Romain Tirole

PhD student
MSc. In Physics from University of Cambridge
BSc. In Physics from Imperial College London

Research

I am an experimentalist with a strong theoretical background, having acquired experience in nanophotonics, nonlinear optics and optical modelling throughout my PhD and my various undergraduate research experiences.

Time-varying Nanophotonics

I am currently investigating time-varying metamaterials, which I explore experimentally with ultrafast optical modulation of epsilon-near-zero thin-films. In pump-probe spectroscopy experiments, I use spatial and temporal shaping of short laser pulses to induce a variation of the optical response of the metamaterial. I have observed modulation of the frequency content of light (for example via time refraction) in these non-Hermitian systems. My role is to design, model and experimentally characterize such systems.

Double-slit time diffraction at optical frequencies
Saturable time-varying mirror based on an ENZ material
Photonics of time-varying media

Nonlinear Dielectric Metasurfaces

I have designed high-index dielectric nanoantennas for nonlinear optical and quantum experiments, exploring new geometries and materials for frequency generation. I model antenna arrays using Finite Difference Time Domain simulations and characterise their performances in a microscope or pump-probe setup.

Teaching experience

I love teaching at academic level and have developed over my years as a teaching assistant a genuine interest in new learning methods. I have helped teach and mark theoretical and experimental lectures as well as labs, from 2nd year undergraduate to master’s courses. This included problem-solving small classes, the coding of interactive Jupyter notebooks, the livestreaming of lab experiments to lecture theatres and many more activities. I am currently applying for an associate fellowship with the Higher Education Academy.