nanooptica

Nanooptica, often referred to in English as nano-optics or nanophotonics, is the study and manipulation of light at nanometer length scales. The field investigates how photons interact with matter when features are comparable to or smaller than the wavelength of light, and it seeks methods to confine, guide, and sense light beyond conventional diffraction limits. Key areas include plasmonics, dielectric nanostructures, metamaterials, and near-field optical phenomena, as well as quantum-optical effects that emerge at the nanoscale.

Techniques and tools of nanooptica include fabrication methods like electron-beam lithography and nanoimprint lithography, as well as measurement and imaging techniques such as scanning near-field optical microscopy (NSOM/SNOM), confocal and two-photon microscopy, and ultrafast spectroscopy. Theoretical frameworks often rely on Maxwell equations in complex nanostructures, effective-medium approximations, and quantum electrodynamics when light-matter coupling is strong.

Applications and impact: enabling sub-wavelength imaging, high-sensitivity sensors (biosensing, chemical detection), nanoscale lithography, and integrated photonic circuits for communications and quantum technologies. Research is transdisciplinary, bridging physics, engineering, chemistry, and materials science, and aims to overcome losses in plasmonic systems, achieve active control of light at the nanoscale, and develop scalable fabrication for devices such as on-chip nanophotonic networks and optical antennas.