
2. Adjunct Research Fellow, Organic Electronics Research Center, Ming Chi University of Technology, New Taipei City 243303, Taiwan
Interests: colloidal nanocrystals; catalysis; theranostics; carbon materials; renewable energy; biosensing
Prof. Dr. T. D. Subash

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering, VISAT Engineering College, Ernakulam, Kerala 686665, India
Interests: semiconductor devices; nanoelectronics; nanoscale device modeling; analytical characteristics; III-V compound materials based HEMT devices; light emitting diodes; solar cell; digital ICs; digital image processing; wireless sensor networks; material science
Dr. Swasti Bhatia

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
IMEC, Kapeldreef 75, B-3001 Leuven, Belgium
Interests: Si solar cells; tandem solar cells; heterojunctions; thin films; chemical vapour deposition; atomic layer deposition; X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy; NAND flash memory; area selective deposition; ferroelectrics

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The exploration of ‘Photon’ has progressed over several eons, ever since prehistoric time. By and large, the fundamental attributes of photons that elegantly enables vision include absorption, transmission, reflection, interference, scattering and diffraction, to name a few. However, scientists are yet to completely understand the characteristics of photon, in general, and its interaction with matter, in particular. Recently, photo-driven applications integrate knowledge in the areas of materials, engineering, physics, bioscience, and chemistry, thereby fostering transdisciplinary applications. Photon-driven processes are investigated and novel phenomena related to photo-plasmonics, opto-electronics, photo-catalysis, photovoltaics, micro-nanoscale, perovskite devices, non-linear optics, biophotonics and exciton, to name a few, are explored demonstrating intriguing outcomes with regard to light-matter interactions. Consequently, the understanding of such processes serves the interdisciplinary community of scientists, thereby promoting basic, applied and translational research. Therefore, it is of paramount significance for researchers to bring the latest advancements in this field to the broad scientific community, thereby enriching the scope for applications, market and start-up related technologies.

In this perspective, this special issue serves as an interdisciplinary forum to communicate the up-to-date advances in the field of photonics, all the way from fundamental to applied research. The special issue pursues to showcase research papers, letters and review articles that focus on novel developments in photon driven applications encompassing nanophotonics, optoelectronics, biophotonics, magneto-optics, photo-catalysis and associated state-of-the-art technologies. Further, it is devoted to the strategic design and development of materials with novel properties that paves the way to comprehend structure-property-application inter-relationships. Study of functionally active interfaces with photonic modalities presenting newer biophysico-chemical insights are invited. Hence, this issue is expected to bridge the gap between the academic and industrial worlds, exploring the attributes of photons and their real-time applications. Submissions on original advances in the understanding and particularly the rational design of photonic devices and interfaces, including novel perspectives and incipient areas, are welcome.

Dr. Seemesh Bhaskar
Dr. Deepshikha Arora
Dr. Sabyasachi Chakrabortty
Prof. Dr. T. D. Subash
Dr. Swasti Bhatia
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Micromachines is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • optics
  • photonics
  • plasmonics
  • semiconductors
  • nano- and microscale
  • lasers
  • matter interaction
  • biophotonics
  • catalysis
  • photovoltaics
  • colloidal nanocrystals
  • functional interfaces
  • sensors

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Published Papers (8 papers)

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Research

Jump to: Review

13 pages, 1980 KiB  
Article
Spin Hall Effect in Paraxial Vectorial Light Beams with an Infinite Number of Polarization Singularities
by Alexey A. Kovalev, Victor V. Kotlyar and Anton G. Nalimov
Micromachines 2023, 14(7), 1470; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi14071470 - 21 Jul 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1102
Abstract
Elements of micromachines can be driven by light, including structured light with phase and/or polarization singularities. We investigate here a paraxial vector Gaussian beam with an infinite number of polarization singularities residing evenly on a straight line. The intensity distribution is derived analytically [...] Read more.
Elements of micromachines can be driven by light, including structured light with phase and/or polarization singularities. We investigate here a paraxial vector Gaussian beam with an infinite number of polarization singularities residing evenly on a straight line. The intensity distribution is derived analytically and the polarization singularities are shown to exist only in the initial plane and in the far field. The azimuthal angle of the polarization singularities is shown to increase in the far field by π/2. We obtain the longitudinal component of the spin angular momentum (SAM) density and show that it is independent of the azimuthal angle of the polarization singularities. Upon propagation in free space, an infinite number of C-points is generated, where polarization is circular. We show that the SAM density distribution has a shape of four spots, two with left and two with right elliptic polarization. The distance to the transverse plane with the maximal SAM density decreases with decreasing distance between the polarization singularities in the initial plane. Generating such alternating areas with positive and negative SAM density, despite linear polarization in the initial plane, manifests the optical spin Hall effect. Application areas of the obtained results include designing micromachines with optically driven elements. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Photon-Driven Technologies: Exploring the Latest Advancements)
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11 pages, 5817 KiB  
Article
Holographic Fabrication of 3D Moiré Photonic Crystals Using Circularly Polarized Laser Beams and a Spatial Light Modulator
by Noah Hurley, Steve Kamau, Jingbiao Cui and Yuankun Lin
Micromachines 2023, 14(6), 1217; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi14061217 - 9 Jun 2023
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2227
Abstract
A moiré photonic crystal is an optical analog of twisted graphene. A 3D moiré photonic crystal is a new nano-/microstructure that is distinguished from bilayer twisted photonic crystals. Holographic fabrication of a 3D moiré photonic crystal is very difficult due to the coexistence [...] Read more.
A moiré photonic crystal is an optical analog of twisted graphene. A 3D moiré photonic crystal is a new nano-/microstructure that is distinguished from bilayer twisted photonic crystals. Holographic fabrication of a 3D moiré photonic crystal is very difficult due to the coexistence of the bright and dark regions, where the exposure threshold is suitable for one region but not for the other. In this paper, we study the holographic fabrication of 3D moiré photonic crystals using an integrated system of a single reflective optical element (ROE) and a spatial light modulator (SLM) where nine beams (four inner beams + four outer beams + central beam) are overlapped. By modifying the phase and amplitude of the interfering beams, the interference patterns of 3D moiré photonic crystals are systemically simulated and compared with the holographic structures to gain a comprehensive understanding of SLM-based holographic fabrication. We report the holographic fabrication of phase and beam intensity ratio-dependent 3D moiré photonic crystals and their structural characterization. Superlattices modulated in the z-direction of 3D moiré photonic crystals have been discovered. This comprehensive study provides guidance for future pixel-by-pixel phase engineering in SLM for complex holographic structures. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Photon-Driven Technologies: Exploring the Latest Advancements)
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11 pages, 2246 KiB  
Article
Double and Square Bessel–Gaussian Beams
by Eugeny G. Abramochkin, Victor V. Kotlyar and Alexey A. Kovalev
Micromachines 2023, 14(5), 1029; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi14051029 - 11 May 2023
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1708
Abstract
We obtain a transform that relates the standard Bessel–Gaussian (BG) beams with BG beams described by the Bessel function of a half-integer order and quadratic radial dependence in the argument. We also study square vortex BG beams, described by the square of the [...] Read more.
We obtain a transform that relates the standard Bessel–Gaussian (BG) beams with BG beams described by the Bessel function of a half-integer order and quadratic radial dependence in the argument. We also study square vortex BG beams, described by the square of the Bessel function, and the products of two vortex BG beams (double-BG beams), described by a product of two different integer-order Bessel functions. To describe the propagation of these beams in free space, we derive expressions as series of products of three Bessel functions. In addition, a vortex-free power-function BG beam of the mth order is obtained, which upon propagation in free space becomes a finite superposition of similar vortex-free power-function BG beams of the orders from 0 to m. Extending the set of finite-energy vortex beams with an orbital angular momentum is useful in searching for stable light beams for probing the turbulent atmosphere and for wireless optical communications. Such beams can be used in micromachines for controlling the movements of particles simultaneously along several light rings. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Photon-Driven Technologies: Exploring the Latest Advancements)
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18 pages, 5960 KiB  
Article
Spin Hall Effect in the Paraxial Light Beams with Multiple Polarization Singularities
by Alexey A. Kovalev, Victor V. Kotlyar and Sergey S. Stafeev
Micromachines 2023, 14(4), 777; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi14040777 - 30 Mar 2023
Cited by 11 | Viewed by 1594
Abstract
Elements of micromachines can be driven by light, including structured light with phase and/or polarization singularities. We investigate a paraxial vectorial Gaussian beam with multiple polarization singularities residing on a circle. Such a beam is a superposition of a cylindrically polarized Laguerre–Gaussian beam [...] Read more.
Elements of micromachines can be driven by light, including structured light with phase and/or polarization singularities. We investigate a paraxial vectorial Gaussian beam with multiple polarization singularities residing on a circle. Such a beam is a superposition of a cylindrically polarized Laguerre–Gaussian beam with a linearly polarized Gaussian beam. We demonstrate that, despite linear polarization in the initial plane, on propagation in space, alternating areas are generated with a spin angular momentum (SAM) density of opposite sign, that manifest about the spin Hall effect. We derive that in each transverse plane, maximal SAM magnitude is on a certain-radius circle. We obtain an approximate expression for the distance to the transverse plane with the maximal SAM density. Besides, we define the singularities circle radius, for which the achievable SAM density is maximal. It turns out that in this case the energies of the Laguerre–Gaussian and of the Gaussian beams are equal. We obtain an expression for the orbital angular momentum density and find that it is equal to the SAM density, multiplied by −m/2 with m being the order of the Laguerre–Gaussian beam, equal to the number of the polarization singularities. We consider an analogy with plane waves and find that the spin Hall affect arises due to the different divergence between the linearly polarized Gaussian beam and cylindrically polarized Laguerre–Gaussian beam. Application areas of the obtained results are designing micromachines with optically driven elements. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Photon-Driven Technologies: Exploring the Latest Advancements)
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14 pages, 4650 KiB  
Article
Structural Colors on Al Surface via Capped Cu-Si3N4 Bilayer Structure
by M. A. Rahman, Dongkyu Kim, Deepshikha Arora, Joo-Youl Huh and Ji Young Byun
Micromachines 2023, 14(2), 471; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi14020471 - 18 Feb 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1940
Abstract
Tunable structural colors have a multitude of applications in the beautification of mobile devices, in the decoration of artwork, and in the creation of color filters. In this paper, we describe a Metal-Insulator-Metal (MIM) design that can be used to systematically tune structural [...] Read more.
Tunable structural colors have a multitude of applications in the beautification of mobile devices, in the decoration of artwork, and in the creation of color filters. In this paper, we describe a Metal-Insulator-Metal (MIM) design that can be used to systematically tune structural colors by altering the thickness of the top metal and intermediate insulator. Cu and Si3N4 were selected as the top metal and intermediate insulator layers, respectively, and various reflection colors were printed on Al. To protect the Cu surface from scratchiness and oxidation, a number of capping layers, including SiO2, LPSQ, PMMA, and the commercially available clear coat ProtectaClear, were applied. In addition to their ability to protect Cu from a humid environment without deteriorating color quality, ProtectaClear and LPSQ coatings have minimal angle dependency. Furthermore, a bilayer of PMMA/SiO2 can protect the Cu surface from the effects of humidity. In addition, the PMMA/SiO2 and ProtectaClear/SiO2 bilayers can also protect against corrosion on the Cu surface. The colors can be tuned by controlling the thickness of either the metal layer or intermediate insulator layer, and vivid structural colors including brown, dark orange, blue, violet, magenta, cyan, green-yellow, and yellow colors can be printed. The measured dielectric functions of Cu thin films do not provide any evidence of the plasmonic effect, and therefore, it is expected that the obtained colors are attributed to thin-film interference. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Photon-Driven Technologies: Exploring the Latest Advancements)
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Review

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38 pages, 3783 KiB  
Review
Analytical Gas Sensing in the Terahertz Spectral Range
by Andreja Abina, Uroš Puc, Mojca Jazbinšek and Aleksander Zidanšek
Micromachines 2023, 14(11), 1987; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi14111987 - 27 Oct 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2962
Abstract
Exploiting the terahertz (THz) part of the electromagnetic spectrum is attracting attention in various scientific and applied disciplines worldwide. THz technology has also revealed its potential as an effective tool for gas analysis in astronomy, biomedicine and chemical analysis. Recently, it has also [...] Read more.
Exploiting the terahertz (THz) part of the electromagnetic spectrum is attracting attention in various scientific and applied disciplines worldwide. THz technology has also revealed its potential as an effective tool for gas analysis in astronomy, biomedicine and chemical analysis. Recently, it has also become important in environmental applications for monitoring hazardous and toxic gases in the atmosphere. This paper gives an overview of THz gas detection analytical methods for environmental and biomedical applications, starting with a brief introduction to THz technology and an explanation of the interaction of THz radiation with gaseous species and the atmosphere. The review focuses on several gaseous species and groups of air pollutants that have been or can be analysed by THz spectrometry. The review concludes that different but complementary THz detection methods allow unique detection, identification and quantification of gaseous and particulate air pollutants with high selectivity, specificity and sensitivity. THz detection methods also allow further technological improvements and open new application possibilities. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Photon-Driven Technologies: Exploring the Latest Advancements)
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36 pages, 6688 KiB  
Review
Photonic Crystal Enhanced Fluorescence: A Review on Design Strategies and Applications
by Yanyu Xiong, Skye Shepherd, Joseph Tibbs, Amanda Bacon, Weinan Liu, Lucas D. Akin, Takhmina Ayupova, Seemesh Bhaskar and Brian T. Cunningham
Micromachines 2023, 14(3), 668; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi14030668 - 17 Mar 2023
Cited by 55 | Viewed by 8938
Abstract
Nanoscale fluorescence emitters are efficient for measuring biomolecular interactions, but their utility for applications requiring single-unit observations is constrained by the need for large numerical aperture objectives, fluorescence intermittency, and poor photon collection efficiency resulting from omnidirectional emission. Photonic crystal (PC) structures hold [...] Read more.
Nanoscale fluorescence emitters are efficient for measuring biomolecular interactions, but their utility for applications requiring single-unit observations is constrained by the need for large numerical aperture objectives, fluorescence intermittency, and poor photon collection efficiency resulting from omnidirectional emission. Photonic crystal (PC) structures hold promise to address the aforementioned challenges in fluorescence enhancement. In this review, we provide a broad overview of PCs by explaining their structures, design strategies, fabrication techniques, and sensing principles. Furthermore, we discuss recent applications of PC-enhanced fluorescence-based biosensors incorporated with emerging technologies, including nucleic acids sensing, protein detection, and steroid monitoring. Finally, we discuss current challenges associated with PC-enhanced fluorescence and provide an outlook for fluorescence enhancement with photonic-plasmonics coupling and their promise for point-of-care biosensing as well monitoring analytes of biological and environmental relevance. The review presents the transdisciplinary applications of PCs in the broad arena of fluorescence spectroscopy with broad applications in photo-plasmonics, life science research, materials chemistry, cancer diagnostics, and internet of things. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Photon-Driven Technologies: Exploring the Latest Advancements)
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31 pages, 2294 KiB  
Review
Biosensing Technologies: A Focus Review on Recent Advancements in Surface Plasmon Coupled Emission
by Seemesh Bhaskar
Micromachines 2023, 14(3), 574; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi14030574 - 28 Feb 2023
Cited by 20 | Viewed by 4041
Abstract
In the past decade, novel nano-engineering protocols have been actively synergized with fluorescence spectroscopic techniques to yield higher intensity from radiating dipoles, through the process termed plasmon-enhanced fluorescence (PEF). Consequently, the limit of detection of analytes of interest has been dramatically improvised on [...] Read more.
In the past decade, novel nano-engineering protocols have been actively synergized with fluorescence spectroscopic techniques to yield higher intensity from radiating dipoles, through the process termed plasmon-enhanced fluorescence (PEF). Consequently, the limit of detection of analytes of interest has been dramatically improvised on account of higher sensitivity rendered by augmented fluorescence signals. Recently, metallic thin films sustaining surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) have been creatively hybridized with such PEF platforms to realize a substantial upsurge in the global collection efficiency in a judicious technology termed surface plasmon-coupled emission (SPCE). While the process parameters and conditions to realize optimum coupling efficiency between the radiating dipoles and the plasmon polaritons in SPCE framework have been extensively discussed, the utility of disruptive nano-engineering over the SPCE platform and analogous interfaces such as ‘ferroplasmon-on-mirror (FPoM)’ as well as an alternative technology termed ‘photonic crystal-coupled emission (PCCE)’ have been seldom reviewed. In light of these observations, in this focus review, the myriad nano-engineering protocols developed over the SPCE, FPoM and PCCE platform are succinctly captured, presenting an emphasis on the recently developed cryosoret nano-assembly technology for photo-plasmonic hotspot generation (first to fourth). These technologies and associated sensing platforms are expected to ameliorate the current biosensing modalities with better understanding of the biophysicochemical processes and related outcomes at advanced micro-nano-interfaces. This review is hence envisaged to present a broad overview of the latest developments in SPCE substrate design and development for interdisciplinary applications that are of relevance in environmental as well as biological heath monitoring. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Photon-Driven Technologies: Exploring the Latest Advancements)
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