CIC nanoGUNE works on infrared sensing and photodetectors within GrapheneCore3
The Nanooptics Group of CIC nanoGUNE is involved in the Work Package 8: Photonics and Optoelectronics in the Graphene Flagship Core 3 project, the fourth funding cycle of the €1 Billion research initiative funded by the European Commission. The mission of Work Package Photonics and Optoelectronics is to develop GRM-based components for photonic and optoelectronic applications and to integrate them into photonic circuits, imaging arrays and optical sensors. NanoGUNE works on infrared sensing and is involved in infrared and terahertz detectors.
INFRARED SENSING
This work package deals with exploiting plasmon polaritons in graphene nanostructures for enhanced gas and biosensing. Nanogune specifically does not work on graphene but on hexagonal boron nitride (hBN, a van der Waals material) where instead of plasmons there are phonon polaritons. Plasmon and phonon polaritons in nanostrucutres enhanced the incoming infrared light. When molecules are in the vicinity of the nanostrucutres they absorb more light than without a nanostructure, and thus the transmitted light should have strong absorption signature.
PHOTODETECTORS
Nanogune is involved in developing infrared and terahertz photodetectors based on the photothermal effect in graphene. Compared to current infrared and terahertz photodetectors, graphene photodetectors could combine the following features: operate at room temperature, at high speed, and lower cost.
GrapheneCore 3
FET Flagships Graphene Flagship project has the ambition to take graphene and related materials from the research laboratories to industrial exploitation in a huge range of application areas. In this case, GrapheneCore3 project aims to secure a major role for Europe in the ongoing technological revolution, helping to bring graphene innovation out of the lab and into commercial applications by 2023. In its third core project, the Graphene Flagship gathers over 160 academic and industrial partners from 23 countries, all exploring different aspects of graphene and related materials. Bringing diverse competencies together, the Graphene Flagship facilitates cooperation between its partners, accelerating the timeline for industry acceptance of graphene technologies.
In this three-year phase of the project, the Graphene Flagship expects to advance much further toward the commercialization of graphene and layered materials. While keeping an eye on fundamental research, the Graphene Flagship Core 3 will have a special focus on innovative research to boost graphene-enabled technologies to higher technology readiness levels.