Polariton nanophotonics using phase-change materials
Abstract
Polaritons formed by the coupling of light and material excitations enable light-matter interactions at the nanoscale beyond what is currently possible with conventional optics. However, novel techniques are required to control the propagation of polaritons at the nanoscale and to implement the first practical devices. Here we report the experimental realization of polariton refractive and meta-optics in the mid-infrared by exploiting the properties of low-loss phonon polaritons in isotopically pure hexagonal boron nitride interacting with the surrounding dielectric environment comprising the low-loss phase change material Ge3Sb2Te6. We demonstrate rewritable waveguides, refractive optical elements such as lenses, prisms, and metalenses, which allow for polariton wavefront engineering and sub-wavelength focusing. This method will enable the realization of programmable miniaturized integrated optoelectronic devices and on-demand biosensors based on high quality phonon resonators.
Related
- Phase change materials in residential water heaters: A comparative review of thermal energy storage in heat pump, solar, and electric systems
- Photonic devices based on phase-change materials for neuromorphic computing
- Tailoring Dielectric Relaxation and Charge Transport in Amorphous Ge-Te-Se Phase-Change Materials through Yttrium Incorporation
- High-resolution, low-loss multilevel phase shifters based on electrically driven phase-change materials integrated onto silicon waveguides
- Investigation of the impact of graphite microparticle geometry on thermal performance enhancement of phase change materials (PCMs) for thermal energy storage
BibTeX
@article{chaudhary2026polariton,
title = {{Polariton nanophotonics using phase-change materials}},
author = {Kundan Chaudhary and Michele Tamagnone and Xinghui Yin and Christina M. Spägele and Stefano L. Oscurato and Jiahan Li and Christoph Persch and Ruoping Li and Noah A. Rubin and Luis A. Jauregui and Kenji Watanabe and Takashi Taniguchi and Philip Kim and Matthias Wuttig and James H. Edgar and Antonio Ambrosio and Federico Capasso},
journal = {Nature Communications},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1038/s41467-019-12439-4},
eprint = {1905.01277},
archivePrefix = {arXiv},
url = {https://hal.science/hal-05789733v1},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Polariton nanophotonics using phase-change materials
AU - Kundan Chaudhary
AU - Michele Tamagnone
AU - Xinghui Yin
AU - Christina M. Spägele
AU - Stefano L. Oscurato
AU - Jiahan Li
AU - Christoph Persch
AU - Ruoping Li
AU - Noah A. Rubin
AU - Luis A. Jauregui
AU - Kenji Watanabe
AU - Takashi Taniguchi
AU - Philip Kim
AU - Matthias Wuttig
AU - James H. Edgar
AU - Antonio Ambrosio
AU - Federico Capasso
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/09
JO - Nature Communications
DO - 10.1038/s41467-019-12439-4
UR - https://hal.science/hal-05789733v1
AB - Polaritons formed by the coupling of light and material excitations enable light-matter interactions at the nanoscale beyond what is currently possible with conventional optics. However, novel techniques are required to control the propagation of polaritons at the nanoscale and to implement the first practical devices. Here we report the experimental realization of polariton refractive and meta-optics in the mid-infrared by exploiting the properties of low-loss phonon polaritons in isotopically pure hexagonal boron nitride interacting with the surrounding dielectric environment comprising the low-loss phase change material Ge3Sb2Te6. We demonstrate rewritable waveguides, refractive optical elements such as lenses, prisms, and metalenses, which allow for polariton wavefront engineering and sub-wavelength focusing. This method will enable the realization of programmable miniaturized integrated optoelectronic devices and on-demand biosensors based on high quality phonon resonators.
SN - 2041-1723
SN - 2041-1723
ER -