Phase change materials are of enormous interest in the field of plasmonics and nanophotonics. For such applications, it has gone largely unnoticed that some chalcogenides accrue plasmonic properties in the transition from an amorphous to a crystalline state. In this work, we show that the phase transition-induced emergence of plasmonic properties in the crystalline state can markedly change the optical properties of subwavelength-thickness nanostructured GeSbTe films, providing for the realization of non-volatile, reconfigurable (e.g. color-tunable) chalcogenide metasurfaces operating at visible frequencies, and thus creating opportunities for developments in non-volatile optical memory, solid state displays and all-optical switching devices.
- Behrad Gholipour
- Artemios Karvounis
- Nikolay I. Zheludev
