Resonance Energy Transfer in Nanophotonic Systems

Resonance energy transfer in nanophotonic systems describes the non‐radiative exchange of electronic excitation between a donor and an acceptor mediated by their electromagnetic environment. At its core is Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET), characterised by a near‐field R⁻⁶ distance dependence, which can be significantly modified by structured media such as plasmonic substrates, photonic cavities and engineered metasurfaces. In such environments, the interaction between emitters and confined optical modes alters both the transfer rate and efficiency. Surface plasmons on metal–dielectric interfaces can enhance dipole–dipole coupling by increasing local field confinement, while photonic cavities and waveguides reshape the density of optical states and direct energy flow over distances exceeding the classical Förster radius. Advanced theoretical frameworks employ the dyadic Green’s tensor to compute transfer rates in arbitrary geometries, revealing that static and dynamic components of the electromagnetic response govern the interplay between radiative and non‐radiative channels. Practical applications span quantum information networks, enhanced photovoltaics, biosensing and light‐harvesting complexes, where precise control of energy flow at the nanoscale promises both improved device performance and new functionalities.

Research from Nature Portfolio

Recent studies have demonstrated that excitation of engineered surface waves on metasurfaces can strongly mediate near‐field energy transfer between emitters. By tailoring subwavelength resonances, metasurfaces have been shown to enhance FRET efficiencies well beyond unstructured interfaces, opening pathways for on‐chip control of dipole coupling in quantum circuits and advanced lighting devices. Foundational work has also recast the Purcell effect in classical antenna terms, drawing an explicit analogy between quantum emitters in resonant environments and small antennas with radiative losses. This model provides a unified language for predicting changes in spontaneous emission and energy transfer rates across frequency domains, thereby informing the design of nanophotonic elements that optimise both emission and donor–acceptor coupling.

Resonance Energy Transfer in Nanophotonic Systems publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in resonance energy transfer in nanophotonic systems across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET): A non‐radiative mechanism by which an excited donor transfers energy to an acceptor via dipole–dipole coupling, with a characteristic distance dependence of R⁻⁶.

Surface plasmon: A collective oscillation of free electrons at a metal–dielectric interface that confines electromagnetic fields at subwavelength scales.

Purcell effect: The enhancement or suppression of spontaneous emission rates of a quantum emitter due to its electromagnetic environment.

Local density of optical states (LDOS): A measure of the number of available photonic modes at a given position and frequency that influences emission and energy transfer processes.

Dyadic Green’s tensor: A mathematical construct that relates a point source to the resulting electromagnetic field in structured media, essential for calculating transfer rates in arbitrary geometries.

References

1. Perturbative light–matter interactions; From first principles to inverse design. Physics Reports (2023).
2. Collective single-photon emission and energy transfer in thin-layer dielectric and plasmonic systems. Nanophotonics (2025).
3. Experimental evidence of Förster energy transfer enhancement in the near field through engineered metamaterial surface waves. Communications Physics (2023).
4. Resonance Energy Transfer: From Fundamental Theory to Recent Applications. Frontiers in Physics (2019).
5. An antenna model for the Purcell effect. Scientific Reports (2015).
6. Direct Imaging of the Energy-Transfer Enhancement between Two Dipoles in a Photonic Cavity. Physical Review X (2019).