CHICAGO, June 25 (Xinhua) -- Researchers at Northwestern University (NU) in midwestern U.S. state of Illinois has developed a nature-inspired nanolaser that can change colors using the same mechanism as chameleons.
Published online in the journal Nano Letters last week, the study could open the door for advances in flexible optical displays in smartphones and televisions, wearable photonic devices and ultra-sensitive sensors to measure strain.
"Chameleons can easily change their color by controlling the spacing among the nanocrystals on their skin, which determines the color we observe," said Teri W. Odom, professor of chemistry at Northwestern's Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences.
According to the study, as the same way a chameleon controls the spacing of nanocrystals on its skin, the NU laser exploits periodic arrays of metal nanoparticles on a stretchable, polymer matrix.
As the matrix either stretches to pull the nanoparticles farther apart or contracts to push them closer together, the wavelength emitted from the laser changes wavelength, which also changes its color.
The resulting laser is robust, tunable, reversible and has a high sensitivity to strain. These properties are critical for applications in responsive optical displays, on-chip photonic circuits and multiplexed optical communication.
