Principal Investigator Marin Soljacic
Co-investigators Steven Johnson , Vladimir Bulovic
Project Website http://isnweb.mit.edu/project-1-4-1.html
We will theoretically investigate and experimentally demonstrate nanoparticles that entail optical resonances with scattering and/or absorbing cross sections comparable to lambda-2, even if their volume is much smaller than λ3. This is particularly useful for obscurence applications, since volume these particles occupy in a smoke grenade is much smaller than conventional obscurant particles that do not display resonant properties. We will demonstrate tailoring of the obscurence spectrum by using a mix of different nano-particles to cover the entire bandwidth of interest, potentially leaving certain narrow bandwidth (perhaps in NIR) transparent, to allow for optical communication within this (known) band. We will consider optimization of the particle mix to minimize the volume occupied in a grenade for a given obscuring volume. Flourescent particles, which increase noise/signal observing ratio by increasing noise, will also be investigated. Both structure and shape of the particles will be investigated. Additionally, we will Investigate various aspects of cloaking (and feasibility of cloaking) for obscurence applications.