Photonics

Theoretically the Photonics theme is supported by evaluating the behaviour of interacting photons and electrons in nanostructures, including semiconductor microcavities, quantum wells, quantum dots, and low-dimensional electron gases, as well as in related phenomena in quantum and classical optics. Our research focuses on new material systems and devices primarily for lighting, photovoltaic sensing and telecommunications applications and on the physics of photonic structures such as microcavity structures for single quantum dot emission; CdTe nanocrystals and nanowires as novel single photon emitters.

At Trinity we are carrying out research into the concepts that underpin photonics, the materials of the future and novel applications. We focus on:

Optical Communications

• Laser’s arrays
• Higher-order surface grating lasers
• Laser athermalization
• Thermo-reflectance measurements
• Vernier tunable lasers
• Burst-mode slotted lasers
• Laser’s injection locking
• PI Microresonator comb generation
• 3D printing of photonic components

Quantum Nanophotonics

• Active quantum nano-plasmonics
• Nanoplasmonic strong coupling
• Nearfield quantum dynamics and entanglement
• Quantum light sources
• Quantum metamaterials
• Topological quantum nanophotonics
• Ultraslow waves on the nanoscale
• Plasmonic stopped-light nanolasing
• Spatio-temporal semiconductor laser dynamics
• Thermal phonon lasing in quantum nanomachines
• Quantum plasmonic immunoassay sensing

Optical Theory

• Optical manipulation of many-particle states in semiconductor quantum wells
• Quantum Hall Bilayers
• Semiconductor microcavities, Bose-Einstein condensation of polaritons and excitons, unconventional lasing

Laser & Plasma Applications

• Physics of pulsed laser ablation with nanosecond and femtosecond lasers
• Pulsed laser deposition (PLD) of metal nanoparticle thin films for optical applications
• Development of PLD in gas at atmospheric pressure
• Fast electrical discharges in laser produced plasmas
• Applications of atmospheric plasma in PLD and surface treatment

Gas-Sensing

• Gas-Sensing Via Widely Tunable Lasers

Nanophotonics

• Laser’s arrays
• HAMR
• Plasmonic structures
• Perovskite devices

The Photonics Research Laboratory

The Photonics Research Laboratory is located in CRANN and is a unique ultrafast fs laser laboratory that is used to investigate dynamic processes in materials, and the interactions between lasers and materials, principally in nanoscale materials such as quantum dots. Ultrafast laser systems are useful tools in the understanding of fast photodynamic processes in physics, chemistry and biology. Many techniques, such as time-resolved absorption spectroscopy, time-resolved fluorescence spectroscopy and coherent anti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy, have been developed for these types of investigation. The lab combines unique femtosecond laser systems with different repetition rates and tunability from UV to mid-IR, with a Raman spectroscope, a scanning near-field optical microscope and a fluorescence lifetime imaging microscope. The lab facilitates research related to nonlinear dynamics, nonlinear optics, ultrafast optics, near-field optics and surface plasmon resonance. Femtosecond pump-probe techniques provide information on ultrafast.

Our research groups are listed below: