IRGs

Photonic Building Blocks from Multiscale Materials

Our group is working to understand and control the optical properties of a novel class of radiative nanoparticles—fluorescent core-shell silica nanoparticles (C dots)—that combine the tunability of organic dyes with the durability of inorganic materials to achieve brightness levels comparable to quantum dots. The fundamental correlation between structure and photonic properties is being investigated using precise chemical control of particle size, architecture and assembly. Once synthesized, the C dots are being integrated into novel photonic devices, including waveguides and photonic crystals, with superior properties and performance to conventional approaches.