Enhanced nonlinear refractive index in ε-near-zero materials
Abstract
New propagation regimes for light arise from the ability to tune the dielectric permittivity to extremely low values. Here, we demonstrate a universal approach based on the low linear permittivity values attained in the ε-near-zero (ENZ) regime for enhancing the nonlinear refractive index, which enables remarkable light-induced changes of the material properties. Experiments performed on Al-doped ZnO (AZO) thin films show a sixfold increase of the Kerr nonlinear refractive index (n2) at the ENZ wavelength, located in the 1300 nm region. This in turn leads to ultrafast light-induced refractive index changes of the order of unity, thus representing a new paradigm for nonlinear optics.
Citation
Caspani , L , Kaipurath , R P M , Clerici , M , Ferrera , M , Roger , T , Kim , J , Kinsey , N , Pietrzyk , M , Di Falco , A , Shalaev , V M , Boltasseva , A & Faccio , D 2016 , ' Enhanced nonlinear refractive index in ε -near-zero materials ' , Physical Review Letters , vol. 116 , no. 23 , 233901 . https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.116.233901
Publication
Physical Review Letters
Status
Peer reviewed
ISSN
0031-9007Type
Journal item
Collections
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