Recent theory predicted a new class of photonic composite materials whose properties are derived by their structure rather than chemical composition, which promises unprecedented electromagnetic properties that do not exist in the nature such as optical magnetism and negative refraction. For example, Superlens’ made of metamaterial which break the fundamental diffraction limit may have profound impact in a wide range of applications such as nano-scale photonics, electronics manufacturing, and biomedical imaging.
I’ll discuss recent progress that demonstrates these new intriguing physical properties. We created the first bulk optical metamaterials that show the negative refractions. We demonstrated the superlens and optical cloak using carefully design of plasmonic materials dispersions. The recent discoveries on new topological symmetry such as Mobius symmetry in metamaterials reveals fundamentally new realm of physical properties that do not occur in nature materials. I will further discuss an array of new technologies based on superlens for nano-scale lithography that may transform the next generation of nano-manufacturing, along with plasmon lasers, a coherent light at molecular scale.
Xiang Zhang is the Ernest S. Kuh Chaired Professor at University of California, Berkeley and the Director of NSF Nano-scale Science and Engineering Center (SINAM). He is a member of US National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and fellow of APS, OSA, AAAS and SPIE. He has authored more than 180 publications including ones in Science, Nature. His group’s research in optical metamaterials was selected by Times Magazine as “Top 10 Scientific Discoveries in 2008”. Xiang Zhang was a recipient of NSF CAREER Award, SME Dell K. Allen Outstanding Young Engineer Award, ONR Young Investigator Award, MIT’s Rohsenow Lecturer and MRS Fred Kavli Distinguished Lecturer. He received his BS/MS in physics in Nanjing University, China, and Ph.D from UC Berkeley in 1996 and was on faculty at Pennsylvania State University and University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) prior joining the Berkeley faculty in 2004.