Physics discovery leads to ballistic optical materials

Nanowerk  December 14, 2020 The mismatch between electronic systems and optical systems means that every time a signal converts from one to the other, inefficiency creeps into the system. A team of researchers in the US (UT Austin, UMass Lowell, Purdue University) has found a way to create more efficient metamaterials using semiconductors and a novel aspect of physics that amplifies the activity of electrons. They have demonstrated optical phenomenon of “ballistic resonance” resulting from the interplay between free charge motion in confining geometries and periodic driving electromagnetic fields, which can be utilized to achieve negative permittivity at frequencies well […]