Photonic Materials & Devices

Catalog description

This course will cover the theory, design, fabrication, characterization, and application of photonic materials and devices. The course will start with a review of the fundamentals of photonics, including ray optics, wave optics, and nanophotonics/quantum optics. The course will then focus on light-matter interactions and photonic materials, including dielectrics, semiconductors, metals, metamaterials, and photonic crystals. Using these principles and materials, we will explore a number of device architectures, including LEDs, lasers, photodetectors, photovoltaics, etc. We will then discuss fabrication methods for making these materials and devices and common optoelectronic characterization techniques. The course will conclude with exploration of cutting edge topics in photonics research. Prerequisites: PHYS 2350 and PHYS 2360 (or equivalent) or instructor approval.