Optical bistability in artificial composite nanoscale molecules: Towards all optical processing at the nanoscale

TL;DR

This paper theoretically investigates optical bistability in nanoscale molecules composed of a noble metal nanoparticle and a semiconductor quantum dot, highlighting potential applications in all-optical processing and memory devices.

Contribution

It introduces a theoretical model predicting optical bistability and hysteresis in composite nanoscale molecules, advancing the understanding of their nonlinear optical properties.

Findings

Predicted optical bistability in nanoparticle-quantum dot systems

Identified hysteresis behavior in optical response

Suggested applications in optical memory and processing

Abstract

Optical response of artificial composite nanoscale molecules comprising a closely spaced noble metal nanoparticle and a semiconductor quantum dot have been studied theoretically. We consider a system composed of an Au particle and CdSe or CdSe/ZnSe quantum dot and predict optical bistability and hysteresis in its response, which suggests various applications, in particular, all-optical processing and optical memory.