Detecting mid-infrared light by molecular frequency upconversion in dual-wavelength nanoantennas
Angelos Xomalis, Xuezhi Zheng, Rohit Chikkaraddy, Zsuzsanna Koczor-Benda, Ermanno Miele, Edina Rosta, Guy A. E. Vandenbosch, Alejandro Martı́nez, Jeremy J. Baumberg
Abstract
Optomechanical upconversion Molecules have rich signatures in their spectra at infrared wavelengths and are typically accessed with dedicated spectroscopic instrumentation. Chen et al . and Xomalis et al . report optomechanical frequency upconversion from the mid-infrared to the visible domain using molecular vibrations coupled to a plasmonic nanocavity at ambient conditions (see the Perspective by Gordon). Using different nanoantenna designs, one with a nanoparticle-on-resonator and the other with nanoparticle-in-groove, both approaches show the ability to upconvert the mid-infrared vibrations of the molecules in the nanocavity to visible light wavelengths. The effect could be used to simplify infrared spectroscopy, possibly with single-molecule sensitivity. —ISO