Excitons: Mediating Light and Matter

Dr. Gleb M. Akselrod, Duke University

Goergen Hall, Room 101

Abstract

Transformation between light and nanoscale electronic energy is at the heart of technologies such photovoltaics, optical telecommunications, and imaging. Mediating light-matter interaction in these devices are nanoscale energy packets known as excitons. The next generation of optoelectronics and active nanophotonics will rely on precisely controlling the generation, movement, and decay of excitons. In this talk, I will explain the importance of excitons and show how the dynamics of excitons can be manipulated using nanoscale optical cavities and antennas. For instance, using a carefully engineered plasmonic nanocavity, the emission rate of excitons is increased 1,000-fold, while having high efficiency. I will also show a technique for directly watching how excitons move inside nanostructured materials. Finally, I will discuss how this newly gained control over exciton dynamics will serve as the foundation for my vision of active nanophotonic devices and metamaterials.

Bio

Gleb is currently a postdoctoral fellow in the Center for Metamaterials and Integrated Plasmonics at Duke University working with David Smith and Maiken Mikkelsen, where he is an Intelligence Community Postdoctoral Fellow. His work is focused on plasmonic nanoantennas and metasurfaces. He completed his PhD in 2013 at MIT, where he studied the transport and coherence of excitons in nanostructured materials in the group Vladimir Bulovic. At MIT he was the recipient of the Hertz Graduate Fellowship and the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship.

Location:Goergen 101

Refreshments will be served.