US Patent 7459324 - Photonic metal nanoparticle

http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7459324.html

Photonics is analogous to electronics except instead of using circuits for transporting electrons the circuits of photonic devices transport particles of light. This patent from U.S. Naval Research Labs teaches an optical amplification device based on metal nanoparticles which seem to be a type of optical transistor. Claim 1 reads:

1. A method, comprising:

providing a substrate having a semiconductor layer over an insulator layer;

operatively coupling said substrate to a photonic bandgap structure having at least one period, wherein said photonic bandgap structure is adapted to receive and output light along a predetermined path; and

operatively coupling said photonic bandgap structure and said substrate to a metal nanoparticle structure comprising at least three metal nanoparticles having spherical shapes of different radii, wherein said at least three metal nanoparticles are adapted to receive and amplify light rays and output amplified light.