FY2019 Annual Report

Light-Matter Interactions for Quantum Technologies Unit
Professor Síle Nic Chormaic

Abstract

In FY2019, we continued to grow our internataional network of collaborators and produce many exciting results on our nanofibre applictions work in cold and Rydberg atoms, and as couplers for whispering gallery resonators.   We also progressed extremely well in the trapping of the "very small" using plasmonic metamaterial devices designed in-house.   While a quieter end of year in many respects than previous years, since COVID19 struck and we had to curtail vistiors into OIST and travel out from OIST, our work was still progressing well with the limitations this brought.  We finally solved the long problem of how to control light's polarisation at the nanofibre waist and we expect this to lead to new applications in the coming years.   Our major research outputs are discussed below and included the completion of three PhD theses in the unit.   We also continued to contribute to outreach activities through the OSA and SPIE Student Chapter,s and welcomed many young research interns from all around the world to hone their research skills by spending time with us here at OIST.    

1. Staff

Research Staff

  • Dr. Jean-Baptiste Ceppe, Postdoctoral Scholar (until January 2020)
  • Dr. Jesse Everett, Postdoctoral Scholar
  • Dr. Vandna Gokhroo, Staff Scientist
  • Dr. Jameesh Keloth, Postdoctoral Scholar (from September 2019)
  • Dr. Domna Kotsifaki, Staff Scientist
  • Dr. Fuchuan Lei, Postdoctoral Scholar (until October 2019)
  • Dr. Tridib Ray, Postdoctoral Scholar (until April 2019)
  • Dr. Priscila Romagnoli, Postdoctoral Scholar
  • Dr. Ke Tian, Postdoctoral Scholar (from January 2020)
  • Dr. Georgiy Tkachenko, JSPS Fellow
  • Dr. Viet Giang Truong, Group Leader/Staff Scientist
  • Dr. Jonathan Ward, Staff Scientist

Support Staff

  • Dr. Kristoffer Karlsson, Technician
  • Ms. Emi Nakamura, Research Unit Administrator
  • Mr. Metin Ozer, Technician

PhD Students

  • Mr. Theodoros Bouloumis, OIST PhD student
  • Ms. Cindy Esporlas, OIST PhD student
  • Mr. Ratnesh Kumar Gupta, OIST PhD student
  • Mr. Sho Kasumie, OIST PhD student (until November 2019)
  • Ms. Maki Maeda, OIST PhD student
  • Mr. Simon Peter Mekhail, OIST PhD student (until December 2019)
  • Mr. Thomas Nieddu, OIST PhD student (until August 2019)
  • Ms. Krishnapriya Subramonian Rajasree, OIST PhD student
  • Ms. Christina Ripken, OIST PhD student (co-supervision)
  • Mr. Lewis Ruks, OIST PhD student (co-supervision)

Visiting Researchers

  • Dr. Xue Han, Associate Professor, Dalian University of Technology, China (July-August 2019)

Rotation/Intern Students/Visiting Research Student

  • Muhammad Sirajul Hasan, Rotation Student (January-April 2019)
  • Kristine Roque, Rotation Student (January-April 2019)
  • Ianto Cannon, Rotation Student (January-April 2019)
  • Monika Eggenberger, Rotation Student (September-December 2019)
  • Tai Tran, Rotation Student (January-April 2020)
  • René Henke, DAAD Fellow, Visiting Research Student, Universität Münster, Germany (April 2019 – July 2020)
  • Jibo Yu, Visiting Research Student, Harbin Engineering University China (September 2019 – September 2020)
  • Angzhen Li, Visiting Research Student, Harbin Engineering University, China (October 2019 – October 2020)
  • Arne Behrens, Visiting Research Student, TU Ilmenau, Germany (November 2019)
  • Mathieu Couillard, MITACS-JSPS Summer Fellow, Concordia University, Canada (June-August 2020)
  • Antoine Pichené, Research Intern, Institut d'Optique Aquitaine France (February-August 2019)
  • Paul Wood, Research Intern, Cork Institute of Technology Ireland (March-August 2019)
  • Simon Jeffers, Research Intern, Cork Institute of Technology Ireland (March-August 2019)
  • Zohreh Shahrabifarahani, Research Intern (October 2019 – April 2020)
  • Soma Mishra, Research Intern, BITS Pilani, India (October 2019 – April 2020)

2. Collaborations

  • Theme: Nanoparticle trapping using novel optical fibres
    • Type of collaboration: Joint research
    • Researchers:
      • J. Fick (Institut Neel, France)
  • Theme: Rydberg atoms and optical nanofibres 
    • Type of collaboration: Joint research
    • Researchers:
      • E. Brion (University of Toulouse, France), J. Robert (ENS Paris Saclay, France), K. Moelmer (Aarhus University, Denmark)
  • Theme: Nonlinear materials for WGM resonators 
    • Type of collaboration: Joint research
    • Researchers:
      • P. Wang (Harbin Engineering University, China)
         
  • Theme: WGM-based photothermal imaging
    • Type of collaboration: Joint research
    • Researchers:
      • R. Goldsmith (University of Wisconsin, Madison, USA)
  • Theme: Fiber antennas for optical coupling 
    • Type of collaboration: Joint research
    • Researchers:
      • S. Mondal (CSIO Chandigarh, India)
      • J. Fick (Institut Neel, France)
  • Theme: Microbubbles for phase changes
    • Type of collaboration: Joint research
    • Researchers:
      • T. Carmon (Technion, Israel)
  • Theme: Optial nanofibre couplers for coupling to directional resonators
    • Type of collaboration: Joint research
    • Researchers:
      • M. Hentschel and S. Sinzinger (TU Ilmenau, Germany)
  • Theme: Microbubbles for sensing applications
    • Type of collaboration: Joint research
    • Researchers:
      • F. Vollmer (University of Exeter, UK)
  • Theme: Nonlinear optics using WG microcavities
    • Type of collaboration: Joint research
    • Researchers:
      • L. Yang and X. Jiang (Washington University in St Louis, USA)
  • Theme: Deep brain imaging by means of fibre micro-endoscopy
    • Type of collaboration: Joint research
    • Researchers:
      • G. Arbuthnott and M. Garcia Munoz (Brain Mechanisms for Behaviour Unit, OIST)
  • Theme: Neutral atoms and optical nanofibres
    • Type of collaboration: Joint research
    • Researchers:
      • T. Busch and F. Le Kien (Quantum Systems Unit, OIST)

3. Activities and Findings

3.1 Optical Cavities and Sensing Group

We continued to explore the unique properties and novel applications of whispering gallery resonators (WGRs). This last year we focussed on some fundamental questions relating to light propagation in microcavities and tapered optical fibres. We published a theoretical and experimental investigation into the nature of the coupling mechanism between very thin tapered optical fibres and WGRs [1]. We developed a new description for this coupling regime that considers a previously overlooked mechanism. This model describes optical coupling in terms of a cavity enhanced Purcell effect which relies on strong scattering of light from the tapered optical fibre. This strong scattering regime cannot be accounted for using the standard coupling model yet it permits near unity coupling to the microcavity which can be observed as high Q bandpass modes in the transmitted spectrum. Importantly we can control the scattering by changing the polarisation and change from critically coupled band stop modes to near unity bandpass modes, see Fig. 1. This is an important discovery for the realisation of controllable optical devices.

Figure 1: Changing WGR transmitted spectrum and coupling condition by rotating the polarisation.

An outstanding question for researchers using tapered optical fibres is the state of the polarisation at the waist of the tapered fibre.  The difficulty arises from the scrambling of the input polarisation as it travels along the fibre. To determine the polarisation state at the waist we use a second tapered fibre as probe [2]. The probe is placed in contact and perpendicular to the fibre waist under test. By measuring the scattered light at the contact point and the collected light power from ends of the probe fibre as function of different input polarisation, we can determine the polarisation state. As a consequence, we realise controllable directional coupling between the crossed fibres. This is done by a combination of symmetry breaking for linear polarised light and optical spin locking effect for circular polarised light.  In a further study we should how this directional coupling is enhanced by the introduction of a whispering gallery resonator placed in contact at the crossing point of the two tapered fibres, see Fig. 2(left) [3].  This was in collaboration with the group of Lan Yang in WUSTL, USA. Both these studies are important for atomics physics with tapered fibres, single photon sources and optically controllable microlasers.

The microcavity group also developed, in close collaboration with the group of  Samir Mondal at the Central Scientific Instruments Organisation, India, and Jochen Fick, Institut Neel, France, a new type of optical coupler for WGRs which uses a fibre integrated optical nanoantenna [4].   The nanoantenna was fabricated to have a Rayleigh scatterer on the tip of the fibre, see Fig. 2(middle). When this antenna is placed near a microcavity the light is preferentially scattered into the optical modes of the cavity due to the Purcell effect. This device is much more robust, has a smaller footprint than a tapered optical fibre and does not rely on phase matching which makes it useful for on chip applications.   We also studied the effect of multimode Raman lasing and switching in whispering gallery resonators [5] in collaboration with the group of Lan Yang in WUSTL, USA. In this work, additional terms were introduced to the standard model to account for intermodal interaction and, therefrom the physical mechanism behind the mode‐switching phenomenon is revealed.

Figure 2. Left: cavity enhanced directional coupling. Middle: Nanoantenna and schematic of optical setup. Right: Photo-thermal imaging of gold nanoparticles.

In another collaboration, this time with our colleagues in the Randy Goldsmith group at the University of Wisconsin, USA, high Q microbubble resonators, which we provided, were used to build a photo-thermal imaging spectrometer [6], see Fig. 2(right). With this device they were able to measure the thermal and optical characteristics of gold nanoparticles coated onto the surface of the microbubble. By combining the high thermo-refractive sensitivity of the microbubble’s quasi droplet modes, it was possible to measure nanokelvin changes in temperature with nanoscale spatial resolution in real-time. Using this ultra-sensitive system, the interaction of the particle with the surface during chemical etching was measured with high precision. This powerful method may be used for time-resolved single-particle experiments on non-emissive, nanoscale analytes engaged in catalytically and biologically relevant chemical dynamics.

In a final collaborative project, with the group of Pengfei Wang from Harbin University of Technology, China glass microsphere lasers emitting at 2 μm wavelength, using Ho3+-doped tellurite glass fibre, were made and tested. This work is ongoing.    

3.2 NanoBioOptics Group

The evanescent field around an optical ultrathin fibre guiding a quasi-circularly polarized fundamental mode is expected to carry significant orbital angular momentum (OAM).  In collaboration with the group of M Petrov, ITMO, Russia, we theoretically reviewed how to transfer this momentum to isotropic microparticles trapped near the fibre surface, see Fig. 3 [7]. We found that the angular momentum of this fundamental LP01 mode can exert a transverse, spin-dependent, radiation force on scattering objects.  To prove this experimentally, we demonstrated light-induced orbiting of trapped 3 µm isotropic polystyrene particles around an optical nanofiber that guides elliptically polarised, fundamental modes [7].  The orbit frequency is proportional to the helicity of the coupled light. Interestingly, the observed motion is opposite to the energy flow circulation around the fiber. This result verifies the theoretically predicted negative optical torque on a sufficiently large particle in the vicinity of a nanofiber. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first experimental demonstration of the transverse optical torque acting on trapped isotropic particles has been reported in the literature up to date.  

 Figure 3. Simulation results. (a) Density of the total angular momentum of light near a nanofibre (in water) guiding a fundamental mode with σ = 1. Inset: total angular momentum per photon and its orbital and spin components. (b) Orbiting frequency for a polystyrene particle, as a function of radii of the particle and the fibre. Inset: frequency at the optimum fibre radius (Rf = 0.35 µm) for three different particle materials: silicon, polystyrene, and silica. 

We also developed a simpler method than that we have alredy discussed in [2] for determining the polarisation at a nanofibre waist using a single imaging lens for the scattered light [8].  This method is useful for integration into ultahigh vacuum systems due to its ease of alignment, minimal optics components and is being tested for spin selection in atomic Rb.    

In our nanoparticle trapping work, we have continued to develop plasmonic structures leading to trapping as small as a few nm and will continue to explore these devices for their trapping efficiency, with two different review papers written on the topic [9,10].   On the collaborative work with Jochen Fick, Institut Neel, France, we are also exploring novel fibre tips of different geometries for trapping, either in air or water, light emitting nanoparticles.   This work continues to reveal intersting spectrosocpic details of the nano-emitters and further explortation is necessary.  

3.3 Neutral Atoms for Quantum Technologies Group

We continued exploring multi-photon processes in atomic Rubidium with the aim of generating Rydberg atoms close to optical nanofibres for hybrid quantum systems and for creating an all-fibred entangled photon source. In particular, we reported on a controllable, hybrid quantum system consisting of cold Rydberg atoms and an optical nanofibre interface, see Fig. 4 [11]. Using a two-photon ladder-type excitation in 87Rb, we demonstrated both coherent and incoherent Rydberg excitation at submicron distances from the nanofibre surface. The 780-nm photon, near resonant to the 5S→5P transition, was mediated by the cooling laser, while the 482-nm light, near resonant to the 5P→29D transition, was mediated by the guided mode of the nanofibre. The population loss rate of the cold atom ensemble was used to measure the Rydberg population rate. A theoretical model was developed to interpret the results and link the population loss rate to the experimentally measured, effective Rabi frequency of the process. This work makes headway in the study of Rydberg atom-surface interactions at submicron distances and the use of cold Rydberg atoms for all-fibered quantum networks.

Figure 4. Experimental setup for Rydberg atom generation next to an optical nanofibre. 

In our theoretical work, we continued the fruitful collaboration with Etienne Brion, University of Toulouse, France, Jacques Robert, ENS Paris Saclay, France, and Klaus Moelmer, Aarhus University, Denmark, that explores the coupling of emissions from Rydberg atoms into the optical nanofibre and the resultant energy level shifts that may occur.    We have also continued working very closely with Fam Le Kien, OIST, on many aspects of light propagation in optical nanofibres and interactions with neutral atoms.  

References

  1. “Polarization-controlled cavity input-output relations” F Lei, JM Ward, P Romagnoli and S Nic Chormaic, Phys. Rev. Lett. 124, 103902 (2020).
  2. “Complete polarization control for a nanofiber waveguide using directional coupling” F Lei, G Tkachenko, JM Ward and S Nic Chormaic, Phys. Rev. Appl. 11, 064041 (2019). 
  3. “Enhanced directional coupling of light with a whispering gallery microcavity” F Lei, G Tkachenko, X Jiang, JM Ward, L Yang and S Nic Chormaic, ACS Photonics 7, 361 (2020).
  4. “Excitation of whispering-gallery-modes with a "point-and-play" fiber-based, optical nano-antenna” JM Ward, F Lei, S Vincent, P Gupta, SK Mondal, J Fick and S Nic Chormaic, Opt. Lett. 44, 3386 (2019).
  5. “Raman laser switching induced by cascaded light scattering”, S Kasumie, F Lei,  JM Ward, X Jiang, LYang and S Nic Chormaic, S.  Laser & Photon. Rev. 13, 1900138 (2019). 
  6. “Toward real-time monitoring and control of nanoparticle properties with a microbubble resonator spectrometer” LT Hogan, EH Horak, JM Ward, KA  Knapper, S Nic Chormaic, and RH Goldsmith, ACS Nano 13, 12743 (2019).
  7. “Light-induced rotation of dielectric microparticles around an optical nanofiber” G Tkachenko, I Toftul, C Esporlas, A Maimaiti, F Le Kien, VG Truong and S Nic Chormaic,  Optica 7, 59 (2020).
  8. “Polarisation control for optical nanofibres by imaging through a single lens” G Tkachenko, F Lei, F. and S Nic Chormaic, J. Opt. 21, 125604 (2019). 
  9. “Plasmonic optical tweezers based on nanostructures: fundamentals, advances and prospects” DG Kotsifaki and S Nic Chormaic, Nanophotonics 8, 1227 (2019).
  10. “From far-field to near-field micro- and nanoparticle optical trapping” T Bouloumis and S Nic Chormaic, Appl. Sci. 10 (2020).
  11. “Generation of cold Rydberg atoms at submicron distances from an optical nanofiber” KP Subramonian Rajasree, T Ray, K Karlsson, JL Everett and S Nic Chormaic, Phys. Rev. Research 2, 012038 (2020).

4. Publications

4.1 Journals

  1. Lei, F., Ward, JM., Romagnoli, P. and Nic Chormaic, S. Polarization-controlled cavity input-output relations. Physical Review Letters 124, 103902, doi: https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.124.103902 (2020).
  2. Bouloumis, T. and Nic Chormaic, S. From far-field to near-field micro- and nanoparticle optical trapping. Applied Sciences 10, 1375, doi: https://doi.org/10.3390/app10041375 (2020).
  3. Subramonian Rajasree, K. P., Ray T., Karlsson, K., Everett, JL. and Nic Chormaic, S. Generation of cold Rydberg atoms at submicron distances from an optical nanofiber (Rapid Communication). Phys. Rev. Research 2, 012038, doi: https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevResearch.2.012038 (2020).
  4. Lei, F., Tkachenko, G., Jiang, X., Ward, JM., Yang, L. and Nic Chormaic, S. Enhanced directional coupling of light with a whispering gallery microcavity. ACS Photonics 2020, 361-365, doi: https://doi.org/10.1021/acsphotonics.9b01611 (2020).
  5. Tkachenko, G., Toftul, I., Esporlas, C., Maimaiti, A., Le Kien, F., Truong, VG. and Nic Chormaic, S. Light-induced rotation of dielectric microparticles around an optical nanofiber. Optica 7, 59-62, doi: https://doi.org/10.1364/OPTICA.374441 (2020).
  6. Tkachenko, G., Lei, F. and Nic Chormaic, S. Polarisation control for optical nanofibres by imaging through a single lens (Editors' Suggestion). Journal of Optics 21, 125604 doi: https://doi.org/10.1088/2040-8986/ab5204 (2019).
  7. Hogan, LT., Horak, EH., Ward, JM., Knapper, KA., Nic Chormaic, S. and Goldsmith, RH. Toward real-time monitoring and control of nanoparticle properties with a microbubble resonator spectrometer*. ACS Nano 13, 12743-12757, doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/acsnano.9b04702 (2019).
  8. Kasumie, S., Lei, F., Ward, JM., Jiang, X., Yang, L. and Nic Chormaic, S. Raman laser switching induced by cascaded light scattering. Laser & Photonics Reviews 13, 1900138, doi: https://doi.org/10.1002/lpor.201900138 (2019).
  9. Kotsifaki, DG. and Nic Chormaic, S. Plasmonic optical tweezers based on nanostructures: fundamentals, advances and prospects. Nanophotonics 8, 1227–1245, doi: https://doi.org/10.1515/nanoph-2019-0151 (2019).
  10. Ward, JM., Lei, F., Vincent, S., Gupta, P., Mondal, SK., Fick, J. and Nic Chormaic, S. Excitation of whispering-gallery-modes with a "point-and-play" fiber-based, optical nano-antenna. Optics Letters 44, 3386-3389, doi: https://doi.org/10.1364/OL.44.003386 (2019).
  11. Lei, F., Tkachenko, G., Ward, JM. and Nic Chormaic, S. Complete polarization control for a nanofiber waveguide using directional coupling. Physical Review Applied 11, 064041-064041-064049 (2019).
  12. Ceppe, J-B., Féron, P., Mortier, M. and Dumeige, Y. Dynamical analysis of modal coupling in rare-earth whispering-gallery-mode microlasers*. Physical Review Applied 11, 064028, doi: https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevApplied.11.064028 (2019).
  13. Everett, JL., Higginbottom, DB., Campbell, GT., Lam, PK. and Buchler, BC. Stationary light in atomic media*. Advanced Quantum Technologies 2, 1800100, doi: https://doi.org/10.1002/qute.201800100 (2019).

*main work done outside OIST

4.2 PhD Thesis

  • Nieddu, T. Optical nanofibers for multiphoton processes and selective mode interactions with rubidium. OIST Graduate University, Japan (2019)
  • Kasumie, S. Hollow whispering gallery mode resonators: from fabrication to application. OIST Graduate University, Japan (2019)
  • Mekhail, SP. Optical fiber probes for in-vivo neuronal compressive microendscopy and mode analysis in nanofibers. OIST Graduate University, Japan (2019)

4.3 Books and other one-time publications

N/A

4.4 Oral and Poster Presentations

  1. Ward, J., Lei, F. and Nic Chormaic, S. Point-and-play: Fiber optic nano-antenna for excitation and collection of whispering gallery modes (invited): Photonics West 2020, San Francisco, USA, 4 February (2020).
  2. Tkachenko, G., Lei, F., Ward, J. and Nic Chormaic, S. Polarization control for single-mode optical nanofibers: fundamentals and applications (contributed talk): Photonics West 2020, San Francisco, USA, 5 February (2020).
  3. Han, X., Truong, V. G. and Nic Chormaic, S. Plasmonic tweezers based on connected nanoring apertures (contributed talk #11201-46): SPIE ANZCOP Micro + Nano Materials, Devices, and Applications 2019, Melbourne, Australia, 12 December (2019). 
  4. Romagnoli, P., Maeda, M., Ward, J., Truong, V. G. and Nic Chormaic, S. Structured nanofibre-based optical cavities for cQED (poster): 4th JSAP Photonics Workshop, Okinawa, Japan, 29 November (2019). Outstanding Poster Award.
  5. Bouloumis, T., Han, X., Kotsifaki, D., Truong, V. G. and Nic Chormaic, S. Nanoparticle trapping using nano-structured plasmonic devices (poster): ISNTT2019 Symposium, Atsugi, Japan, 19 November (2019).
  6. Bouloumis, T., Han, X., Kotsifaki, D., Truong, V. G. and Nic Chormaic, S. Trapping Nanoparticles with Nearfield Plasmonic Tweezers (contributed talk): Student Conference on Light 2019, Osaka, Japan, 04 November (2019).
  7. Maeda, M. Towards Investigation of Light-Matter Interactions of Single Quantum Emitters Using a Multimode Ultrathin Fiber Cavity (contributed talk): Student Conference on Light 2019, Osaka, Japan, 04 November (2019).
  8. Everett, J., Kumar Gupta, R., Subramonian Rajasree, K. P., Gokhroo, V., Karlsson, K. and Nic Chormaic, S. Nanofibers and quantum atom optics (contributed talk): CQD2019, Okinawa, Japan, 02 Oct (2019).
  9. Gokhroo, V., Kumar Gupta, R., Ray, T., Subramonian Rajasree, K. P., Everett, J. and Nic Chormaic, S. Electric quadrupole excitation in Rb-87 using an ONF (poster): CQD2019, Okinawa, Japan 27 Sep (2019).
  10. Romagnoli, P., Maeda, M., Ward, J., Truong, V. G. and Nic Chormaic, S. Nanofibre-based optical cavities fabrication by focussed ion beam (poster): CQD2019, Okinawa, Japan, 27 Sep (2019).
  11. Subramonian Rajasree, K. P., Ray, T., Karlsson, K., Everett, J. and Nic Chormaic, S. Generation of cold Rydberg atoms at submicron distances from an optical nanofiber (poster): CQD2019, Okinawa, Japan, 27 Sep (2019).
  12. Kumar Gupta, R., Pichene, A., Everett, J. and Nic Chormaic, S. Orbital angular momentum distribution in degenerate four-wave mixing in rubidium vapor (poster): CQD2019, Okinawa, Japan, 27 Sep (2019).
  13. Bouloumis, T., Han, X., Kotsifaki, D., Truong, V. G. and Nic Chormaic, S. Trapping nanoparticles with near-field plasmonic tweezers (poster): CQD2019, Okinawa, Japan, 27 Sep (2019).
  14. Subramonian Rajasree, K. P., Ray, T., Karlsson, K. and Nic Chormaic, S. Formation of Rydberg atoms near an optical nanofiber (poster): Frontiers in Optics, Washington DC, USA, 18 Sep (2019).
  15. Bouloumis, T., Han, X., Kotsifaki, D., Truong, V. G. and Nic Chormaic, S. Trapping nanoparticles with nearfield plasmonic tweezers (contributed talk): Frontiers in Optics, Washington DC, USA, 16 Sep (2019).
  16. Nic Chormaic, S. Particle detection and trapping using hollow glass microbubbles (invited talk): SPIE Security + Defence, Strasbourg, France, 09 September (2019).
  17. Romagnoli, P., Maeda, M., Ward, J., Truong, V. G. and Nic Chormaic, S. Nanofibre-based optical cavities fabrication by focussed ion beam (poster): Conference on Nanophotonics: Foundations & Applications 2019, Ascona, Switzerland, 02 September (2019).
  18. Kotsifaki, D., Truong, V. G., and Nic Chormaic, S. Nanoparticle trapping using near field optics (invited talk): Optics + Photonics 2019, San Diego, USA, 14 August (2019).
  19. Nic Chormaic, S. Ultrathin optical fibre applications from atomic physics through quantum optics (invited talk): 25eme Congrès Général de la SFP, Nantes, France, 12 July (2019).
  20. Nic Chormaic, S. Ultrathin optical fibre applications from atomic physics through quantum optics (keynote speaker): IONS Exeter 2019, Exeter, UK, 09 July (2019).
  21. Subramonian Rajasree, K. P., Ray, T., Karlsson, K., Everett, J. and Nic Chormaic, S. Generation of cold Rydberg atoms at submicron distances from an optical nanofiber (poster): ICOLS 2019, Queenstown, New Zealand, 08 July (2019).
  22. Kumar Gupta, R., Pichene, A., Everett, J. and Nic Chormaic, S. Orbital angular momentum distribution of degenerate four-wave mixing in rubidium vapour (poster): ICOLS 2019, Queenstown, New Zealand, 08 July (2019).
  23. Kotsifaki, D. and Nic Chormaic, S. Optical fiber and plasmonic based sensors for trapping and imaging applications (invited talk): Optical Sensors and Sensing Congress, San Jose, USA, 27 June (2019).
  24. Nic Chormaic, S. Applications of hollow, thin-walled microresonators (invited talk): PIERS2019, Rome, Italy, 20 June (2019).
  25. Lei, F., Kasumie, S., Yang, Y., Ward, J., Jiang, X., Yang, L. and Nic Chormaic, S. Laser dynamics studies in whispering gallery microcavities (contributed talk): ONNA2019, Okinawa, Japan 06 June (2019).
  26. Tkachenko, G., Lei, F., Ward, J. and Nic Chormaic, S. Polarization control for optical nanofibres (contributed talk): ONNA2019, Okinawa, Japan 06 June (2019).
  27. Romagnoli, P., Maeda, M., Truong, V. G., Ward, J. and Nic Chormaic, S. Structured nanofibre-based cavities by focussed ion beam milling (contributed talk): ONNA2019, Okinawa, Japan 06 June (2019).
  28. Subramonian Rajasree, K. P., Ray, T., Karlsson, K. and Nic Chormaic, S. Formation of Rydberg atoms near an optical nanofibre (contributed talk): ONNA2019, Okinawa, Japan 03 June (2019).
  29. Truong, V. G., Toftul, I., Tkachenko, G. and Nic Chormaic, S. Optical forces induced on a particle in the evanescent fields of guided higher order ultrathin fibre modes (poster): ONNA2019, Okinawa, Japan 03 June (2019).
  30. Ward, J., Lei, F., Vincent, S., Gupta, P., Mondal, S.K., Fick, J. and Nic Chormaic, S. "Point-and-play", fiber-based, optical nano-antenna for excitation of whispering gallery modes (poster): ONNA2019, Okinawa, Japan 03 June (2019).
  31. Roque, K. F., Kotsifaki, D., Truong, V. G. and Nic Chormaic, S. Single protein trapping with plasmonic optical tweezers (poster): ONNA2019, Okinawa, Japan 03 June (2019).
  32. Maeda, M., Romagnoli, P., Ward, J., Truong, V.G., Li, W. and Nic Chormaic, S. Towards investigation of light-matter interactions of single quantum emitters using multimode ultrathin fibre cavity (poster): ONNA2019, Okinawa, Japan 03 June (2019).
  33. Subramonian Rajasree, K. P., Ray, T., Karlsson, K. and Nic Chormaic, S. Formation of Rydberg Atoms near an Optical Nanofibre (poster): ONNA2019, Okinawa, Japan 03 June (2019).
  34. Kumar Gupta, R., Pichene, A., Everett, J. and Nic Chormaic, S. Orbital angular momentum distribution in degenerate four-wave mixing in rubidium vapor (poster): ONNA2019, Okinawa, Japan 03 June (2019).
  35. Esporlas, C. L., Tkachenko, G., Truong, V. G. and Nic Chormaic, S. Light-matter interaction of Janus particles near ultrathin optical fibers (poster): ONNA2019, Okinawa, Japan 03 June (2019).
  36. Gokhroo, V., Kumar Gupta, R., Ray, T. and Nic Chormaic, S. Electric quadrupole excitation in 87Rb using an ONF (poster): ONNA2019, Okinawa, Japan 03 June (2019).
  37. Everett, J. Quantum information processing with nanofiber-coupled atoms (poster): ONNA2019, Okinawa, Japan 03 June (2019).
  38. Ceppe, J.-B., Feron, P., Mortier, M. and Dumeige, Y. Experimental studies on modal coupling in rare-earth whispering gallery mode micro-lasers (poster): ONNA2019, Okinawa, Japan 03 June (2019).
  39. Romagnoli, P., Maeda, M., Ward, J., Truong, V. G. and Nic Chormaic, S. Nanofibre-based optical cavities production by focussed ion beam (poster): OMC2019, Yokohama, Japan, 25 April (2019).
  40. Kotsifaki, D., Truong, V. G, Harvie, E., Saxena, A., Han, X. and Nic Chormaic, S. Single-protein and single-nanoparticle trapping using plasmonic nanoaperture array (contributed talk): OMC2019, Yokohama, Japan, 24 April (2019).
  41. Tkachenko, G., Lei, F., Ward, J. and Nic Chormaic, S. Controlling polarization in optical nanofibers using directional coupling of light (contributed talk): ICNN2019, Yokohama, Japan, 24 April (2019).
  42. Bouloumis, T., Han, X., Kotsifaki, D., Truong, V. G. and Nic Chormaic, S. Multiple nanoparticle trapping with low laser intensity using a gold plasmonic array (contributed talk): Biophotonics Congress: Optics in Life Sciences, Tucson, USA, 17 April (2019).
  43. Truong, V. G., Toftul, I., Kien, F. L., Petrov, M. and Nic Chormaic, S. Angular momenta and negative azimuthal forces induced on a particle via guided light in ultrathin optical fibers (contributed talk): Biophotonics Congress: Optics in Life Sciences, Tucson, USA, 15 April (2019).

4.5 Seminar (outside OIST)

  1. Nic Chormaic, S. Particle trapping and manipulation using near-field optics: ENS Lyon, France, 28 February (2020).
  2. Nic Chormaic, S. Engineering whispering gallery resonators for nonlinear optics, photonics and sensing applications: TU Ilmenau, Germany, 25 February (2020).
  3. Nic Chormaic, S. Optical nanofibre mediated multiphoton processes in cold neutral and Rydberg atoms: Institute for Physics, Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz, Germany, 19 December (2019).
  4. Nic Chormaic, S. Optical nanofibre mediated multiphoton processes in cold neutral and Rydberg atoms: 5th Institute of Physics, University of Stuttgart, Germany, 17 December (2019).
  5. Nic Chormaic, S. Ultrathin optical fibre applications from atomic physics through quantum optics: Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, Erlangen, Germany, 17 May (2019).

 

5. Intellectual Property Rights and Other Specific Achievements

  • Tkachenko, G., Truong, VG. and Nic Chormaic, S.
    Parabolic reflector based scheme for variable angle ellipsometry 
    Provisional Patent Filed (2019)

6. Meetings and Events

6.1 Seminar

  • Title: Entanglement engineering for space-based quantum networks
  • Date: October 30, 2019
  • Venue: C700, Lab 3, OIST campus
  • Speaker: Dr Alexander Ling (National University of Singapore)
  • Title: Cooperative light emissions from many quantum emitters
  • Date: October 21, 2019
  • Venue: B503, Centre Building, OIST campus
  • Speaker: Dr Hsiang-Hua Jen (Academia Sinica, Taiwan)
     
  • Title: Harnessing multimode propagation for deep-tissue imaging
  • Date: August 1, 2019
  • Venue: C700, Lab 3, OIST campus
  • Speaker: Dr Tomas Cizmar (Leibniz-IPHT Jena, Germany)
     
  • Title: Lightly probing the nanoscale
  • Date: April 22, 2019
  • Venue: C700, Lab 3, OIST campus
  • Speaker: Dr Peter Reece (University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia)

6.2 ONNA2019: Optical Nanofibre Applications: From Quantum to Bio Technologies

  • Date: June 3 – 6, 2019
  • Venue: Seaside House, Okinawa
  • Organisers: Síle Nic Chormaic CHAIR (OIST), Lan Yang (Washington University in St. Louis, USA), Michael (Misha) Sumetsky (Aston University, UK), and Takao Aoki (Waseda University, Japan)
  • Speakers:
    • Takao Aoki (Waseda University, Japan)
    • Pablo Bianucci (Concordia University, Canada)
    • Warwick Bowen (University of Queensland, Australia)
    • Tal Carmon (Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Israel)
    • Kyung Soo Choi (University of Waterloo, Canada)
    • Jochen Fick (Institut NEEL, France)
    • Randall H Goldsmith (University of Wisconsin, USA)
    • Kohzo Hakuta (The University of Electro-Communications, Japan)
    • Julien Laurat (Laboratoire Kastler Brossel, France)
    • Ying Lia Li (University College London, England)
    • Jörg Helge Müller (Niels Bohr Institute, Denmark)
    • Arno Rauschenbeutel (Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Germany)
    • Yuliya Semenova (Technological University Dublin, Ireland)
    • Silvia Soria Huguet (CNR-IFAC Institute of Applied Physics, Italy)
    • Michael (Misha) Sumetsky (Aston University, England)
    • Takasumi Tanabe (Keio University, Japan)
    • Limin Tong (Zhejiang University, China)
    • Kerry Vahala (Caltech, USA)
    • Yun-Feng Xiao (Peking University, China)
    • Lan Yang (Washington University in St. Louis, USA)
       

6.3 CQD2019: Okinawa School in Physics: Coherent Quantum Dynamics

  • Date: September 24 – October 3, 2019
  • Venue: Seaside House, Okinawa
  • Organisers: Thomas Busch (OIST), Síle Nic Chormaic (OIST), Yasunobu Nakamura (The University of Tokyo), and Yoshiro Takahashi (Kyoto University)
     
  • Lecturers:
    • Maria Chekhova (MPI for the Science of Light, Germany)
    • Barry Garraway (University of Sussex, England)
    • Nathan Harshman (American University, USA)
    • Hélène Perrin (Université Paris 13, France)
    • Jason Petta (Princeton University, USA)
    • Ana Predojevic (Stockholm University, Sweden)
    • Jakob Reichel, ENS (France)
    • Irfan Siddiqi (UC Berkeley, USA)
       
  • Colloquium Speakers:
    • Takuya Hirano (Gakushuin University, Japan)
    • Tomoki Ozawa (RIKEN, Japan)
    • Hiroki Takahashi (The University of Tokyo)
    • Takashi Yamamoto (Osaka University, Japan)

6.4 Research Visit

  • Dr Ravi Kumar, Atomionics Pte Ltd, Singapore, 11-12 March 2020
  • Prof Ping Koy Lam, ANU, Australia, 31 October 2019
  • Dr Alexander Ling, National University of Singapore, 30 October 2019
  • Dr Hsiang-Hua Jen, Academia Sinica, Taiwan, 21 - 25 October 2019
  • Itai Hyams, Technion, Israel, 2 - 13 September 2019
  • Baheej Bathish, Technion, Israel, 2 - 13 September 2019
  • Prof Miles Padgett, University of Glasgow, Scotland 01 - 02 August 2019
  • Prof Tomas Cizmar, Leibniz-IPHT Jena, Germany 31 July - 02 August 2019
  • Aaron Tranter, Australian National University, Australia, 14-20 July 2019
  • Aashutosh Kumar, Université Grenoble Alpes/Institut Néel, France 07 June 2019
  • Erwan Stourm, Université Paris-Sud, France, France 07-14 June 2019
  • Ivan Toftul, ITMO University, Russia 07-14 June 2019
  • Prof Sankar De, Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics, India 07-11 June 2019
  • Dr Peter Reece, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia 22-25 April 2019
     

7. Other

Prof. Nic Chormaic was a Visiting Researcher at the Institut Néel, Grenoble, France (May-September 2019).    She is a Topical Editor for OSA's Optics Letters and a Guest Editor for Appl. Phys. B (Springer).