Abstract:
A heating/cooling device for a microfluidic apparatus having a thermal insulating substrate. The device includes heating/cooling chamber for heating and/or cooling a sample disposed in the chamber; a waste heat channel for carrying away waste heat and/or waste cooling; and at least one Peltier junction having first and second opposing faces, the first face thereof facing towards said heating/cooling chamber and being in thermal communication therewith for providing either heat or cooling to the chamber in response to a flow of electrical current through the at least one Peltier junction, the second face thereof facing towards said waste heat channel and being in thermal communication therewith for either receiving heat from or dumping heat to the channel in response to a flow of electrical current through the Peltier junction.
Abstract:
A strip loaded waveguide comprises a slab and a strip, wherein the strip is separated from the slab. Nevertheless, a guiding region is provided for propagating an optical mode and this guiding region extends both within the strip and the slab. A layer of material having an index of refraction lower than that of the strip and the slab may be disposed between and separate the strip and the slab. In one embodiment, the slab comprises a crystalline silicon, the strip comprises polysilicon or crystalline silicon, and the layer of material therebetween comprises silicon dioxide. Such waveguides may be formed on the same substrate with transistors. These waveguides may also be electrically biased to alter the index of refraction and/or absorption of the waveguide.
Abstract:
A microsensor for sensing a substance comprises a substrate, a source of light, an optical microresonator or semiconductor optical ring microresonator fabricated in the substrate exposed to the substance to allow an interaction between the microresonator and substance, a waveguide coupling the source of light to the optical microresonator, and a detector coupled to the microresonator to measure the resonant frequency of the microresonator, the absorption loss of whispering gallery modes in the microresonator or the quality factor of the microresonator, which are sensitive to interaction of the substance with the optical microresonator. A polymer coating disposed on the microresonator is reactive with the substance. The microsensor may comprise a plurality of microresonators corresponding to a plurality of different resonant frequencies to generate an absorption spectrum of the substance.
Abstract:
An integrated plasmon detector includes a top layer of material adapted to generate a plasmon when excited by a beam of light incident onto a surface of the top layer, an interface layer joined to the top layer opposite from the surface of the top layer and adapted to slow polarons emitted by the plasmon to thermal electrons, and a collector layer joined to the interface layer opposite from the top layer and adapted to collect the thermal electrons from the interface layer.
Abstract:
A three dimensional adiabatic taper provides a funnel for light to be coupled into high index material. The taper is formed by shadow deposition or sputtering from polysilicon, which can be used to match the refractive index of waveguiding material to which the taper is optically coupled. When designed with the correct shape and adequate smoothness, such tapers form efficient waveguide couplers. Once the light has been coupled through the adiabatic coupler into an index guide on a wafer or chip, an integral design of the transition between the index guide and photonic crystal ensures low loss coupling with a minimum of diffraction and back reflection.
Abstract:
A near-field scanning microscopy probe and a method for doing the same. A metal plasmon or dielectric waveguide is connected to a deformable material and coupled to a dielectric waveguide on a chip. The probe pops up out of the plane of the chip. The probe can be easily integrated with standard on-chip optical components.
Abstract:
A method of fabricating an elastomeric structure, comprising: forming a first elastomeric layer on top of a first micromachined mold, the first micromachined mold having a first raised protrusion which forms a first recess extending along a bottom surface of the first elastomeric layer; forming a second elastomeric layer on top of a second micromachined mold, the second micromachined mold having a second raised protrusion which forms a second recess extending along a bottom surface of the second elastomeric layer; bonding the bottom surface of the second elastomeric layer onto a top surface of the first elastomeric layer such that a control channel forms in the second recess between the first and second elastomeric layers; and positioning the first elastomeric layer on top of a planar substrate such that a flow channel forms in the first recess between the first elastomeric layer and the planar substrate.
Abstract:
A strip loaded waveguide comprises a slab and a strip, wherein the strip is separated from the slab. Nevertheless, a guiding region is provided for propagating an optical mode and this guiding region extends both within the strip and the slab. A layer of material having an index of refraction lower than that of the strip and the slab may be disposed between and separate the strip and the slab. In one embodiment, the slab comprises a crystalline silicon, the strip comprises polysilicon or crystalline silicon, and the layer of material therebetween comprises silicon dioxide. Such waveguides may be formed on the same substrate with transistors. These waveguides may also be electrically biased to alter the index of refraction and/or absorption of the waveguide.
Abstract:
Optical switches and logic devices comprising microstructure-doped nanocavity lasers are described. These switches and logic devices have gain and thus can be cascaded and integrated in a network or system such as for example on a chip. Exemplary switching elements switch the intensity, wavelength, or direction of the output. Exemplary logic devices include AND, OR, NAND, NOR, NOT, and XOR gates as well as flip-flops. Microfluidic sorting and delivery as well as optical tweezing and trapping may be employ to select and position a light emitter in an nanooptical cavity to form the nanolaser.
Abstract:
A method of fabricating an elastomeric structure, comprising: forming a first elastomeric layer on top of a first micromachined mold, the first micromachined mold having a first raised protrusion which forms a first recess extending along a bottom surface of the first elastomeric layer; forming a second elastomeric layer on top of a second micromachined mold, the second micromachined mold having a second raised protrusion which forms a second recess extending along a bottom surface of the second elastomeric layer; bonding the bottom surface of the second elastomeric layer onto a top surface of the first elastomeric layer such that a control channel forms in the second recess between the first and second elastomeric layers; and positioning the first elastomeric layer on top of a planar substrate such that a flow channel forms in the first recess between the first elastomeric layer and the planar substrate.