Photonic space-time crystals are materials that could increase the performance and efficiency of wireless communication or laser technologies. They feature a periodic arrangement of special materials in three dimensions as well as in time, which enables precise control of the properties of light. Working with partners from Aalto University, the University of Eastern Finland and Harbin Engineering University in China, scientists from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) have shown how such four-dimensional materials can be used in practical applications. They published their results in Nature Photonics.
Photonic time crystals consist of materials with uniform composition in space but properties that vary periodically over time. With this periodic variation, the spectral composition of light can be modulated and amplified as needed -- key capabilities for optical information processing. "This gives us new degrees of freedom but also poses a lot of challenges," said Professor Carsten Rockstuhl from KIT's Institute for Theoretical Solid-State Physics and Institute of Nanotechnology. "This study paves the way for using these materials in information processing systems capable of using and amplifying light of any frequency."
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