Shai Maayani | Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) (original) (raw)

Papers by Shai Maayani

Proceedings of SPIE, Apr 23, 2010

Micromachines, Mar 8, 2023

This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative... more This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY

arXiv: Soft Condensed Matter, Dec 24, 2015

Droplets, particularly water, are abundant in nature and artificial systems. Thermal fluctuations... more Droplets, particularly water, are abundant in nature and artificial systems. Thermal fluctuations imply that droplet interfaces behave like a stormy sea at the sub-nanometer scale. Thermal capillary-waves have been widely studied since 1908 and are of key importance in surface science. Here we use an optical mode of a droplet to probe its radius fluctuation. Our droplet benefits from a finesse of 520 that accordingly boosts its sensitivity in recording Brownian capillaries at 100-kHz rates and 1±0.025 ångström amplitudes, in agreement with natural-frequency calculation and the equipartition theorem. A fall in the fluctuation spectrum is measured below cutoff at the drop's lowest-eigenfrequency. Our device facilitates resonantly-enhanced optocapillaryinteractions that might enable optical excitation (/cooling) of capillary droplet-modes, including with the most-common and important liquid-water. Single sentence: We activate a droplet as a hybrid optocapillary resonator, and access its thermal capillaries while benefiting from resonantly-enhanced sensitivity.

Optical and Quantum Sensing and Precision Metrology II, 2022

Path of a nanosphere in a a non-axially symmetric droplet

Energy exchange between light and sound was first suggested by Brillouin in 1922. After Townes es... more Energy exchange between light and sound was first suggested by Brillouin in 1922. After Townes established the phonon maser theory, coherent generation of intense hypersonic waves was observed together with stimulated Brillouin Scattering. Here we repeat these experiments, but with capillary-waves that are unique to the liquid phase of matter and relates to attraction between intimate fluid particles. We fabricate resonators that co-host capillary and opticalmodes, control it to operates at its non resolved sideband, and observe stimulated capillary scattering and coherent excitation of capillary resonances at kHz rates (that one can hear in audio files recorded by us). By exchanging energy between electromagnetic and capillary waves, we bridge interfacial tension phenomena at the liquid phase boundary to optics, and might impact optofluidics by allowing optical control, interrogation and cooling of water waves.

We fabricate a fiber coupled ultrahigh-Q resonator from a μdroplet per se; and experimentally mea... more We fabricate a fiber coupled ultrahigh-Q resonator from a μdroplet per se; and experimentally measure stimulated Raman emission showing itself at a 160μW threshold. We observe Raman-laser lines that agree with their related calculated molecular-vibrations, as well as with a control-group experiment that uses a Raman-spectrometer. Yet, unlike spectrometers where emission is spontaneous and less directional, our droplet emitter is stimulated, single-mode-fiber coupled, resonantly enhanced with Q of 250 million, confined to a 23 um3 mode volume and has 7 orders of magnitude higher power.

Path of a nanosphere in a resonator

Nature Communications, 2016

Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics

The vibration modes of the polydimethylsiloxane molecule

Path of a nanosphere in a a non-axially symmetric droplet

Fibers constitute the backbone of modern communication and are used in laser surgeries; fibers al... more Fibers constitute the backbone of modern communication and are used in laser surgeries; fibers also genarate coherent X-ray, guided-sound and supercontinuum. In contrast, fibers for capillary oscillations, which are unique to liquids, were rarely considered in optofluidics. Here we fabricate fibers by water bridging an optical tapered-coupler to a microlensed coupler. Our water fibers are held in air and their length can be longer than a millimeter. These hybrid fibers co-confine two important oscillations in nature: capillary- and electromagnetic-. We optically record vibrations in the water fiber, including an audio-rate fundamental and its 3 overtones in a harmonic series, that one can hear in soundtracks attached. Transforming Micro-Electro-Mechanical-Systems [MEMS] to Micro-Electro-Capillary-Systems [MECS], boosts the device softness by a million to accordingly improve its response to minute forces. Furthermore, MECS are compatible with water, which is a most important liquid i...

Path of a nanosphere in a resonator

Largely-deformed1–4 microcavities5 support instabilities suppression6 chaotic ray-dynamics7, dire... more Largely-deformed1–4 microcavities5 support instabilities suppression6 chaotic ray-dynamics7, directional-emission8–10, and momentum transfer11 for nonlinear optics, but such deformations are generally possible only by fabricating discrete sets of resonators. In contrast, optical tweezers12–17 permit continuous large changes18–28, such as deformations from spherical dielectrics to triangular ones25. We report on transformable micro-photonic devices that change their functionality while operating. Assisted by computerized holographic-tweezers, we gradually deform the shape and change the functionality of a droplet whispering-gallery cavity. For example, we continuously deform hexagonal cavities to rectangular ones, and demonstrate switching to directionally emitting mode-of-operation, or splitting a resonant mode to a 10-GHz separated doublet. A continuous trend of improving spatial light modulators and tweezers suggests that our method is scalable to control the shape and functionali...

arXiv: Optics, 2017

We fabricate a fiber coupled ultrahigh-Q resonator from a {\mu}droplet per se; and experimentally... more We fabricate a fiber coupled ultrahigh-Q resonator from a {\mu}droplet per se; and experimentally measure stimulated Raman emission showing itself at a 160{\mu}W threshold. We observe Raman-laser lines that agree with their related calculated molecular-vibrations, as well as with a control-group experiment that uses a Raman-spectrometer. Yet, unlike spectrometers where emission is spontaneous and less directional, our droplet emitter is stimulated, single-mode-fiber coupled, resonantly enhanced with Q of 250 million, confined to a 23 um3 mode volume and has 7 orders of magnitude higher power.

Fibers constitute the backbone of modern communication and are used in laser surgeries; fibers al... more Fibers constitute the backbone of modern communication and are used in laser surgeries; fibers also genarate coherent X-ray, guided-sound and supercontinuum. In contrast, fibers for capillary oscillations, which are unique to liquids, were rarely considered in optofluidics. Here we fabricate fibers by water bridging an optical tapered-coupler to a microlensed coupler. Our water fibers are held in air and their length can be longer than a millimeter. These hybrid fibers co-confine two important oscillations in nature: capillary- and electromagnetic-. We optically record vibrations in the water fiber, including an audio-rate fundamental and its 3 overtones in a harmonic series, that one can hear in soundtracks attached. Transforming Micro-Electro-Mechanical-Systems [MEMS] to Micro-Electro-Capillary-Systems [MECS], boosts the device softness by a million to accordingly improve its response to minute forces. Furthermore, MECS are compatible with water, which is a most important liquid i...

APL Photonics, 2021

We report on reversible and continuously deformable soft micro-resonators and the control of thei... more We report on reversible and continuously deformable soft micro-resonators and the control of their resonance split and directional emission. Assisted by computerized holographic-tweezers, functioning as an optical deformer of our device, we gradually deform the shape and change the functionality of a droplet whispering-gallery cavity. For example, we continuously deform hexagonal cavities to rectangular ones and demonstrate switching to directionally emitting mode-of-operation, or splitting a resonant mode to a 10-GHz separated doublet. A continuous trend of improving spatial light modulators and tweezers suggests that our method is scalable and can control the shape and functionality of many individual devices. We also demonstrate optional solidification, proving the feasibility of transformer-enabled applications, including in printing optical circuits and multiwavelength optical networks.

arXiv: Optics, 2016

We harness the momentum of light resonating inside a micro-droplet cavity, to experimentally gene... more We harness the momentum of light resonating inside a micro-droplet cavity, to experimentally generate micro-flows within the envelope of the drop. We 3D map these optically induced flows by using fluorescent nanoparticles; which reveals circular micro-streams. The flows are parametrically studied and, as expected, exhibit an increase of rotation speed with optical power. The flow is non-circular only when we intentionally break the axial symmetry of the droplet. Besides the fundamental interest in light-flow interactions including in opto-fluidic cavities, the optically controlled flows can serve in bringing analytes into the maximum-power region of the microcavity.

Proceedings of SPIE, Apr 23, 2010

Micromachines, Mar 8, 2023

This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative... more This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY

arXiv: Soft Condensed Matter, Dec 24, 2015

Droplets, particularly water, are abundant in nature and artificial systems. Thermal fluctuations... more Droplets, particularly water, are abundant in nature and artificial systems. Thermal fluctuations imply that droplet interfaces behave like a stormy sea at the sub-nanometer scale. Thermal capillary-waves have been widely studied since 1908 and are of key importance in surface science. Here we use an optical mode of a droplet to probe its radius fluctuation. Our droplet benefits from a finesse of 520 that accordingly boosts its sensitivity in recording Brownian capillaries at 100-kHz rates and 1±0.025 ångström amplitudes, in agreement with natural-frequency calculation and the equipartition theorem. A fall in the fluctuation spectrum is measured below cutoff at the drop's lowest-eigenfrequency. Our device facilitates resonantly-enhanced optocapillaryinteractions that might enable optical excitation (/cooling) of capillary droplet-modes, including with the most-common and important liquid-water. Single sentence: We activate a droplet as a hybrid optocapillary resonator, and access its thermal capillaries while benefiting from resonantly-enhanced sensitivity.

Optical and Quantum Sensing and Precision Metrology II, 2022

Path of a nanosphere in a a non-axially symmetric droplet

Energy exchange between light and sound was first suggested by Brillouin in 1922. After Townes es... more Energy exchange between light and sound was first suggested by Brillouin in 1922. After Townes established the phonon maser theory, coherent generation of intense hypersonic waves was observed together with stimulated Brillouin Scattering. Here we repeat these experiments, but with capillary-waves that are unique to the liquid phase of matter and relates to attraction between intimate fluid particles. We fabricate resonators that co-host capillary and opticalmodes, control it to operates at its non resolved sideband, and observe stimulated capillary scattering and coherent excitation of capillary resonances at kHz rates (that one can hear in audio files recorded by us). By exchanging energy between electromagnetic and capillary waves, we bridge interfacial tension phenomena at the liquid phase boundary to optics, and might impact optofluidics by allowing optical control, interrogation and cooling of water waves.

We fabricate a fiber coupled ultrahigh-Q resonator from a μdroplet per se; and experimentally mea... more We fabricate a fiber coupled ultrahigh-Q resonator from a μdroplet per se; and experimentally measure stimulated Raman emission showing itself at a 160μW threshold. We observe Raman-laser lines that agree with their related calculated molecular-vibrations, as well as with a control-group experiment that uses a Raman-spectrometer. Yet, unlike spectrometers where emission is spontaneous and less directional, our droplet emitter is stimulated, single-mode-fiber coupled, resonantly enhanced with Q of 250 million, confined to a 23 um3 mode volume and has 7 orders of magnitude higher power.

Path of a nanosphere in a resonator

Nature Communications, 2016

Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics

The vibration modes of the polydimethylsiloxane molecule

Path of a nanosphere in a a non-axially symmetric droplet

Fibers constitute the backbone of modern communication and are used in laser surgeries; fibers al... more Fibers constitute the backbone of modern communication and are used in laser surgeries; fibers also genarate coherent X-ray, guided-sound and supercontinuum. In contrast, fibers for capillary oscillations, which are unique to liquids, were rarely considered in optofluidics. Here we fabricate fibers by water bridging an optical tapered-coupler to a microlensed coupler. Our water fibers are held in air and their length can be longer than a millimeter. These hybrid fibers co-confine two important oscillations in nature: capillary- and electromagnetic-. We optically record vibrations in the water fiber, including an audio-rate fundamental and its 3 overtones in a harmonic series, that one can hear in soundtracks attached. Transforming Micro-Electro-Mechanical-Systems [MEMS] to Micro-Electro-Capillary-Systems [MECS], boosts the device softness by a million to accordingly improve its response to minute forces. Furthermore, MECS are compatible with water, which is a most important liquid i...

Path of a nanosphere in a resonator

Largely-deformed1–4 microcavities5 support instabilities suppression6 chaotic ray-dynamics7, dire... more Largely-deformed1–4 microcavities5 support instabilities suppression6 chaotic ray-dynamics7, directional-emission8–10, and momentum transfer11 for nonlinear optics, but such deformations are generally possible only by fabricating discrete sets of resonators. In contrast, optical tweezers12–17 permit continuous large changes18–28, such as deformations from spherical dielectrics to triangular ones25. We report on transformable micro-photonic devices that change their functionality while operating. Assisted by computerized holographic-tweezers, we gradually deform the shape and change the functionality of a droplet whispering-gallery cavity. For example, we continuously deform hexagonal cavities to rectangular ones, and demonstrate switching to directionally emitting mode-of-operation, or splitting a resonant mode to a 10-GHz separated doublet. A continuous trend of improving spatial light modulators and tweezers suggests that our method is scalable to control the shape and functionali...

arXiv: Optics, 2017

We fabricate a fiber coupled ultrahigh-Q resonator from a {\mu}droplet per se; and experimentally... more We fabricate a fiber coupled ultrahigh-Q resonator from a {\mu}droplet per se; and experimentally measure stimulated Raman emission showing itself at a 160{\mu}W threshold. We observe Raman-laser lines that agree with their related calculated molecular-vibrations, as well as with a control-group experiment that uses a Raman-spectrometer. Yet, unlike spectrometers where emission is spontaneous and less directional, our droplet emitter is stimulated, single-mode-fiber coupled, resonantly enhanced with Q of 250 million, confined to a 23 um3 mode volume and has 7 orders of magnitude higher power.

Fibers constitute the backbone of modern communication and are used in laser surgeries; fibers al... more Fibers constitute the backbone of modern communication and are used in laser surgeries; fibers also genarate coherent X-ray, guided-sound and supercontinuum. In contrast, fibers for capillary oscillations, which are unique to liquids, were rarely considered in optofluidics. Here we fabricate fibers by water bridging an optical tapered-coupler to a microlensed coupler. Our water fibers are held in air and their length can be longer than a millimeter. These hybrid fibers co-confine two important oscillations in nature: capillary- and electromagnetic-. We optically record vibrations in the water fiber, including an audio-rate fundamental and its 3 overtones in a harmonic series, that one can hear in soundtracks attached. Transforming Micro-Electro-Mechanical-Systems [MEMS] to Micro-Electro-Capillary-Systems [MECS], boosts the device softness by a million to accordingly improve its response to minute forces. Furthermore, MECS are compatible with water, which is a most important liquid i...

APL Photonics, 2021

We report on reversible and continuously deformable soft micro-resonators and the control of thei... more We report on reversible and continuously deformable soft micro-resonators and the control of their resonance split and directional emission. Assisted by computerized holographic-tweezers, functioning as an optical deformer of our device, we gradually deform the shape and change the functionality of a droplet whispering-gallery cavity. For example, we continuously deform hexagonal cavities to rectangular ones and demonstrate switching to directionally emitting mode-of-operation, or splitting a resonant mode to a 10-GHz separated doublet. A continuous trend of improving spatial light modulators and tweezers suggests that our method is scalable and can control the shape and functionality of many individual devices. We also demonstrate optional solidification, proving the feasibility of transformer-enabled applications, including in printing optical circuits and multiwavelength optical networks.

arXiv: Optics, 2016

We harness the momentum of light resonating inside a micro-droplet cavity, to experimentally gene... more We harness the momentum of light resonating inside a micro-droplet cavity, to experimentally generate micro-flows within the envelope of the drop. We 3D map these optically induced flows by using fluorescent nanoparticles; which reveals circular micro-streams. The flows are parametrically studied and, as expected, exhibit an increase of rotation speed with optical power. The flow is non-circular only when we intentionally break the axial symmetry of the droplet. Besides the fundamental interest in light-flow interactions including in opto-fluidic cavities, the optically controlled flows can serve in bringing analytes into the maximum-power region of the microcavity.