Ultrafast & Terahertz Photonics Group
Ultrafast optical techniques provide powerful probes of different states of matter, using light pulses that have femtosecond duration. In Warwick our activities span a number of areas:
|
Group facilitiesThe Group has labs across the campus, in the main Physics building, Materials and Analytical Sciences, and Millburn House. Read more about our experimental capabilities in terahertz science and technology. We also contribute to the Warwick Centre for Ultrafast Spectroscopy Research Technology Platform. ![]() We make use of a wide range of Warwick's excellent materials analysis equipment, including X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, electron microscopy and magnetometry. |
Join the group!Please get in touch if you are interested in a PhD or MSc by Research in the group. We have two funded PhD projects available for 2024 start: with Dr Adam Wright on polaritons in perovskite solar cell materialsLink opens in a new window, and Prof. Emma MacPherson on THz robotic probes of skin cancerLink opens in a new window. ![]() Group, Theses & PhotosContact details for our current group members and our photo gallery. For recent theses from the group, please see here. |
Research areas
Nanomaterials
We use pump/probe spectroscopy to study how light and matter interact on femtosecond to nanosecond timescales. Using visible probes we can track electronic processes, while infrared radiation lets us study vibrational states of molecules and atomic-scale defects in semiconductors.

Recent papers:
High-bandwidth perovskite photonic sources on silicon
Ultrafast THz spectroscopy of carbon nanotube-graphene composites
Terahertz medical imaging
Performing in vivo studies of the THz properties of skin is a major initiative in the group, supported by the EPSRC Terabotics Programme GrantLink opens in a new window. We develop robust measurement protocols and test them on a statistically significant number of patients, cross-checking with other methods.

Recent papers:
The 2023 terahertz science and technology roadmap
Quantitative evaluation of transdermal drug delivery patches on human skin with in vivo THz-TDS
Terahertz (THz) biophotonics technology: Instrumentation, techniques, and biomedical applications
Semiconductors and Energy materials
A major strand of our research is to improve our knowledge of the fundamental science underpinning new semiconductor materials, such as metal-halide perovskites, which are often attractive for photovoltaic applications.

Recent papers:
Terahertz Emission via Optical Rectification in a Metal-Free Perovskite Crystal
High-bandwidth perovskite photonic sources on silicon
Resolving the Ultrafast Charge Carrier Dynamics of 2D and 3D Domains within a Mixed 2D/3D Lead-Tin Perovskite
Terahertz components, methods and techniques
We develop new THz devices and integrate them into novel systems designs that can perform THz imaging and THz spectroscopy faster, and with increased capabilities (e.g. polarisation control; robot-controlled probes).

Recent papers:
Optimum Optical Designs for Diffraction-Limited Terahertz Spectroscopy and Imaging Systems Using Off-Axis Parabolic Mirrors
The 2023 terahertz science and technology roadmap
Tunable THz flat zone plate based on stretchable single-walled carbon nanotube thin film
Recent publication highlights [filter by topic: view all | highlights | THz | perovskites | nano | biomedical]
Optimum Optical Designs for Diffraction-Limited Terahertz Spectroscopy and Imaging Systems Using Off-Axis Parabolic Mirrors
N. Chopra and J. Lloyd-Hughes
J Infrared Milli Terahz Waves (Nov 2023)
Terahertz Emission via Optical Rectification in a Metal-Free Perovskite Crystal
Nathaniel P. Gallop, Dumitru Sirbu, David Walker, James Lloyd-Hughes, Pablo Docampo and Rebecca L. Milot
ACS Photonics , (October 2023)
High-bandwidth perovskite photonic sources on silicon
A. Ren, H. Wang, L. Dai, J. Xia, E. Butler-Caddle, J.A. Smith, ... S.A. Hindmarsh, A.M. Sanchez, J. Lloyd-Hughes, S. J Sweeney, ... and Wei Zhang
Nature Photonics 17, 798–805 (July 2023)
Quantitative evaluation of transdermal drug delivery patches on human skin with in vivo THz-TDS
X. Ding, G. Costa, A. I. Hernandez-Serrano, R.I. Stantchev, G. Nurumbetov, D.M. Haddleton, and E. Pickwell-MacPherson
Bio. Opt. Express 14, 1146 (Feb 2023)