Séminaires

Title of seminar: Gap plasmon antennas: light/material interaction in nano-cavities

Abstract :

We develop and study theoretically plasmonic nano-cavities where electrically or optically active materials are precisely positioned within the cavity for optoelectronic based applications and devices.  Plasmon gap resonances with metal nanocubes represent a fascinating and technologically significant phenomenon in the field of nanophotonics. Plasmons are collective oscillations of electrons in a metal, and when confined within nanoscale structures like cubes, they exhibit unique behaviors, particularly in the interparticle gaps.

First, we explore a new paradigm, coming from the microwave community, in which the light wave-like behavior is exploited to convert free-propagating electromagnetic waves at optical frequencies into direct current. We investigate optical rectennas composed of plasmonic nano-antennas associated with rectifying diodes to directly convert light into electricity. The main advantage of this technology comes from the ability to convert electromagnetic waves into electricity from far infrared to the visible range with potential high-power conversion efficiency (PCE). In our approach, we propose to study the interplay between nano-scale molecular electronics and plasmonics and the development of new functional nanostructured materials for energy harvesting. Our research efforts have resulted in the fabrication of nanopatch antennas able to couple resonant gap plasmon in nano-cavities integrating electrically active molecules and constructed with metallic nanocubes using a bottom-up approach. These nano-patch antennas are coupled with high-frequency molecular diodes to convert electromagnetic waves at optical frequencies. 

On a second approach, emitters placed within plasmonic nano-cavities that support intense optical confinement experience an environment that changes their coupling to light. In the weak-coupling regime light extraction is enhanced, but more profound effects emerge in strong coupling regime, where mixed light-matter states are generated. This new field of research in the LUMEN-PV team, concerns the study and development, through modeling and optical characterization, of patch nano-antennas integrating two-dimensional (2D) materials such as transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) in order to propose a valid design for LED fabrication.

Title of seminar: Dispositif électronique, développé au sein du LPL, de DDS multivoies pour la génération de signaux radiofréquence

Abstract :

Dans le cadre du PEPR quantique QUTISYM et à la demande des équipes d’atomes froids partenaires du projet, le service électronique électronique à développé un dispositif de génération de signaux radiofréquences de précision multicanaux.

Cette électronique est destinée à servir de source radiofréquence pour les expériences de physique quantique et de métrologique. Elle sera utilisée par différents laboratoires et partenaires du CNRS qui souhaitent disposer d’un système open source, reconfigurable et agile.

Je présente durant ce séminaire technique le projet réalisé, l’intérêt par rapport à des « solutions commerciales », et les perspectives d’évolutions du dispositif développé.

Title of seminar: Ultracold molecules beyond the bi-alkali paradigm: from quantum chemistry to new physics searches.

Abstract :

Despite tremendous progress in direct laser cooling of molecules, the only strategy so far able to deliver molecular gases at high phase-space density relies on the assembly from pre-cooled atoms in a two-step process: atom pairs are first converted into weakly bound molecules across a Feshbach resonance and later transferred to the absolute molecular ground state via stimulated Raman adiabatic passage. However, this method has so far been demonstrated only for bi-alkali systems with singlet electronic ground states.
In the first part of my talk, I will describe the association of alkali lithium and transition-metal chromium into LiCr dimers, which represent a prime candidate to realize quantum gases of paramagnetic polar molecules. The experimental investigation of several isotopic combinations of the Li-Cr, as well as the Cr-Cr systems, is used to benchmark state-of-the-art quantum chemistry methods. In the second part of my talk, I will present our recent proposal (with M. Tomza’s group, Warsaw), on next-generation searches for new physics based on high-spin, Σ-state, polar molecules in the ultracold regime, and I will explain how these can be realized by assembly of ultracold ytterbium and chromium atoms.

Title of seminar: Physics of frequency-shifting loops – Applications to sensors and signal processing

Abstract :

Frequency-shifting loops are a simple and efficient source of frequency combs. The spectral phase of these combs is quadratic and can be used to produce high repetition rate pulses through a temporal Talbot effect. Next, I will present some applications of these systems for spectroscopy and resonator characterisation. I will then show how the implementation of a double frequency-shift loop can be used to produce a dual-comb, thereby extending the applications of these architectures to coherent lidar and distributed acoustic sensors. Finally, I will present two applications of double frequency-shift loops for microwave photonics: real-time signal correlation and spectral analysis of broadband signals.

Title of seminar: Two-Body Contact Dynamics in a Bose Gas near a Fano-Feshbach Resonance

Abstract :

We investigate the real-time buildup of short-range correlations in a nondegenerate ultracold Bose gas near a narrow Fano-Feshbach resonance. Using rapid optical control, we quench the closed-channel molecular energy to resonance on sub-microsecond timescales and track the evolution of the two-body contact through photo-dissociation losses. Repeated pulse sequences enhance sensitivity to early-time two-body losses and reveal long-lived coherence between atom pairs and molecular states. The observed dynamics are accurately reproduced by our dynamical two-channel zero-range theory, which explicitly accounts for the resonance’s narrow width and finite closed-channel decay, establishing a predictive framework for correlation dynamics in quantum gases near Fano-Feshbach resonances.

Title of seminar: A Radio Astronomy-Based Spectrometer for Isotopologue Studies of Interstellar Molecules

Abstract :

Recent observations with ultra-sensitive radio telescopes, such as ALMA, have revealed that protostellar gas is rich in complex organic molecules (COMs). Many are thought to form on ices and then sublimate, but distinguishing ice-formed from gas-phase species remains a central question. Addressing this requires high-sensitivity observations supported by spectroscopic data that enable us to derive accurate isotopic ratios of individual molecular species in astronomical sources. However, such data are still lacking for rare isotopologues and highly excited states, posing a major limitation for interpreting astronomical observations.

To overcome this, we developed SUMIRE, an emission-type molecular spectrometer based on radio astronomy receiver technology. SUMIRE covers most of the main ALMA frequency ranges, Band 6 (211–275 GHz) and Band 7 (275–373 GHz), and allows simultaneous wide-band measurements up to 24 GHz. Its key innovation is a calibration system equivalent to that of radio astronomy, enabling direct comparison of laboratory and astronomical spectra. With purified isotopologue samples, SUMIRE also provides absolute intensity calibration values.

We are currently using SUMIRE to obtain spectra of deuterated and ¹³C-substituted methanol isotopologues, the most abundant saturated organic molecule in interstellar clouds, and applying them to astronomical data analysis. In this seminar, I will present these results, highlight the role of spectroscopy in astrochemistry, and also give an overview of the current situation of astrochemical research in Japan.