A picogram- and nanometre-scale photonic-crystal optomechanical cavity

Matt Eichenfield, Ryan Camacho, Jasper Chan, Kerry J. Vahala and Oskar Painter ()
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Matt Eichenfield: Thomas J. Watson, Sr. Laboratory of Applied Physics, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California 91125, USA
Ryan Camacho: Thomas J. Watson, Sr. Laboratory of Applied Physics, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California 91125, USA
Jasper Chan: Thomas J. Watson, Sr. Laboratory of Applied Physics, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California 91125, USA
Kerry J. Vahala: Thomas J. Watson, Sr. Laboratory of Applied Physics, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California 91125, USA
Oskar Painter: Thomas J. Watson, Sr. Laboratory of Applied Physics, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California 91125, USA

Nature, 2009, vol. 459, issue 7246, 550-555

Abstract: The mighty photon The fact that photons of light carry momentum so can exert mechanical force is not just an academic curiosity; researchers have harnessed such forces for various applications, 'optical tweezers' being a notable example. Now Eichenfield et al. have engineered a system of simple photonic structures on a silicon chip in which light and mechanical energy are simultaneously localized in a tiny volume, called a 'zipper' cavity because of its zip-like shape, such that even a single optical photon produces a significant force. The mechanical rigidity of the resulting structure is dominated by an optical spring effect many times that of the intrinsic mechanical spring, resulting in interesting mechanical mode-mixing and extremely high motion sensitivity. Such an extreme optomechanical regime is anticipated to find use in a variety of precision measurement and optical communication technologies, as well as providing a test bed for fundamental physics.

Date: 2009
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DOI: 10.1038/nature08061

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