Free-space optomechanics with light-emitting materials

ended

The coupling of electromagnetic radiation (photons) to mechanical waves (phonons) is at the heart of solid-state quantum photonics while phonon transport at different frequencies governs crucial physical phenomena ranging from thermal conductivity to the sensitivity of nano-electromechanical resonators. To engineer and control the overlap of light management with the mechanical vibrations of matter efficiently, we make use of very precisely fabricated nanometer-scale devices. The standard way of achieving this control is to use engineered defects in periodic structures - optomechanical crystals - where the electromagnetic field and the mechanical displacement can be confined simultaneously thus enhancing their interaction. However, despite its extraordinary potential, cavity optomechanics is suffering from the limitations induced by the experimental setup commonly used to address the mechanical modes, namely the difficulty to use integrable structures. During this project, we will explore novel designs for optomechanical nanostructures and we will develop experimental methods to address the phononic and photonic modes of nanoscale objects from free-space, and thus get rid of the limitations imposed by fibres, which will in turn enable the incorporation of optically active materials in mechanical resonators. In particular, we will make use of embedded quantum light emnitters excited above-band optically. This will allow us to explore light-matter interaction in this novel platform ad get direct access to the photonic modes of the system. By exploring the frequency modulation of these photonic modes induced by optomechanical coupling, we expect to also have access to the confined mechanical vibrations of the structure. The investigation of these systems will have an important impact on quantum information and thermal transport as well as highly sensitive force, mass and displacement detection.