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Magnetic and spintronic media have offered fundamental scientific subjects and technological applications. Magneto-optic Kerr effect (MOKE) microscopy provides the most accessible platform to study the dynamics of spins, magnetic quasi-particles, and domain walls. However, in the research of nanoscale spin textures and state-of-the-art spintronic devices, optical techniques are generally restricted by the extremely weak magneto-optical activity and diffraction limit. Highly sophisticated, expensive electron microscopy and scanning probe methods thus have come to the forefront. Here, we show that extreme anti-reflection (EAR) dramatically improves the performance and functionality of MOKE microscopy. For 1-nm-thin Co film, we demonstrate a Kerr amplitude as large as 20° and magnetic domain imaging visibility of 0.47. Especially, EAR-enhanced MOKE microscopy enables real-time detection and statistical analysis of sub-wavelength magnetic domain reversals. Furthermore, we exploit enhanced magneto-optic birefringence and demonstrate analyser-free MOKE microscopy. The EAR technique is promising for optical investigations and applications of nanomagnetic systems. Magneto-optic Kerr effect microscopy is useful for dynamic magnetic studies, but is limited by the weak magneto-optical activity. Here, the authors show that extreme anti-reflection result in a Kerr amplitude as large as 20° and enables real-time detection of sub-wavelength magnetic domain reversals.

In this report, plasmonic effects in organic photovoltaic cells (OPVs) are systematically analyzed using size-controlled silver nanoparticles (AgNPs, diameter: 10 ~ 100 nm), which were incorporated into the anodic buffer layer, poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS). The optical properties of AgNPs tuned by size considerably influence the performance levels of devices. The power conversion efficiency (PCE) was increased from 6.4% to 7.6% in poly[N-9-hepta-decanyl-2,7-carbazole-alt-5,5-(4,7-di-2-thienyl-2,1,3-benzothiadiazole)] (PCDTBT):[6,6]-phenyl C 71 -butyric acid methyl ester (PC 70 BM) based-OPVs and from 7.9% to 8.6% in polythieno[3,4-b]thiophene/benzodithiophene (PTB7):PC 70 BM based-OPVs upon embedding the AgNPs. The external quantum efficiency (EQE) was significantly enhanced by the absorption enhancement due to the plasmonic scattering effect. Finally, we verified the origin of the size-dependent plasmonic forwarding scattering effect of the AgNPs by visualizing the scattering field with near-field optical microscopy (NSOM) and through analytic optical simulations.

The dimensionality of vortical structures has recently been extended beyond two dimensions, providing additional topological complexity and robustness for high-capacity information processing and turbulence control. The generation of high-dimensional vortical structures has mostly been demonstrated in classical systems through the complex interference of fluidic, acoustic, or electromagnetic waves. However, natural materials rarely support three- or higher-dimensional vortical structures and their physical interactions. Here, we experimentally demonstrate a high-dimensional gradient thickness optical cavity (GTOC) in which the optical coupling of planar metal-dielectric multilayers implements topological interactions across multiple dimensions. At non-trivial topological phases, high-dimensional GTOC induces high-dimensional vortical structures in generalized parameter space in three, four dimensions, and beyond. These emergent high-dimensional vortical structures are observed under electro-optic tomography as optical vortex dynamics in two-dimensional real-space, employing the optical thicknesses of dielectric layers as synthetic dimensions. Our findings hold significant promise for emulating high-dimensional physics and developing active topological photonic devices. Higher dimensional vortical structures are being explored in optical and acoustic systems via complex wave interference. However, deterministic generation has not been reported. Here, the authors demonstrate emergent 3D optical vortices in a gradient-thickness optical cavity.

Optical vortex trapping can allow the capture and manipulation of micro- and nanometre-sized objects such as damageable biological particles or particles with a refractive index lower than the surrounding material. However, the quest for nanometric optical vortex trapping that overcomes the diffraction limit remains. Here we demonstrate the first experimental implementation of low-power nano-optical vortex trapping using plasmonic resonance in gold diabolo nanoantennas. The vortex trapping potential was formed with a minimum at 170 nm from the central local maximum, and allowed polystyrene nanoparticles in water to be trapped strongly at the boundary of the nanoantenna. Furthermore, a large radial trapping stiffness, ~0.69 pN nm −1 W −1 , was measured at the position of the minimum potential, showing good agreement with numerical simulations. This subwavelength-scale nanoantenna system capable of low-power trapping represents a significant step toward versatile, efficient nano-optical manipulations in lab-on-a-chip devices. Optical vortex traps are appealing for handling delicate particles, but conventional techniques are challenging with objects smaller than the diffraction limit of light. By exploiting plasmonic resonances in gold diabolo nanoantennas, Kang et al . demonstrate low-power vortex trapping of nano-scale objects.

Nonlinear signal generation requires precise control of the input polarization to satisfy phase-matching conditions. Conventional polarization management using external fiber polarization controllers or bulk wave plates increases coupling complexity and can degrade polarization fidelity and conversion efficiency in nonlinear photonic systems. Here, we demonstrate on-chip polarization control in thin-film lithium niobate nonlinear photonic circuits. Integrated polarization modulators enable real-time tuning of arbitrary input polarization states and thus provide on-demand control of nonlinear conversion in a periodically poled lithium niobate waveguide. A closed-loop feedback system, which integrates auto-compensation and automatic fiber-chip alignment routines, automatically optimizes the second-harmonic generation intensity and maintains performance over extended periods despite polarization scrambling and environmental perturbations. This integrated approach reduces coupling complexity and offers a scalable route toward fully reconfigurable nonlinear photonic systems.

Optical vortices are beams of light that carry orbital angular momentum 1 , which represents an extra degree of freedom that can be generated and manipulated for photonic applications 2 – 8 . Unlike vortices in other physical entities, the generation of optical vortices requires structural singularities 9 – 12 , but this affects their quasiparticle nature and hampers the possibility of altering their dynamics or making them interacting 13 – 17 . Here we report a platform that allows the spontaneous generation and active manipulation of an optical vortex–antivortex pair using an external field. An aluminium/silicon dioxide/nickel/silicon dioxide multilayer structure realizes a gradient-thickness optical cavity, where the magneto-optic effects of the nickel layer affect the transition between a trivial and a non-trivial topological phase. Rather than a structural singularity, the vortex–antivortex pairs present in the light reflected by our device are generated through mathematical singularities in the generalized parameter space of the top and bottom silicon dioxide layers, which can be mapped onto real space and exhibit polarization-dependent and topology-dependent dynamics driven by external magnetic fields. We expect that the field-induced engineering of optical vortices that we report will facilitate the study of topological photonic interactions and inspire further efforts to bestow quasiparticle-like properties to various topological photonic textures such as toroidal vortices, polarization and vortex knots, and optical skyrmions. A photonic platform that allows the spontaneous generation and active manipulation of an optical vortex–antivortex pair using an external magnetic field is demonstrated.

Recent development in nanofabrication technology has enabled the fabrication of plasmonic nanoapertures that can provide strong field concentrations beyond the diffraction limit. Further utilization of plasmonic nanoaperture requires the broadband tuning of the operating wavelength and precise control of aperture geometry. Here, we present a novel plasmonic coaxial aperture that can support resonant extraordinary optical transmission (EOT) with a peak transmittance of ~10% and a wide tuning range over a few hundred nanometers. Because of the shadow deposition process, we could precisely control the gap size of the coaxial aperture down to the sub–10-nm scale. The plasmonic resonance of the SiN /Au disk at the center of the coaxial aperture efficiently funnels the incident light into the sub–10-nm gap and allows strong electric field confinement for efficient second harmonic generation (SHG), as well as EOT. In addition to the experiment, we theoretically investigated the modal properties of the plasmonic coaxial aperture depending on the structural parameters and correlation between EOT and SHG through finite-difference time-domain simulations. We believe that our plasmonic coaxial apertures, which are readily fabricated by the nanoimprinting process, can be a versatile, practical platform for enhanced light–matter interaction and its nonlinear optical applications.

Dielectric nano-antennas are promising elements in nanophotonics due to their low material loss and strong leaky-mode optical resonances. In particular, light scattering can be easily manipulated using dielectric nano-antennas. To take full advantage of dielectric nano-antennas and explore their new optical applications, it is necessary to fabricate three-dimensional nano-structures under arbitrary conditions such as in non-planar substrates. Here, we demonstrate full-visible-range resonant light scattering from a single dielectric optical nano-rod antenna. The nano-rod antenna was formed by electron beam-induced deposition (EBID), a promising three-dimensional nanofabrication technique with a high spatial resolution. The nano-rods consist of amorphous alloys of C and O, with a width of 180 nm on average and a length of 4.5 μm. Polarization-resolved dark-field scattering measurements show that both transverse-electric and transverse-magnetic mode resonances cover the full visible range as the height of the nano-rod antenna varies from 90 to 280 nm. Numerical simulations successfully reproduce the measured scattering features and characterize the modal properties, using the critical points dispersive dielectric constant of the EBID carbonaceous material. Our deep understanding of resonant light scattering in the EBID dielectric nano-antenna will be useful for near-field measurement or for the implementation of three-dimensional nanophotonic devices.

The realization of lasers as small as possible has been one of the long-standing goals of the laser physics and quantum optics communities. Among multitudes of recent small cavities, the one-dimensional nanobeam cavity has been actively investigated as one of the most attractive candidates for effective photon confinement thanks to its simple geometry. However, the current injection into the ultra-small nano-resonator without critically degrading the quality factor remains still unanswered. Here we report an electrically driven, one-dimensional, photonic-well, single-mode, room-temperature nanobeam laser whose footprint approaches the smallest possible value. The small physical volume of ~4.6 × 0.61 × 0.28 μm 3 (~8.2( λ   n −1 ) 3 ) was realized through the introduction of a Gaussian-like photonic well made of only 11 air holes. In addition, a low threshold current of ~5 μA was observed from a three-cell nanobeam cavity at room temperature. The simple one-dimensional waveguide nature of the nanobeam enables straightforward integration with other photonic applications such as photonic integrated circuits and quantum information devices. Lasers for on-chip optical technologies should be as small as possible. Here, Jeong et al. achieve room-temperature lasing in an electrically driven nanobeam photonic structure using only 11 holes to confine the light.