Gate-controlled generation of optical pulse trains using individual carbon nanotubes

In single-walled carbon nanotubes, electron–hole pairs form tightly bound excitons because of limited screening. These excitons display a variety of interactions and processes that could be exploited for applications in nanoscale photonics and optoelectronics. Here we report on optical pulse-train g...

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Main Authors:	Jiang, M, Kumamoto, Y, Ishii, A, Yoshida, M, Shimada, T, Kato, Y. K.
Format:	Online
Language:	English
Published:	Nature Pub. Group 2015
Online Access:	https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4351562/

id	pubmed-4351562
recordtype	oai_dc
spelling	pubmed-43515622015-03-19 Gate-controlled generation of optical pulse trains using individual carbon nanotubes Jiang, M Kumamoto, Y Ishii, A Yoshida, M Shimada, T Kato, Y. K. Article In single-walled carbon nanotubes, electron–hole pairs form tightly bound excitons because of limited screening. These excitons display a variety of interactions and processes that could be exploited for applications in nanoscale photonics and optoelectronics. Here we report on optical pulse-train generation from individual air-suspended carbon nanotubes under an application of square-wave gate voltages. Electrostatically induced carrier accumulation quenches photoluminescence, while a voltage sign reversal purges those carriers, resetting the nanotubes to become luminescent temporarily. Frequency-domain measurements reveal photoluminescence recovery with characteristic frequencies that increase with excitation laser power, showing that photoexcited carriers provide a self-limiting mechanism for pulsed emission. Time-resolved measurements directly confirm the presence of an optical pulse train synchronized to the gate voltage signal, and flexible control over pulse timing and duration is also demonstrated. These results identify an unconventional route for optical pulse generation and electrical-to-optical signal conversion, opening up new prospects for controlling light at the nanoscale. Nature Pub. Group 2015-02-27 /pmc/articles/PMC4351562/ /pubmed/25721203 http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/ncomms7335 Text en Copyright © 2015, Nature Publishing Group, a division of Macmillan Publishers Limited. All Rights Reserved. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in the credit line; if the material is not included under the Creative Commons license, users will need to obtain permission from the license holder to reproduce the material. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
repository_type	Open Access Journal
institution_category	Foreign Institution
institution	US National Center for Biotechnology Information
building	NCBI PubMed
collection	Online Access
language	English
format	Online
author	Jiang, M Kumamoto, Y Ishii, A Yoshida, M Shimada, T Kato, Y. K.
spellingShingle	Jiang, M Kumamoto, Y Ishii, A Yoshida, M Shimada, T Kato, Y. K. Gate-controlled generation of optical pulse trains using individual carbon nanotubes
author_facet	Jiang, M Kumamoto, Y Ishii, A Yoshida, M Shimada, T Kato, Y. K.
author_sort	Jiang, M
title	Gate-controlled generation of optical pulse trains using individual carbon nanotubes
title_short	Gate-controlled generation of optical pulse trains using individual carbon nanotubes
title_full	Gate-controlled generation of optical pulse trains using individual carbon nanotubes
title_fullStr	Gate-controlled generation of optical pulse trains using individual carbon nanotubes
title_full_unstemmed	Gate-controlled generation of optical pulse trains using individual carbon nanotubes
title_sort	gate-controlled generation of optical pulse trains using individual carbon nanotubes
description	In single-walled carbon nanotubes, electron–hole pairs form tightly bound excitons because of limited screening. These excitons display a variety of interactions and processes that could be exploited for applications in nanoscale photonics and optoelectronics. Here we report on optical pulse-train generation from individual air-suspended carbon nanotubes under an application of square-wave gate voltages. Electrostatically induced carrier accumulation quenches photoluminescence, while a voltage sign reversal purges those carriers, resetting the nanotubes to become luminescent temporarily. Frequency-domain measurements reveal photoluminescence recovery with characteristic frequencies that increase with excitation laser power, showing that photoexcited carriers provide a self-limiting mechanism for pulsed emission. Time-resolved measurements directly confirm the presence of an optical pulse train synchronized to the gate voltage signal, and flexible control over pulse timing and duration is also demonstrated. These results identify an unconventional route for optical pulse generation and electrical-to-optical signal conversion, opening up new prospects for controlling light at the nanoscale.
publisher	Nature Pub. Group
publishDate	2015
url	https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4351562/
_version_	1613195887372140544

Gate-controlled generation of optical pulse trains using individual carbon nanotubes

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