Patent application number | Description | Published |
20080236652 | METHOD OR MEANS TO USE OR COMBINE PLASMONIC, THERMAL, PHOTOVOLTAIC OR OPTICAL ENGINEERING - Means to use and combine methods of thermal engineering, plasmonics, photonics, electronics, photovoltaics, optical transfer, heat transport, light transport, catalysis and chemical reactions individually or in any combination for the enhancement or generation of solar, optical, electrical or any form of energy. The present disclosure further concerns a means to use at least a form of electromagnetic excitation or light-matter interactions in a structure or material having one or more addressable frequencies to generate the exchange of thermal, kinetic, electronic or photonic energy. The present disclosure further concerns a means to use at least a form of electromagnetic excitation or light-matter interaction, including solar or laser energy to generate localized conditions that enable initiation and spatial and temporal control of catalysis, chemical reactions, deposition, growth, synthesis, photocatalysis, photosynthesis, chemical catalysis, photochemical catalysis, photovoltaic, electrocatalysis and catalytic processes. | 10-02-2008 |
20080271778 | USE OF ELECTROMAGNETIC EXCITATION OR LIGHT-MATTER INTERACTIONS TO GENERATE OR EXCHANGE THERMAL, KINETIC, ELECTRONIC OR PHOTONIC ENERGY - The present disclosure concerns a means to use at least a form of electromagnetic excitation or light-matter interactions in a structure or material having one or more addressable frequencies to generate the exchange of thermal, kinetic, electronic or photonic energy. In some implementations this provides a means to use electromagnetic excitation or light-matter interactions to influence, cause, control, modulate, stimulate or change the state or phase of electrical, magnetic, optical or electromagnetic charge, emission, conduction, storage or similar properties. The method could include the use of light-matter interactions to generate electromagnetic excitation or light-matter interactions and concentrate extremely localized field effects or concentrated plasmonic field effects to cause an exchange of energy states in a material or structure. Said field effects could be used for excitation of surface electrons in metallic nanostructures causing said electrons to exchange energy states or said field effects could be used to mediate or stimulate photon emissions or to modulate photonic energy to excite or stimulate emissions of electrons. Said electron or photon emissions could be used to drive photochemical, photocatalysis, photovoltaic or thermophotovoltaic reactions. | 11-06-2008 |
20090253227 | ENGINEERED OR STRUCTURED COATINGS FOR LIGHT MANIPULATION IN SOLAR CELLS AND OTHER MATERIALS - The present disclosure concerns a means to design, engineer and use antireflective or metallo-dielectric coatings incorporating metallic, nonmetallic, organic and inorganic metamaterials or nanostructures to manipulate light in solar thermal and photovoltaic materials. Such metallic, nonmetallic, organic or inorganic metamaterials or nanostructures could be used to manipulate light for photovoltaic effects on or in any material or substrate. Dielectric coatings containing metallic nanostructures could be used to improve the efficiency of solar cells and to influence or control such characteristics as optical and thermal absorption, conduction, radiation, emissivity, reflectivity and scattering. | 10-08-2009 |
20100142887 | METHOD OF FABRICATING AN OPTICAL SWITCH - Aa method fabricates an optical switch comprising a microsphere coated with silicon nanocrystals. The method includes providing a silica optical fiber. The method further includes melting at least a portion of the fiber to form at least one silica microsphere. The method further includes coating the microsphere with a silica layer. The method further includes precipitating silicon nanocrystals within the silica layer by annealing the microsphere. The method further includes passivating the nanocrystals by annealing the microsphere in a hydrogen-containing atmosphere. | 06-10-2010 |
20100203454 | ENHANCED TRANSPARENT CONDUCTIVE OXIDES - A method of engineering of enhanced transparent conducting oxides by incorporating discrete metallic particles and structures, nonmetallic, organic and inorganic metamaterials or nanostructures in order to manipulate optical, thermal, electronic or electrical energy, properties or effects. A method of using transparent conducting oxides (TCO) incorporating discrete metallic particles and structures, nonmetallic, organic or inorganic metamaterials or nanostructures for any purpose including to manipulate optical, thermal, electronic or electrical energy, properties or effects in or on any material, substrate, or device. | 08-12-2010 |
20100307553 | ENGINEERING LIGHT MANIPULATION IN STRUCTURED FILMS OR COATINGS - The present disclosure concerns a means to use light manipulation in engineered or structured coatings for thermal or photothermal effects and/or refractive and reflective index management. Such metallic, nonmetallic, organic or inorganic metamaterials or nanostructures could be used to manipulate light or energy for thermal or photothermal effects and/or refractive and reflective index management on or in any material or substrate on or in any material or substrate. The light scattering properties of metallic particles and film can be used to tune such coatings, structures or films over a broad spectrum. | 12-09-2010 |
20120213471 | MICRORESONATOR OPTICAL SWITCH HAVING NANOPARTICLES AND METHOD OF OPTICAL SWITCHING - An optical switch includes a microresonator comprising a plurality of silicon nanoparticles within a silicon-rich silicon oxide layer. The microresonator further includes an optical coupler optically coupled to the microresonator and configured to be optically coupled to a pump source and to a signal source. A method of optical switching includes providing an optical switch comprising an optical coupler and a microresonator having a plurality of nanoparticles and receiving an optical pulse by the optical switch, wherein at least a portion of the optical pulse is absorbed by the nanoparticles such that at least a portion of the microresonator undergoes an elevation of temperature and a corresponding refractive index change when the optical pulse has an optical power greater than a predetermined threshold level. | 08-23-2012 |
20140233884 | METHOD OF OPTICAL SELF-SWITCHING USING MICRORESONATOR OPTICAL SWITCH HAVING NANOPARTICLES - An optical switch includes a microresonator comprising a plurality of silicon nanoparticles within a silicon-rich silicon oxide layer. The microresonator further includes an optical coupler optically coupled to the microresonator and configured to be optically coupled to a signal source. A method of optical switching includes providing an optical switch comprising an optical coupler and a microresonator having a plurality of nanoparticles and receiving an optical pulse by the optical switch, wherein at least a portion of the optical pulse is absorbed by the nanoparticles such that at least a portion of the microresonator undergoes an elevation of temperature and a corresponding refractive index change when the optical pulse has an optical power greater than a predetermined threshold level. | 08-21-2014 |
20140234780 | LITHOGRAPHY WITH REDUCED FEATURE PITCH USING ROTATING MASK TECHNIQUES - Embodiments of the present invention are directed to techniques for obtaining patterns of features. One set of techniques uses multiple-pass rolling mask lithography to obtain the desired feature pattern. Another technique uses a combination of rolling mask lithography and a self-aligned plasmonic mask lithography to obtain a desired feature pitch. | 08-21-2014 |
20150023633 | SELF-SWITCHING MICRORESONATOR OPTICAL SWITCH - An optical switch includes a microresonator comprising a silicon-rich silicon oxide layer and a plurality of silicon nanoparticles within the silicon-rich silicon oxide layer. The microresonator further includes an optical coupler optically coupled to the microresonator and configured to be optically coupled to a signal source. The microresonator is configured to receive signal light having a signal wavelength, and at least a portion of the microresonator is responsive to the signal light by undergoing a refractive index change at the signal wavelength. The optical switch further includes an optical coupler optically coupled to the microresonator and configured to be optically coupled to a signal source. The optical coupler transmits the signal light from the signal source to the microresonator. | 01-22-2015 |