The results, published in the journal Nature Photonics, show that light doesn't propagate as waves in these circuits, as previously thought, but instead as particles called polaritons. Polaritons are quasiparticles that result from the strong coupling of light and matter, and they behave differently to photons, the particles of light. This new understanding of how light propagates could lead to a new generation of photonic devices, which could be used to perform complex optical operations on a chip.
The researchers studied the propagation of light in a type of integrated circuit called a plasmonic waveguide, which is a nanoscale channel that can guide light. They found that the polaritons that propagate in these waveguides have a very short wavelength, which means that they can be used to create very small and efficient optical devices.
The researchers believe that their discovery could have a major impact on the field of photonics, and that it could pave the way for the development of new types of optical chips that could be used in a wide variety of applications, including telecommunications, computing and medical imaging.
The research was carried out by Dr. Mikael Fogelström and Professor Staffan Björklund, from the Department of Microtechnology and Nanoscience at Chalmers University of Technology.
