Integrated Optics & Sensing

Contact: matthieu.roussey@uef.fi
Find all the group members on UEFconnect

We create novel components, methods, and devices by exploring new possibilities and different aspects of conventional and unconventional systems… What if there was no limit?

By combining the computing power of CSC with the cleanroom facilities of UEF and our dedicated lab, we design, fabricate, and characterize customized photonic integrated circuit from fundamentals to prototypes.

More information about our research topics is given below.

Research topics

Fabrication processes development – Pushing the limits

Using UEF’s clean room facilities we are developing new processes and methods to achieve ultra-high control on the micro and nanostructures we need. Our goal is to control the field’s location inside waveguides, manage the polarization during the propagation, and understand the modes formed in the waveguides.

Atomic layer deposition for high quality material deposition, gradient index material deposition, multilayers.
Electron beam lithography for precise nano-structuration, grey scale exposure is used to control the cross section of the waveguides in a free form manner.
3D optical printing promotes high integration level of our chips with optical fiber, fluidic cells, and other external devices.

Smart waveguides – Developing new waveguides and micro/nano structures for easier integration

Working on strip-loaded platforms offers multiple degrees of freedom for the materials, the structures (shape and size), and reduce considerably the losses in an easy way. It enables working at all scales on nearly flat or curved substrates.

Multiple platforms: silicon, silicon nitride, glass, lithium niobate, ALD-materials, polymers.
New platforms for visible wavelengths – going towards mesoscopic photonics for fast photonics computing.
Active photonic glass waveguides platform: collaboration with Laeticia Petit (Tampere) and Jean-Emmanuel Broquin (Grenoble France).
Milli-micro- and nano-structures on waveguides with active control of their properties.

Dielectric surface waves – Harvesting dielectric surface waves for the highest sensitivity

Dielectric surface waves have the potential for long-distance propagation through TE or TM polarization. We explore this field with the aim of integration in photonic integrated circuits.

Long-term collaboration with Politecnico di Torino (Italy) and FEMTO-ST institute (France).
Single emitter coupling.
Pulse/CW regimes.
Full control of the SW generation using diffractive optical elements, high quality fabrication.
SW on non-flat surfaces (sphere, fibers, random surfaces).

Microplastics and environmental sensing – Applications for big challenges

Pollutants and their detections are very important for environmental sustainability. In the group we focus our applications mainly on detecting and identifying microplastics in water and atmospheric sensing.

Atmospheric sensing (Academy of Finland/UEF PROFI 6): detection of terpenoids to prevent forest fires.
MP detection (PREIN mini project, Co-innovation Business Finland CEIWA, EU-RIA IBAIA).
Telecom “tools” for other applications.
National and international industrial collaborations.

Members

GROUP LEADER:

Prof. Matthieu Roussey
Waveguides, micro- and nanostructures, sensors, photonic crystals, imaging and microscopy, spectroscopy

POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCHERS

Dr. Tianlong Guo
Micro and nanostructured surfaces, metamaterials and metasurfaces – Design, fabrication, characterization

Dr. Ana Gebejes
Environmental monitoring, hyperspectral imaging

Dr. Igor Reduto
Dispersion engineered strip-loaded lithium niobate waveguides – Design, fabrication, characterization

DOCTORAL RESEARCHERS

Isaac Doughan
Smart sensors on advanced integrated optics platforms

Atsu Lewis Asilevi
Design of Bloch surface wave devices

Janvit Tippinit
Uncommon application of arrayed waveguides

Kehinde Oyemakinwa
On-chip photonics at all scale

Olli Ovaskainen (in collaboration with Dispelix)
Arbitrary shaped waveguides

Sidra Muntaha (in collaboration with VTT)
Grating out-couplers on thick silicon platform for LiDAR applications

Fangfang Li
Fabrication of hybrid waveguide for environmental monitoring

Evellyn Santos Magalhaes (in collaboration with TAU)
Upconversion in active photonic glasses

Duc Le
Plasmonics nanoparticle for biological analysis

PROJECT RESEARCHER

Ebere Onah
Design and fabrication of active waveguides

MASTER STUDENTS 2023-2024

Behnaz Fazlpour
Simultaneous excitation of TE and TM polarized Bloch Surface Waves

Tharindu Diviyakaduwage Don
Acousto-optic modulators

John Tutu
Strip-loaded gratings

Selected recent bibliography

Doughan, K. Oyemakinwa, O. Ovaskainen, and M. Roussey, “Low loss vertical TiO2/polymer hybrid nano-waveguides,” Nanomaterials 13, 469 (2023).
D. H. Le, M. Kögler, T. Guo, M. Roussey, and J. Hiltunen, “Distance-controlled surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy of nanoparticles,” Optics Letters 48 (6), 1454-1457 (2023).
S. T. Muntaha, A. Hokkanen, M. Harjanne, M. Cherchi, P. Suopajärvi, P. Karvinen, M. Pekkarinen, M. Roussey, and T. Aalto, “Development of 3D printed lenses for vertical beam collimation of optical phased array,” 3D printing and additive manufacturing (2023) DOI: 10.1089/3dp.2022.031.
N. Marcucci, T. Guo, S. Pélisset, M. Roussey, T. Grosjean, and E. Descrovi, “Bloch Surface Waves in flat cavities,” Micromachines 14 (3), 509 (2023).
K.-E. Peiponen, B. Kanyathare, Blaž Hrovat, N. Papamatthaiakis, J. Hattuniemi, B. Asamoah, A. Haapala, A. Koistinen, and M. Roussey, “Sorting microplastics from other materials in water samples by ultra-high-definition imaging,” J. Eur. Opt. Soc.-Rapid Publications 19 (1), 14 (2023).
T. Guo, F. Li, and M. Roussey, “Dielectric cavity-insulator (DCIM) metamaterial absorber in visible range,” Nanomaterials 13,1401 (2023).
Kai-Erik Peiponen and Matthieu Roussey, “Prediction of nanoplastics aggregation in wastewaters,” Water Emerging Contaminants & Nanoplastics 2:12 (2023).

Funding

PREIN – Flagship on Photonics Research and Innovation

Research Council of Finland

CEIWA – Circular Economy of Industrial Water Processes (Business Finland)

Jane and Aatos Erkko Foundation

European Comission

IBAIA – Innovative Environmental Multisensing for Waterbody Quality Monitoring and Remediation Assessment

Revolutionary Accuracy in Waveguide Enabled Atmospheric Sensors