The Quest for the Superlens

Recent theory predicted a new class of meta structures made of engineered sub wavelength entities – meta “atoms” and “molecules” which enable unprecedented electromagnetic properties that do not exist in the nature. Especially, the predicted superlens made of metamaterials that breaks the fundamental diffraction limit, which may have a profound impact in a wide range of applications such as nano-scale imaging, nanolithography, and ultra-dense data storage.

I’ll discuss a few recent experiments that demonstrated these intriguing phenomena. We have created the first bulk optical metamaterials that demonstrate negative refraction. We have also demonstrated the unique superlens and hyperlens using carefully designed plasmonic material dispersions. I will further discuss a new technology based on the superlens for nano-scale lithography that may transform the next generation of nano-manufacturing, along with nano plasmonics for imaging and bio-sensing. The surface plasmon indeed promises an exciting engineering paradigm of “x-ray wavelength at optical frequency”.

Professor Xiang Zhang is Chancellor’s Professor at UC Berkeley and the Director of NSF Nano-scale Science and Engineering Center (NSEC) which includes Berkeley-Stanford-UCLA-UNCC-HP Labs. He also serves as Director of Department of Defense MURI Center on Metamaterials and Devices that includes Berkeley-MIT-UCLA-UCSD-Duke-Imperial College (UK) and as a faculty scientist in the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

Professor Zhang’s current research focused on nano-scale science and technology, meta-materials, nano-photonics and bio-technologies. He has published more than 80 technical papers including publications in Science and Nature Materials. He has given over 120 invited, plenary or keynote talks at international conferences and institutions. Professor Zhang is on editorial boards of three journals. He is a co-chair of NSF Nanoscale Science and Engineering Annual Grantee Conference in 2004-2005, Chair of Technical Program of IEEE 2nd International Conference on Micro and Nano Engineered and Molecular Systems in 2007.

Professor Zhang received his Ph.D from UC Berkeley (1996). He was an assistant professor at Pennsylvania State University (1996-1999), and associate professor (1999-2003) and full professor (2003-2004) at UCLA prior to joining Berkeley faculty in 2004. He is also a member of NASA Institute of Cell Mimetic Space Exploration (CMISE) and member of Berkeley Nanoscience and Nanotechnology Institute (BNNI).