ICFO - The Institute of Photonic Sciences

 

ICFO is a young research institution that aims to advance the very limits of knowledge in Photonics, namely the science and technology of harnessing Light. Light, especially laser light, is one of the major enabling technologies currently available to humankind. Our research thrusts target the global forefront of photonics, and aim to tackle important challenges faced by society at large. We focus on current and future problems in Health, Energy, Information, Safety, Security and caring for the Environment.

Recent Submissions

  • Optical soliton formation controlled by angle twisting in photonic moiré lattices 

    Fu, Qidong; Wang, Peng; Huang, Changming; Kartashov, Yaroslav V.; Torner Sabata, Lluís; Konotop, Vladimir; Ye, Fangwei (Springer-Nature, 2020-08-24)
    Article
    Restricted access - publisher's policy
    Exploration of the impact of synthetic material landscapes featuring tunable geometrical properties on physical processes is a research direction that is currently of great interest because of the outstanding phenomena ...

  • Nonlinear higher-order polariton topological insulator 

    Zhang, Yiqi; Kartashov, Y. V; Torner Sabata, Lluís; Li, Yongdong; Ferrando, A. (OSA, 2020-08-19)
    Article
    Restricted access - publisher's policy
    We address the resonant response and bistability of the exciton–polariton corner states in a higher-order nonlinear topological insulator realized with a kagome arrangement of microcavity pillars. Such states are resonantly ...

  • The nucleus measures shape changes for cellular proprioception to control dynamic cell behavior 

    Venturini, Valeria; Pezzano, Fabio; Català Castro, Frederic; Häkkinen, Hanna-Maria; Jiménez-Delgado, Senda; Colomer Rosell, Mariona; Marro, Monica; Tolosa-Ramon, Queralt; Paz-López, Sonia; Valverde, Miguel A.; Weghuber, Julian; Loza- Alvarez, Pablo; Krieg, Michael; Wieser, Stefan; Ruprecht, Verena (ACS, 2020-10-16)
    Article
    Restricted access - publisher's policy
    Single cells continuously experience and react to mechanical challenges in three-dimensional tissues. Spatial constraints in dense tissues, physical activity, and injury all impose changes in cell shape. How cells can ...

  • Levitated Nanoparticles for Microscopic Thermodynamics—A Review 

    Gieseler, Jan; Millen, James (MDPI, 2018-04-28)
    Article
    Open Access
    Levitated Nanoparticles have received much attention for their potential to perform quantum mechanical experiments even at room temperature. However, even in the regime where the particle dynamics are purely classical, ...

  • The sandwich in the middle: using collective effects for stronger optomechanical coupling 

    Gieseler, Jan (IOP, 2018-10-04)
    Article
    Open Access

  • Cold and Hot Spots: from Inhibition to Enhancement by Nanoscale Phase Tuning of Optical Nanoantennas 

    Blascetta, Nicola Palombo; Lombardi, Pietro; Toninelli, Costanza; van Hulst, Niek F. (ACS, 2020-08-17)
    Article
    Restricted access - publisher's policy
    Optical nanoantennas are well-known for the confinement of light into nanoscale hot spots, suitable for emission enhancement and sensing applications. Here, we show how control of the antenna dimensions allows tuning ...

  • Far-field control of nanoscale hotspots by near-field interference 

    Singh, Anshuman; Hugall, James T.; Calbris, Gaëtan; Hulst, Niek F. van (ACS, 2020-07-31)
    Article
    Restricted access - publisher's policy
    Optical nanoantennas coherently scatter incident optical radiation, creating a localized electromagnetic near-field imprinted with subwavelength phase distribution, rapidly changing in space. The nanostructuring of phase ...

  • The imaginary part of the high-harmonic cutoff 

    Pisanty, Emilio; Ciappina, Marcelo F.; Lewenstein, Maciej (IOP, 2020-07-22)
    Article
    Open Access
    High-harmonic generation the emission of high-frequency radiation by the ionization and subsequent recombination of an atomic electron driven by a strong laser eld is widely understood using a quasiclassical trajectory ...

  • Room Temperature Excitation-Emission Spectra of Single LH2 Complexes Show Remarkably Little Variation 

    Gellings, Esther; Cogdell, Richard J.; van Hulst, Niek F. (ACS, 2020-03-06)
    Article
    Restricted access - publisher's policy
    Excitation spectroscopy gives direct insight into the excited state manifold, energy transfer, transient intermediates, vibrations, and so on. Unfortunately, excitation spectroscopy of single molecules under ambient ...

  • Ultrafast Stimulated Emission Microscopy of Single Nanocrystals 

    Piatkowski, Lukasz; Accanto, Nicolò; Calbris, Gaëtan; Christodoulou, Sotirios; Moreels, Iwan; Hulst, Niek F. van (AAAS, 2019-12-06)
    Article
    Open Access
    Single-molecule detection is a powerful method used to distinguish different species and follow time trajectories within the ensemble average. However, such detection capability requires efficient emitters and is prone to ...

  • Nanoscale Imaging and Control of hexagonal Boron-Nitride Single Photon Emitters by a Resonant Nano-antenna 

    Palombo Blascetta, Nicola; Liebel, Matz; Lu, Xiaobo; Taniguchi, T; Watanabe, K; Efetov, Dmitri K; Hulst, Niek F. van (ACS, 2020-02-13)
    Article
    Restricted access - publisher's policy
    Defect centers in two-dimensional hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) are drawing attention as single-photon emitters with high photostability at room temperature. With their ultrahigh photon-stability, hBN single-photon emitters ...

  • Control of Vibronic Transition Rates by Resonant Single-Molecule-Nanoantenna Coupling 

    Saemisch, Lisa; Liebel, Matz; Hulst, Niek F. van (ACS, 2020-05-13)
    Article
    Restricted access - publisher's policy
    Plasmonic nanostructures dramatically alter the radiative and nonradiative properties of single molecules in their vicinity. This coupling-induced change in decay channels selectively enhances specific vibronic transitions, ...

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