Current-modulated optical properties of vanadium dioxide thin films in the phase transition region
Abstract
Vanadium dioxide (VO2) is a correlated electron material which undergoes an insulator-metal transition proximal to room temperature. The large change of optical properties across this phase transition is promising for tunable optical and optoelectronic devices especially at infrared frequencies. We demonstrate the ability to locally tune the optical properties on the micron scale through a simple design consisting of two electrodes patterned on a VO2 thin film. By current injection between the electrodes, a localized conducting path (metallic phase) can be formed within the insulating background. The width of the conducting path can be controlled by varying the applied current. Fourier transform infrared imaging shows that this current-modulated reflectance changes significantly over a distance on the order of the wavelength in the mid-infrared spectral range.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Pub Defense Publication
- Publication Date
- Nov 24, 2014
- Source ID
- 10.1063/1.4902924
Entities
People
- Federico Capasso
- Mikhail A Kats
- Shriram Ramanathan
- Shuyan Zhang
- Yanjie Cui
- You Zhou
- Yu Yao
Organizations
- Air Force Office of Scientific Research
- Charles Stark Draper Laboratory
- Harvard University
- National Science Foundation