Electric waves are a renewable energy source used to generate electricity, telecommunications, defense and safety technologies, sensors, and health care services. Scientists use sophisticated techniques to control such waves accurately – thousands of times smaller than human hair, using specialized materials. However, not all light waves (electric waves) are easy to use, especially infrared light, as they are difficult to detect and exchange. Scientists have discovered a mechanism that can produce, detect, and convert infrared light to high efficiency that makes it useful for harvesting solar and thermal energy as well as for visible communication devices.
In infrared light applications, smart and high-quality materials are needed that can enable the interest, flexibility, and detection of the desired spectral range with high efficiency. Only a handful of existing devices can function as light-emitting spectators in the infrared spectral range, albeit with very low efficiency. An active spectral range for such objects also does not include the visual spectrum of wavelength infrared (SWIR) that is important to the industry.
In a significant development, researchers at Bengaluru’s Jawaharlal Nehru Center for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR), an independent institute of the Department of Science and Technology (DST), have discovered a novel called single-crystalline scandium nitride (ScN). , and adjust the infrared light for high efficiency.
K. C. Maurya and colleagues have used a scientific phenomenon called polariton excitations that occur in symmetrical spaces where simple couples with free electron oscillations or vibration of polar lattice to achieve this. Carefully control the material to amplify polaritons (quasi-particle) and achieve the powerful interaction of single-crystalline scandium nitride (ScN) light using infrared light.
These rare polaritons in ScN can be used to harvest solar energy and heat. Also, coming from the same family of materials as gallium nitride (GaN), scandium nitride is compatible with modern metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) technology or Si-chip, therefore, it can be easily integrated into on- optical chip communication services.“From electronics-to-healthcare technology, protection and safety to power, there is a great need for infrared sources, emitters and sensors. Our work on infrared polaritons in scandium nitride will allow for their use on many such machines, ”said Dr. Bivas Saha, Assistant Professor at JNCASR. In addition to JNCASR researchers from the Institute of Nano Science and Engineering from the Indian Institute of Science (IISc.) and the University of Sydney also participated in the study recently published in the scientific journal Nano Letters.
