Confined Tamm optical states coupled to quantum dots in a photoconductive detector

By employing Tamm optical states—states localized between a thin metal microdisk and a semiconductor distributed Bragg reflector—we demonstrate near 1300 nm (O-band), narrow wavelength (20 nm FWHM), highly spatially localized photodetection. By varying the size of the microdisk, we show spectral tuning (7 nm) of the peak optical response. Furthermore, by reducing the symmetry of the microstructures, we lift the degeneracy of the polarization, producing a polarization sensitivity in our detector. These confined Tamm states are useful not only for sensing but also for photoconductive switch applications such as optical microwave switches and terahertz generation.