Plasmonic and hyperbolic (meta)materials beyond noble metals

Controlling light at deep subwavelength scales is critical for advancing nanophotonic devices through enhanced light-matter interactions. Plasmonic materials enable a plethora of applications, e.g., in energy, automotive, sensing, telecommunications, wireless technology, medicine, and IoT. However, varied operational requirements—spanning different frequency ranges, growth and environmental conditions—necessitate to expand the portfolio of plasmonic materials, beyond conventional noble metals. In this colloquium, we present two key examples that would be unfeasible with standard noble metals: i. refractory high-entropy carbides for extreme-environment plasmonics; ii. all-dielectric hyperbolic metamaterials based for THz applications. Through integrated multi-scale modeling—which combines atomistic first-principles simulations, thermodynamics,  and continuum electromagnetic methods —we establish design principles for plasmonic materials operating across extreme thermal conditions and diverse spectral ranges, expanding the functionality of nanophotonic systems beyond traditional platforms.

Seminar realized in the framework of the funded project
Amonix - AMOrphous conductors as a new route for plasmONICS. MUR PRIN 2022; project nr. 2022BTMXZT.