In this thesis, ultimate sensitive measurement for weak force imposed on a suspended mirror is performed with the help of a laser and an optical cavity for the development of gravitational-wave detectors. According to the Heisenberg uncertainty principle, such measurements are subject to a fundamental noise called quantum noise, which arises from the quantum nature of a probe (light) and a measured object (mirror). One of the sources of quantum noise is the quantum back-action, which arises from the vacuum fluctuation of the light. It sways the mirror via the momentum transferred to the mirror upon its reflection for the measurement. The author discusses a fundamental trade-off between sensitivity and stability in the macroscopic system, and suggests using a triangular cavity that can avoid this trade-off. The development of an optical triangular cavity is described and its characterization of the optomechanical effect in the triangular cavity is demonstrated. As a result, for the first time in the world the quantum back-action imposed on the 5-mg suspended mirror is significantly evaluated. This work contributes to overcoming the standard quantum limit in the future.

This work studies the relaxation dynamics of molecules in both the gas and liquid phases after strong field ionization, using transient absorption in the soft X-rays. In particular, the thesis presents the first realization of time-resolved X-ray absorption spectroscopy in the spectral water window with a laser-based HHG source. These remarkable experiments were not only performed for isolated molecules, but also in liquids, for which the spectral coverage of the K-edges of C, N, and O are of primary importance for investigating biological molecules. The technique relies on the generation of high-order harmonics to further probe the electronic structure of molecules. Using the atomic selectivity of high energies and the temporal coherence of laser technology, we demonstrate the observation of the first stages of chemical transformation of matter in the gas and liquid phases.

This book addresses the peculiarities of nonlinear wave propagation in waveguides and explains how the stratification depends on the waveguide and confinement. An example of this is an optical fibre that does not allow light to pass through a density jump. The book also discusses propagation in the nonlinear regime, which is characterized by a specific waveform and amplitude, to demonstrate so-called solitonic behaviour. In this case, a wave may be strongly localized, and propagates with a weak change in shape. In the waveguide case there are additional contributions of dispersion originating from boundary or asymptotic conditions. Offering concrete guidance on solving application problems, this essentially (more than twice) expanded second edition includes various aspects of guided propagation of nonlinear waves as well as new topics like solitonic behaviour of one-mode and multi-mode excitation and propagation and plasma waveguides, propagation peculiarities of electromagnetic waves in metamaterials, new types of dispersion, dissipation, electromagnetic waveguides, planetary waves and plasma waves interaction.The key feature of the solitonic behaviour is based on Coupled KdV and Coupled NS systems. The systems are derived in this book and solved numerically with the proof of stability and convergence. The domain wall dynamics of ferromagnetic microwaveguides and Bloch waves in nano-waveguides are also included with some problems of magnetic momentum and charge transport.

The book systematically introduces the visible light communication (VLC) technology in detail. Basic concepts and how to realize the system are both illustrated, including the transmitter, channel, and the receiver. In addition, a good many experimental results are presented to help readers further understand the VLC technologies. The upper-layer protocols of visible light communication system and the technology trends are also discussed. This book can be a good reference work for researchers, engineers, and graduate students in the fields of communications, LED, and optics.

Quantum Optics for Engineers provides a transparent and methodical introduction to quantum optics via the Dirac's bra-ket notation with an emphasis on practical applications and basic aspects of quantum mechanics such as Heisenberg's uncertainty principle and Schrodinger's equation. Self-contained and using mainly first-year calculus and algebra tools, the book: Illustrates the interferometric quantum origin of fundamental optical principles such as diffraction, refraction, and reflection Provides a transparent introduction, via Dirac's notation, to the probability amplitude of quantum entanglement Explains applications of the probability amplitude of quantum entanglement to optical communications, quantum cryptography, quantum teleportation, and quantum computing. Quantum Optics for Engineers is succinct, transparent, and practical, revealing the intriguing world of quantum entanglement via many practical examples. Ample illustrations are used throughout its presentation and the theory is presented in a methodical, detailed approach.

Hardbound. It is a pleasure to record that Progress in Optics is commencing the fifth decade of its existence. The first volume was published in 1961, only a few months after the invention of the laser. This event triggered a wealth of new and exciting developments, many of which were reported in the 240 review articles which were published in this series since its inception. The present volume contains seven articles covering a wide range of subjects. The first article, by M.H. Fields, J. Popp, and R.K. Chang, presents a review of various optical effects in spherical and circular micro-cavities capable of supporting high-Q resonant modes (commonly referred to as morphology-dependent resonances (MDRs) or whispering gallery modes (WGMs)). The article treats the theory of symmetrical and deformed micro-cavities and describes recent research and development in the areas of quantum electrodynamics, lasers, optical spectroscopy, and filters for

This book presents original findings on tunable microwave metamaterial structures, and describes the theoretical and practical issues involved in the design of metamaterial devices. Special emphasis is given to tunable elements and their advantages in terms of feeding network simplification. Different biasing schemes and feeding network topologies are presented, together with extensive prototype measurements and simulations. The book describes a novel, unique solution for beam steering and beam forming applications, and thus paves the way for the diffusion of new agile communication system components. At the same time, it provides readers with an outstanding and timely review of wave propagation in periodic structures, tunability of metamaterials and the technological constraints that need to be considered in the design of reconfigurable microwave components.

Transformation electromagnetics is a systematic design technique for optical and electromagnetic devices that enables novel wave-material interaction properties. The associated metamaterials technology for designing and realizing optical and electromagnetic devices can control the behavior of light and electromagnetic waves in ways that have not been conventionally possible. The technique is credited with numerous novel device designs, most notably the invisibility cloaks, perfect lenses and a host of other remarkable devices. Transformation Electromagnetics and Metamaterials: Fundamental Principles and Applications presents a comprehensive treatment of the rapidly growing area of transformation electromagnetics and related metamaterial technology with contributions on the subject provided by a collection of leading experts from around the world. On the theoretical side, the following questions will be addressed: "Where does transformation electromagnetics come from?," "What are the general material properties for different classes of coordinate transformations?," "What are the limitations and challenges of device realizations?," and "What theoretical tools are available to make the coordinate transformation-based designs more amenable to fabrication using currently available techniques?" The comprehensive theoretical treatment will be complemented by device designs and/or realizations in various frequency regimes and applications including acoustic, radio frequency, terahertz, infrared, and the visible spectrum. The applications encompass invisibility cloaks, gradient-index lenses in the microwave and optical regimes, negative-index superlenses for sub-wavelength resolution focusing, flat lenses that produce highly collimated beams from an embedded antenna or optical source, beam concentrators, polarization rotators and splitters, perfect electromagnetic absorbers, and many others. This book will serve as the authoritative reference for students and researchers alike to the fast-evolving and exciting research area of transformation electromagnetics/optics, its application to the design of revolutionary new devices, and their associated metamaterial realizations.

Coherent quantum optics and technology can be defined as the investigation of the principles of and methods for generating a very smooth lightwave with low fluctuations, controlling and manipulating atoms and photons and their application systems. Generation of nonclassical photons by this lightwave is also part of this area. Chapter 1 provides the reader with the definition of the coherent state of light. Chapter 2 is devoted to the principle of laser oscillation described by using the density matrix method. Chapter 3 reviews the structures and performances of representative lasers, that is gas, dye, solid-state, and semiconductor lasers. Chapter 4 defines the measures of representing the magnitude of noises and the specific noises in lasers. Chapter 5 treats the general ideas and methods of the principle of reducing the frequency fluctuations of lasers and their experimental results. Chapter 7 demonstrates several advanced lightwave application systems for communications, sensing, spectroscopy, atomic clock, quantum optics, atomic physics and test of the theory of relativity. For future progress of this field of research, Chapter 8 introduces several novel ideas for expanding the laser oscilation wavelength range, the generation of nonclassical photons, the manipulation of atoms and photons, and photonic energy storage. Chapters 1-5 form a tutorial textbook for undergraduate students, graduate students, and junior engineers. Chapters 6-8 introduce the topics which are still progressing rapidly.

"Advances in One-Dimensional Wave Mechanics" provides a comprehensive description of the motion of microscopic particles in one-dimensional, arbitrary-shaped potentials based on the analogy between Quantum Mechanics and Electromagnetism. Utilizing a deeper understanding of the wave nature of matter, this book introduces the concept of the scattered sub-waves and a series of new analytical results using the Analytical Transfer Matrix (ATM) method. This work will be useful for graduate students majoring in physics, mainly in basic quantum theory, as well as for academic researchers exploring electromagnetism, particle physics, and wave mechanics and for experts in the field of optical waveguide and integrated optics.

Prof. Zhuangqi Cao is a Professor of Physics at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, China.

Dr. Cheng Yin is a teacher at Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Power Transmission and Distribution Equipment Technology, Hohai University, China.

Three dimensional (3D) optical geometries are becoming more common in the literature and lexicon of solar cells. "Three Dimensional Solar Cells Based on Optical Confinement Geometries" describes and reveals the basic operational nuances of 3D photovoltaics using three standard tools: Equivalent Circuit Models, Ray Tracing Optics in the Cavity, and Absorber Spectral Response. These tools aide in understanding experimental absorption profile and device parameters including Jsc, Voc, Fill Factor, and EQE. These methods also apply to individual optical confinement geometry device, integrated optical confinement geometry device, and hybrid optical confinement geometry device.
Additionally, this book discusses the importance of these methods in achieving the goal of high efficiency solar cells and suggests a possible application in large-scale photovoltaics business, like solar farms.

The thesis covers a broad range of electronic, optical and opto-electronic devices and various predicted physical effects. In particular, it examines the quantum interference transistor effect in graphene nanorings; tunable spin-filtering and spin-dependent negative differential resistance in composite heterostructures based on graphene and ferromagnetic materials; optical and novel electro-optical bistability and hysteresis in compound systems and the real-time control of radiation patterns of optical nanoantennas. The direction of the main radiation lobe of a regular plasmonic array can be changed abruptly by small variations in external control parameters. This optical effect, apart from its relevance for applications, is a revealing example of the Umklapp process and, thus, is a visual manifestation of one of the most fundamental laws of solid state physics: the conservation of the quasi-momentum to within a reciprocal lattice vector. The thesis analyzes not only results for particular device designs but also a variety of advanced numerical methods which are extended by the author and described in detail. These methods can be used as a sound starting point for further research.

This thesis focuses on the fundamental problem of characterising partially coherent beams. The book describes several non-interferometric methods based on phase-space tomography for recovering the spatial coherence information of optical beams. In the context of optical beams, partially coherent light provides numerous advantages over coherent light. From microscopy to optical communications, there are many disciplines that benefit from using partially coherent beams. However, their range of applications currently remains limited due to the complexity of extracting information. In addition to providing a feasible experimental solution for the general case, the book explores several situations in which beam symmetries are exploited to simplify the information extraction process. Each characterisation method is accompanied by a corresponding theoretical explanation and a thorough description of experimental examples.

This book highlights the growing applications of THz technology and various modules used for their successful realization. The enormous advantages of THz devices like higher resolution, spatial directivity, high-speed communication, greater bandwidth, non-ionizing signal nature and compactness make them useful in various applications like communication, sensing, security, safety, spectroscopy, manufacturing, bio-medical, agriculture, imaging, etc. Since the THz radiation covers frequencies from 0.1THz to around 10THz and highly attenuated by atmospheric gases, they are used in short-distance applications only. The book focuses on recent advances and different research issues in terahertz technology and presents theoretical, methodological, well-established and validated empirical works dealing with the different topics.

This book presents a new system of solar cells. Colloidal nanocrystals possess many physical and chemical properties which can be manipulated by advanced control over structural features like the particle size. One application field is photovoltaics where colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals are explored as components of photo-active layers which can be produced from liquid media, often in combination with conductive polymers. The further development of this interdisciplinary field of research requires a deep understanding of the physics and chemistry of colloidal nanocrystals, conducting polymers and photovoltaic devices. This book aims at bridging gaps between the involved scientific disciplines and presents important fundamentals and the current state of research of relevant materials and different types of nanoparticle-based solar cells. The book will be of interest to researchers and PhD students. Moreover, it may also serve to accompany specialized lectures in related areas.

Light Scattering Reviews (vol. 9) is aimed at the description of modern advances in radiative transfer and light scattering. The following topics will be considered: light scattering by atmospheric dust particles and also by inhomogeneous scatterers, the general - purpose discrete - ordinate algorithm DISORT for radiative transfer, the radiative transfer code RAY based on the adding-doubling solution of the radiative transfer equation, aerosol and cloud remote sensing, use of polarization in remote sensing, direct aerosol radiative forcing, principles of the Mueller matrix measurements, light reflectance from various land surfaces. This volume will be a valuable addition to already published volumes 1-8 of Light Scattering Reviews.

This book introduces readers to the cutting-edge topic of nanophotonic photochemical reactions and their applications. From among the various innovations in optical technology achieved by means of the non-uniform optical near field, it focuses on photochemical reactions at the nanoscale. Optical near fields are the elementary surface excitations of nanometric particles with non-uniform field distributions. After reviewing the unique properties of the non-uniform optical field, the book presents a range of applications of near-field assisted photochemical reactions, including near-field etching, visible water splitting, carbon dioxide reduction and reactions in solar cells.

Solid State Physics, Volume 71 provides the latest volume in this long-running series. This latest volume highlights new advances in the field, with this new volume presenting interesting chapters written by an international board of authors.

This book covers the history of lasers with nuclear pumping (Nuclear Pumped Lasers, NPLs). This book showcases the most important results and stages of NPL development in The Russian Federal Nuclear Center (VNIIEF) as well as other Russian and international laboratories, including laboratories in the United States. The basic science and technology behind NPLs along with potential applications are covered throughout the book. As the first comprehensive discussion of NPLs, students, researchers, and application engineers interested in high energy lasers will find this book to be an extremely valuable source of information about these unique lasers.

William Gascoigne (c.1612-44) was the inventor of the telescopic sight and micrometer (instruments crucial to the advance of astronomy). His name is now known to historians of science around the world. For some considerable time after his tragic death at the age of 32 in the English Civil War, however, it seemed as if his achievements would be consigned to oblivion. Most of his papers were lost and even the few that survived have largely disappeared. This is the story of how his work was rescued. Into this story is woven an account of the state of astronomy and optics during Gascoigne's lifetime, so that the reader can appreciate the significance of his discoveries.

This thesis focuses on the study of the optical response of new atomically thin two-dimensional crystals, principally the family of transition metal dichalcogenides like MoS2. One central theme of the thesis is the precise treatment of the linear and second-order nonlinear optical susceptibilities of atomically thin transition metal dichalcogenides. In addition to their significant scientific interest as fundamental material responses, these studies provide essential knowledge and convenient characterization tools for the application of these 2D materials in opto-electronic devices. Another important theme of the thesis is the valley physics of atomically thin transition metal dichalcogenides. It is shown that the degeneracy in the valley degree of freedom can be lifted and a valley polarization can be created using a magnetic field, which breaks time reversal symmetry in these materials. These findings enhance our basic understanding of the valley electronic states and open up new opportunities for valleytronic applications using two-dimensional materials.

This book provides a comprehensive overview of the photonic sensing field by covering plasmonics, photonic crystal, and SOI techniques from theory to real sensing applications. A literature review of ultra-sensitive photonic sensors, including their design and application in industry, makes this a self-contained and comprehensive resource for different types of sensors, with high value to the biosensor sector in particular. The book is organized into four parts: Part I covers the basic theory of wave propagation, basic principles of sensing, surface plasmon resonance, and silicon photonics; Part II details the computational modeling techniques for the analysis and prediction of photonic sensors; Part III and Part IV cover the various mechanisms and light matter interaction scenarios behind the design of photonic sensors including photonic crystal fiber sensors and SOI sensors. This book is appropriate for academics and researchers specializing in photonic sensors; graduate students in the early and intermediate stages working in the areas of photonics, sensors, biophysics, and biomedical engineering; and to biomedical, environmental, and chemical engineers.

This monograph provides an introductory discussion of evanescent waves and plasmons, describes their properties and uses, and shows how they are fundamental when operating with nanoscale optics. Far field optics is not suitable for the design, description, and operation of devices at this nanometre scale. Instead one must work with models based on near-field optics and surface evanescent waves. The new discipline of plasmonics has grown to encompass the generation and application of plasmons both as a travelling excitation in a nanostructure and as a stationary enhancement of the electrical field near metal nanosurfaces. The book begins with a brief review of the basic concepts of electromagnetism, then introduces evanescent waves through reflection and refraction, and shows how they appear in diffraction problems, before discussing the role that they play in optical waveguides and sensors. The application of evanescent waves in super-resolution devices is briefly presented, before plasmons are introduced. The surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) are then treated, highlighting their potential applications also in ultra-compact circuitry. The book concludes with a discussion of the quantization of evanescent waves and quantum information processing. The book is intended for students and researchers who wish to enter the field or to have some insight into the matter. It is not a textbook but simply an introduction to more complete and in-depth discussions. The field of plasmonics has exploded in the last ten years, and most of the material treated in this book is scattered in original or review papers. A short comprehensive treatment is missing; this book is intended to provide just that.

This thesis deals with the dynamics of state-of-the-art nanophotonic semiconductor structures, providing essential information on fundamental aspects of nonlinear dynamical systems on the one hand, and technological applications in modern telecommunication on the other. Three different complex laser structures are considered in detail: (i) a quantum-dot-based semiconductor laser under optical injection from a master laser, (ii) a quantum-dot laser with optical feedback from an external resonator, and (iii) a passively mode-locked quantum-well semiconductor laser with saturable absorber under optical feedback from an external resonator. Using a broad spectrum of methods, both numerical and analytical, this work achieves new fundamental insights into the interplay of microscopically based nonlinear laser dynamics and optical perturbations by delayed feedback and injection.