Abstract

Nanotechnology, the use of the unique characteristics of nanoscale structures in a wide variety of physical systems, is widely recognized as an important emerging scientific and technological arena. Indeed almost every aspect of the scientific enterprise is being impacted by developments in nanotechnology. This presentation will overview two aspects of photonics in nanotechnology: the use of photons in nanofabrication, and the implications of nanofabricated materials for photonic devices and systems. In fabrication, optical technology continues as the dominant manufacturing paradigm for integrated circuits, even for scales as small as the 45-nm half-pitch node. The possibilities of extending deep-UV optical lithography even further, and of the advent of new optical techniques such as Extreme Ultraviolet Lithography (EUVL) will be covered in this symposium. Nanostructures in photonics include such diverse subjects as quantum dot semiconductor materials for sources and detectors; 1-, 2-, and 3-D photonic crystal materials for waveguides and laser cavities; nanoscale epitaxy as a new paradigm in crystal growth; and composite materials for negative index and plasmonics.

© 2004 Optical Society of America