Spin-orbit optical phenomena can be broadly defined as those phenomena in which the polarization (“spin”) and the spatial structure (“orbit”) of an optical wave interact with each other and become spatially and/or temporally correlated, leading to novel effects or photonic applications.The project vision is a full-fledged spin-orbit photonic science and technology, and its achievement will be pursued by moving in three main directions: 1) We will develop innovative systems based on spin-orbit optical media for generating light fields exhibiting a complex spatial vector structure, both in two dimensions (transverse plane and transverse fields) and in three (i.e. involving time- and space-dependent polarization fields and longitudinal field components). We will extend these ideas to other spectral domains (terahertz waves) and explore the possible applications of these fields in areas such as optical manipulation, plasmonics, space-division multiplexing in optical fibers, time-domain terahertz spectroscopy, ultrafast optics. 2) We will exploit spin-orbit quantum correlations generated within single photons and/or among few correlated photons to demonstrate novel quantum-information protocols using both the polarization and the transverse modes to encode and manipulate multiple qubits in each photon and for the implementation of quantum simulations of material systems based on photonic quantum walks in the Hilbert space of the light transverse modes. 3) We will investigate novel or unexplained physical processes occurring in structured optical media and light-sensitive material systems which respond both to the optical polarization and to its spatial inhomogeneity. Such materials will then be used to manipulate and characterize spin-orbit vector states of light.

PHOSPhOR publications: all listed group publications showing this small ERC logo are the result of work carried out within the frame of the PHOSPhOR project

TWEET “Towards Two-Dimensional Ferroelectricity”

TWEET ABSTRACT

Inspired by the global thrust towards miniaturization and by the
ubiquitous research in 2D-materials, TWEET promises disruptive advances in
ferroelectricity towards the 2D-limit. By targeting the delivery of
technological impact via fundamental understanding and materials
optimization, our goal will be to achieve full control of ferroelectricity
in few-layers films of CMOS-compatible materials. TWEET is
conceived in two pillars. The first is focused on the growth of
high-quality HfO2 ultrathin films, aiming at microscopic understanding and
control of the ferroelectric order in static/dynamic regimes,
complemented by device exploitation in tunnel barriers. The second pillar
focuses on the growth of 2D-chalcogenides (SnTe, GeTe), the ferroelectric
control of their spin texture and the exploitation of
non-volatile electric tuning of charge/spin transport, capitalizing on the
discovery (by the PI and some consortium members) of a novel spin-electric
coupling in bulk GeTe. The TWEET vision is fulfilled by the
synergy of accurate modelling (CNR-Ch), highly-controlled synthesis
(CNR-Na, PoliMi), advanced characterizations (UniNa, CNR-Na, PoliMi) and
cutting-edge device implementation (PoliMi), activities led by
recognized senior and young leaders in respective fields.

Principal Investigator: Silvia Picozzi (CNR-SPIN)
Local Unit: Andrea Rubano (UNINA)
Local Unit: Christian Rinaldi (PoliMI)

Past Research Funding:

PHORBITECH (A Toolbox for Photon Orbital Angular Momentum Technology) has been a collaborative project financed by the European Union under the activity Future Emerging Technologies FET-Open (Seventh Framework Programme, call FP7-ICT-2009-C), running from Ocotber 1, 2010 to September 30, 2013. The Scientific Coordinator was Lorenzo Marrucci, SLAM group leader, based in the University of Naples Federico II. Other partners were: (i) the Sapienza University of Rome, Italy (Quantum Information Lab led by Fabio Sciarrino); (ii) the Institut de Ciencies Fotoniques (ICFO), Spain (group of Juan  P. Torres); (iii) the University of Glasgow, UK (optics group led by Miles Padgett); (iv) the University of Bristol, UK (Centre for Quantum Photonics, led by Jeremy L. O'Brien); (v) the Universiteit Leiden, Netherlands (group led by Han Woerdman); (vi) the Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Brasil (group of Stephen Walborn).