Study on All-Optical Regulation of Exciton-Polaritons Based on Surface Plasmons

Abstract: Objective:Traditional von Neumann computing architecture suffers from inherent bottlenecks such as the separation of storage and computation, limited data bandwidth, and high energy consumption. Electronic neuromorphic devices can hardly meet the requirements of next-generation high-speed, low-power, and highly parallel intelligent computing systems.
Methods:All-optical devices constructed from photoresponsive materials provide a promising solution by simulating biological synaptic plasticity and brain-like memory functions. Surface Plasmon Polaritons (SPPs) exhibit strong electromagnetic field confinement and enhancement, which can significantly improve the sensitivity of photoresponsive materials and reduce the operating energy consumption of devices.In this study, a strongly coupled system composed of silver-based SPPs and azobenzene-containing Disperse Red 1 (DR1) molecules is designed and fabricated. The strong coupling between SPPs and excitons is realized by optimizing structural parameters, and the all-optical control of exciton-polaritons is achieved through external laser stimulation.
Results: The results show that a 50 nm-thick silver film supports the most efficient SPP excitation, and a 50 nm-thick DR1/PMMA film enables the strongest coupling strength with obvious Rabi splitting.
Limitations: The device is limited by environmental stability and thickness-precision requirements. Its integration level is low, and the response speed is restricted by DR1 molecular dynamics, which affects its practical application in integrated photonic systems.
Conclusions: This work achieves all-optical control of exciton-polaritons and simulates brain-like memory. The device has good performance and universality, providing a feasible scheme for optical neural networks and neuromorphic computing applications.