Description du sujet de thèse

In the last decades, the ability to control the behavior of light with nanoscale devices has opened the door to a whole new area of research and innovative applications. Photonics has become a key technology for a wide variety of fields including optical communications, detection and imaging.

The study and development of nanostructured materials – artificial materials made of elementary building blocks located at distances smaller than the wavelength – has been an important step forward in the field of photonics. These structures allow precise control of the interaction between light and matter, offering properties that cannot be obtained with conventional materials.

This PhD thesis aims at boosting the current capabilities of photonics technologies by developing nanostructured devices and surfaces in the silicon and silicon nitride platforms. The main objective of the thesis is the development of integrated devices for polarization control with performances surpassing the state of the art.

We look for candidates with both experimental and theoretical compentences in the field of integrated photonics. The candidate should be able to give inputs and contribute to the development of ongoing experiments. At the same time, the project will allow the candidate develop competences in photonic fabrication, design, simulation, and layout of integrated optical devices with modern optimization tools; optical characterizations for design validation and optimization. Team player attitude, independence, and the ability to work in a diverse, multi-disciplinary, and international group with PhD, Postdocs, and students are expected.

Contexte de travail

The Center for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (C2N) is a joint research center between CNRS, Université Paris-Saclay, and Université Paris Cité located in Palaiseau, near Paris. It performs world-class research in the domains of photonics, materials, nanoelectronics, microsystems, and nanofluidics. C2N relies on a staff of almost 400 people and hosts one of the largest university nanofabrication facilities in France, with a cleanroom of 2900 m2.

Within C2N, the Silicon Photonics group (https://minaphot.c2n.universite-paris-saclay.fr/en/) has a vast expertise on passive and active photonic devices on silicon, silicon nitride, and germanium. The group is at the forefront of photonics research, with several pioneering demonstrations of optoelectronic devices including optical modulator, photodetectors, passive devices, subwavelength metamaterials, and metasurfaces. The group has access to several optical setups for the active and passive characterization of photonic devices from 600 nm to 16μm wavelength. The main intended applications of the research group are optical telecommunications/interconnects, microwave-photonics, biochemical and gas sensing, spectroscopy, quantum photonics, and datacom.

This position offers the possibility to be a PhD student within an enthusiastic and international-friendly team in the outstanding environment of C2N. We offer access to state-of-the-art fabrication infrastructures and characterization laboratories.

Le poste se situe dans un secteur relevant de la protection du potentiel scientifique et technique (PPST), et nécessite donc, conformément à la réglementation, que votre arrivée soit autorisée par l'autorité compétente du MESR.