Optical Physics and Photonics
Many dramatic developments in science and technology have resulted from applications of the laser to the fields of telecommunications, materials processing, and remote sensing, as well as developing the laser as a diagnostic tool in biology, chemistry, and physics. A number of Applied Physics faculty members have made major contributions to these laser-related areas.
One such area is in the development and use of lasers that produce sub-100 femtosecond pulses (a femtosecond = 10 to the -15 second). New or improved sources of ultrashort pulses are under development, including diode-pumped all-solid-state systems and compact fiber-based sources. Femtosecond sources have been used to monitor the course of chemical reactions, to observe molecular dynamics with femtosecond resolution, and to study carrier dynamics in semiconductors and for ultra-high-speed optoelectronics. Nonlinear propagation effects with femtosecond pulses are also the subject of extensive research, including the generation of spatio-temporal solitons (i.e., pulses propagated without diffracting in space or dispersing in time) and the nonlinear dynamics associated with catastrophic pulse collapse due to self-focusing.
Considerable efforts at Cornell are devoted to the photonics area, particularly with potential applications to telecommunications. These research topics include photonics crystal structures that could allow for the development of optical "circuits" and of novel types of optical fiber that have unique capabilities not possible with current telecommunications fiber designs. Semiconductor quantum "dots" are being investigated for potential development of highly broadband optical amplifiers and nonlinear optical switches. The goal of this research is to increase the bandwidth of telecommunications systems and to develop "all-optical" systems that minimize electronic components.
Applied Physics faculty members are engaged in a number of other optics-related efforts. These include the development of new and improved optoelectronic devices using compound semiconductor heterostructures; projects concerned with the identification, production, and application of new nonlinear optical materials; and research on sensors for chemical sensing and biological applications.
FACULTY AND THEIR RESEARCH INTERESTS IN THIS AREA:
| David Erickson Assistant Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering microfluidics and nanofluidics as applied to optofluidics, biomolecular detection, biologically enabled robotics, nanomedicine, and programmable matter |
| Craig J. Fennie Assistant Professor of Applied and Engineering Physics, AEP computational materials physics; novel materials for electrical, magnetic, and optical devices by design; theoretical prediction and design of new materials and states for energy conversion |
| Gregory D. Fuchs Assistant Professor of Applied and Engineering Physics, AEP near-field imaging with nanoscale resolution, confocal microscopy, photo-physics of single semiconductor defects, quantum control, quantum optics |
| Alexander L. Gaeta Professor of Applied and Engineering Physics, AEP nonlinear and quantum optics |
| Michal Lipson Associate Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering nanophotonics; optical nanostructures, for short and long interconnect distances |
| Clifford R. Pollock Ilda and Charles Lee Professor of Engineering; Director of the Masters of Engineering Program, ECE lasers, fiber optics, quantum electronics |
| Watt W. Webb Samuel B. Eckert Professor in Engineering, Professor of Applied Physics, AEP medical multiphoton microscopy endoscopy, cellular and membrane biophysics, molecular mobility, channel molecules and transmembrane signaling, multiphoton microscopy, fluorescence correlation spectroscopy, biophysical and biomedical instrumentation development |
| Frank Wise Professor and Director of Applied and Engineering Physics, AEP time-resolved optical spectroscopy of condensed matter; generation of ultra-short optical pulses; quantum dot solar cells |
| Chris Xu Associate Professor of Applied and Engineering Physics; Director of Graduate Studies, AEP biomedical imaging, optical instrumentation, and optical communications |
| Warren R. Zipfel Associate Professor, Department of Biomedical Engineering biomedical imaging and instrumentation |
