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A series of TiN/ITO composite films with various thickness of ITO buffer layer were fabricated in this study. The enhancement of optical properties was realized in the composite thin films. The absorption spectra showed that absorption intensity in the near-infrared region was obviously enhanced with the increase of ITO thickness due to the coupling of surface plasma between TiN and ITO. The epsilon-near-zero wavelength of this composite can be tuned from 935 nm to 1895 nm by varying the thickness of ITO thin films. The nonlinear optical property investigated by Z-scan technique showed that the nonlinear absorption coefficient (β = 3.03 × 10−4 cm/W) for the composite was about 14.02 times greater than that of single-layer TiN films. The theoretical calculations performed by finite difference time domain were in good agreement with those of the experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present work reports on the synthesis and characterization of iridium (Ir)-based nanohybrids with variable chemical compositions. More specifically, highly stable polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) nanohybrids of the PVP-IrO2 and PVP-Ir/IrO2 types, as well as non-coated Ir/IrO2 nanoparticles, are synthesized using different synthetic protocols and characterized in terms of their chemical composition and morphology via X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM), respectively. Furthermore, their nonlinear optical (NLO) response and optical limiting (OL) efficiency are studied by means of the Z-scan technique, employing 4 ns laser pulses at 532 and 1064 nm. The results demonstrate that the PVP-Ir/IrO2 and Ir/IrO2 systems exhibit exceptional OL performance, while PVP-IrO2 presents very strong saturable absorption (SA) behavior, indicating that the present Ir-based nanohybrids could be strong competitors to other nanostructured materials for photonic and optoelectronic applications. In addition, the findings denote that the variation in the content of IrO2 nanoparticles by using different synthetic pathways significantly affects the NLO response of the studied Ir-based nanohybrids, suggesting that the choice of the appropriate synthetic method could lead to tailor-made NLO properties for specific applications in photonics and optoelectronics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The nonlinear optical properties of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnONPs) in distilled water were measured using a femtosecond laser and the Z-scan technique. The ZnONPs colloids were created by the ablation of zinc bulk in distilled water with a 532 nm Nd: YAG laser. Transmission electron microscopy, an ultraviolet-visible spectrophotometer, and atomic absorption spectrophotometry were used to determine the size, shape, absorption spectra, and concentration of the ZnONPs colloids. The nonlinear absorption coefficient and nonlinear refractive index were measured at different excitation wavelengths and intensities. The nonlinear absorption coefficient of the ZnONPs colloids was found to be positive, caused by reverse saturable absorption, whereas the nonlinear refractive index was found to be negative due to self-defocusing in the ZnONPs. Both laser parameters, such as excitation wavelength and input intensity, and nanoparticle features, such as concentration and size, were found to influence the nonlinear optical properties of the ZnONPs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The investigation of nonlinear optical characteristics resulting from the light–matter interactions of two-dimensional (2D) nano materials has contributed to the extensive use of photonics. In this study, we synthesize a 2D MXene (V2C) monolayer nanosheet by the selective etching of Al from V2AlC at room temperature and use the nanosecond Z-scan technique with 532 nm to determine the nonlinear optical characters of the Ag@V2C hybrid. The z-scan experiment reveals that Ag@V2C hybrids usually exhibits saturable absorption owing to the bleaching of the ground state plasma, and the switch from saturable absorption to reverse saturable absorption takes place. The findings demonstrate that Ag@V2C has optical nonlinear characters. The quantitative data of the nonlinear absorption of Ag@V2C varies with the wavelength and the reverse saturable absorption results from the two-photon absorption, which proves that Ag@V2C hybrids have great potential for future ultrathin optoelectronic devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simultaneous emission of the THz wave and hard X-ray from thin water free-flow was induced by the irradiation of tightly-focused femtosecond laser pulses (35 fs, 800 nm, 500 Hz) in air. Intensity measurements of the THz wave and X-ray were carried out at the same time with time-domain spectroscopy (TDS) based on electro-optic sampling with a ZnTe(110) crystal and a Geiger counter, respectively. Intensity profiles of the THz wave and X-ray emission as a function of the solution flow position along the incident laser axis at the laser focus show that the profile width of the THz wave is broader than that of the X-ray. Furthermore, the profiles of the THz wave measured in reflection and transmission directions show different features and indicate that THz wave emission is, under single-pulse excitation, induced mainly in laser-induced plasma on the water flow surface. Under double-pulse excitation with a time separation of 4.6 ns, 5-10 times enhancements of THz wave emission were observed. Such dual light sources can be used to characterise materials, as well as to reveal the sequence of material modifications under intense laser pulses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present work reports on the transient nonlinear optical (NLO) responses of two different types of 2D silicon nanosheets (SiNSs), namely hydride-terminated silicon nanosheets (SiNS–H) and 1-dodecene-functionalized silicon nanosheets (SiNS–dodecene). The main motivation of this study was to extend the knowledge regarding the NLO properties of these Si–based materials, for which very few published studies exist so far. For that purpose, the NLO responses of SiNS–H and SiNS–dodecene were investigated experimentally in the nanosecond regime at 532 and 1064 nm using the Z-scan technique, while the obtained results were compared to those of certain recently studied graphene nanosheets. SiNS–dodecene was found to exhibit the largest third-order susceptibility χ(3) values at both excitation wavelengths, most probably ascribed to the presence of point defects, indicating the importance of chemical functionalization for the efficient enhancement and tailoring of the NLO properties of these emerging 2D Si-based materials. Most importantly, the results demonstrated that the present silicon nanosheets revealed comparable and even larger NLO responses than graphene nanosheets. Undoubtedly, SiNSs could be strong competitors of graphene for applications in 2D-material-based photonics and optoelectronics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The nonlinear refraction of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) in n-hexane was studied by using the closed-aperture Z-scan technique with a 532 nm nanosecond laser. It was found that, the nonlinear refraction of AgNPs shows the coexistence and transformation from self-focusing to self-defocusing. Specifically, self-focusing occurs at low excitation intensity, self-defocusing occurs at high excitation intensity, and coexistence of self-focusing and self-defocusing occurs at relatively moderate excitation intensity. The experimental results were analysed and discussed in terms of third-order and fifth-order nonlinear refractive effect. Specifically, the self-focusing is caused by the positive third-order nonlinear refraction, the self-defocusing is induced by the negative fifth-order nonlinear refraction, and the transformation from the self-focusing to self-defocusing at medium excitation intensity is caused by the competition of third-order and fifth-order nonlinear refraction. Finally, the third-order refractive index and fifth-order refractive index were obtained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Magnetic-plasmonic, Fe3O4-Au, core-shell nanoparticles are popular in many applications, most notably in therapeutics and diagnostics, and thus, the imaging of these nanostructures in biological samples is of high importance. These nanostructures are typically imaged in biological material by dark field scatter imaging, which requires an even distribution of nanostructures in the sample and, therefore, high nanoparticle doses, potentially leading to toxicology issues. Herein, we explore the nonlinear optical properties of magnetic nanoparticles coated with various thicknesses of gold using the open aperture z-scan technique to determine the nonlinear optical properties and moreover, predict the efficacy of the nanostructures in nonlinear imaging. We find that the magnetic nanoparticles coated with gold nanoseeds and thinner gold shells (ca. 4 nm) show the largest nonlinear absorption coefficient β and imaginary part of the third-order susceptibility Im χ(3), suggesting that these nanostructures would be suitable contrast agents. Next, we combine laser dark field microscopy and epi-detected coherent anti-Stokes Raman (CARS) microscopy to image the uptake of magnetic-plasmonic nanoparticles in human pancreatic cancer cells. We show the epi-detected CARS technique is suitable for imaging of the magnetic-plasmonic nanoparticles without requiring a dense distribution of nanoparticles. This technique achieves superior nanoparticle contrasting over both epi-detected backscatter imaging and transmission dark field imaging, while also attaining label-free chemical contrasting of the cell. Lastly, we show the high biocompatibility of the Fe3O4 nanoparticles with ca. 4-nm thick Au shell at concentrations of 10–100 µg/mL. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this work was to study the influence of Ta doping on the structural, transmittance properties, linear absorption parameter, and nonlinear absorption properties of InTe thin films. The as-deposited samples with different Ta doping concentrations were prepared by a magnetron co-sputtering technique and then annealed in nitrogen atmosphere. Structural investigations by X-ray diffraction revealed the tetragonal structure of InTe samples and that the crystallinity decreases with increasing Ta doping concentration. Further structural analysis by Raman spectra also showed good agreement with X-ray diffraction results. The Ta doping concentration and sample thickness determined by energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy increased as Ta dopant increased. In addition, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopic was carried out to analyze the chemical states of the elements. UV–VIS–NIR transmittance spectra were applied to study the transmittance properties and calculate the linear absorption coefficient. Due to Burstein–Moss effect, the absorption edge moved to shorter wavelengths. Meanwhile, the values of band gap were found to increase from 1.71 ± 0.02 eV to 1.85 ± 0.01 eV with the increase of Ta doping concentration. By performing an open aperture Z-scan technique, we found that all Ta-doped InTe samples exhibited two-photon absorption behaviors. The nonlinear optical absorption parameters, such as modulation depth, two-photon absorption coefficient, and two-photon absorption cross-section, decrease with increasing Ta concentration, whereas the damage threshold increases from 176 ± 0.5 GW/cm2 to 242 ± 0.5 GW/cm2. These novel properties show the potential for applications in traditional optoelectronic devices and optical limiters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The CsPbX3 nanocrystals (NCs) with X = I, Br, Cl, or the mixture of Br:I and Br:Cl in a 1:1 ratio were synthesized and characterized by TEM, DLS, and XRD. Recrystallization of the small luminescent NCs in the metastable cubic phase into bigger orthorhombic nanocrystals was monitored by XRD and identified as the main cause of the nanocolloid coagulation. The recrystallization also leads to a decrease in the photoluminescence quantum yield (QY) of the colloidal solution and shortening of the emission lifetime. The two-photon absorption cross-section σ2 values calculated from femtosecond Z-scan measurements were compared with those obtained based on the two-photon excited emission technique. These two techniques were shown to be equivalent with the cross-section values calculated per molar mass of CsPbX3 perovskite being in the range of 10–200 GM depending on the halide anions X−. The σ2 values recalculated for the mole of the NCs were in the range of 104–105 GM, which is in good agreement with values previously reported elsewhere and the σ2/M parameter was in the range of 0.01 to 0.33. This study shows the perovskite NCs to be a good nonlinear material with the third-order nonlinear optical susceptibility χ(3) of the NCs on the order of 10−11 esu. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is significant to study the reason that semiconductor material has adjustable third-order optical nonlinearity through crystal form and dimensions are changed. αMnS nanoparticles with different crystal forms and sizes were successfully prepared by one-step hydrothermal synthesis method and their size-limited third-order nonlinear optical property was tested by Z-scan technique with 30 ps laser pulses at 532 nm wavelength. Nanoparticles of different crystal forms exhibited different NLO (nonlinear optical) responses. γMnS had stronger NLO response than αMnS because of higher fluorescence quantum yield. Two-photon absorption and the nonlinear refraction are enhanced as size of nanoparticlesreduced. The nanoparticles had maximum NLO susceptibility which was 3.09 × 10−12 esu. Susceptibility of αMnS increased about nine times than that of largest nanoparticles. However, it was reduced when size was further decreased. This trend was explained by the effects of light induced dipole moments. And defects in αMnS nanoparticles also had effect on this nonlinear process. MnS nanoparticles had potential application value in optical limiting and optical modulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Graphene-γMnS were prepared by facile one-step hydrothermal method. Structures and properties of samples were explored by characterization, and nonlinear optical (NLO) enhancement of nanocomposites (NCs) was fully studied. Nanoparticles and NCs were tested at 532 nm by a Z-scan technique. With γMnS attached in G layers, NLO susceptibility of graphene-γMnS was greatly improved under single-pulse laser irradiation compared with G and γMnS. The nonlinearity enhanced was attributed to local field effect and charge transfer between γMnS and graphene layers. And NLO property enhancement was restricted by non-radiative defects in graphene-γMnS. Exploring the mechanism of nonlinearity enhancement was significant for fabrication of NLO devices. However, the optical nonlinearity decreased first and then increased with further increased addition of GO, because the dispersion of γMnS attached on graphene surface might make density of sp2 fragment and defects changed. Graphene-γMnS exhibited excellent and tunable NLO performance, illustrating that NCs materials have potential applications in NLO devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]