Our Research in Simple Terms
Here we introduce our main areas of research to interested non-specialists. For information beyond the introductory articles below you can refer to our publications section.
Towards the bottom of this page we present a gallery of artist's impressions of some of our research activities.
NANOSCOPE: Superresolution without Evanescent Fields
This project aims to develop a revolutionary non-invasive optical imaging technology, the NANOSCOPE, which is based on the new concept of super-oscillation and will have numerous applications across the whole domain of scientific research. For the first time it will allow imaging and manipulation of objects inside a living cell with nano-scale resolution and the creation of truly sub-wavelength featured optical landscapes. Beyond biological applications, this project will impact all types of imaging and lithography technologies. — more
See also www.nanoscope.org.uk
Extrinsic Chirality: Optical Activity in Non-Chiral Materials
It is a widely believed myth that only twisted materials can twist the polarization state of light. Our observation of strong and tunable polarization rotation in non-chiral metamaterials has not only various potential applications but also profoundly questions analytic techniques used in chemistry and other disciplines. — more
Phase-change Nanoparticles for Optical Switching and Memory
Structural phase transitions are occurring all around us in the natural world, for example on the very large scale in the form of melting polar ice caps. On a more familiar scale, similar changes form the basis of today’s CD, DVD and Blu-Ray recording technologies. The Nanophotonics Group at the University of Southampton’s Optoelectronics Research Centre has shown that phase changes initiated by optical or electron-beam excitation may be exploited on the ultra-small, nanometre scale to enable new high-capacity optical technologies for future data processing and storage applications. — more
Negative Index due to Optical Activity
Promising superresolution microscopy and lithography, negative refraction of light is subject to intense research. We demonstrate for the first time experimentally that the index of refraction can be driven negative by exceptionally large optical activity. — more
Gallery
Chiral negative index metamaterial |
Chiral negative index metamaterial from inside |
Magnetic mirror |
Metamaterial showing electromagnetically induced transparency |
Slow light metamaterial |
Front and back of a planar chiral metamaterial showing asymmetric transmission of light |
Mirror forms of a bulk 2D-chiral metamaterial |
Transmitting optical antenna fed by electron beam |
Light well excited by electron beam |
Extrinsically chiral mirror experiments showing optical activity of opposite sign |