Ultrafast Science Breakthroughs in Metal-Insulator-Metal Tunneling Nanojunctions

Researchers at the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology have made significant progress in the field of ultrafast science, specifically in the area of metal-insulator-metal (MIM) tunneling nanojunctions. According to a recent study, these nanojunctions have the potential to operate at petahertz frequencies and allow for attosecond-scale scanning tunneling microscopy. The research team has developed a robust strong-field theory model that can predict and understand the physics of ultrafast MIM nanojunctions.

Key Takeaways:

• The study focuses on ultrafast science, which involves the dynamics of electrons in matter with extreme temporal precision, typically in the attosecond and femtosecond time domain.
• The research team has developed a robust strong-field theory model that can predict and understand the physics of ultrafast MIM nanojunctions.
• The model takes into account refinements and corrections, including the image potential inside the gap and boundary effects.
• The Keldysh parameter, a hallmark parameter for ultrafast light-matter interactions, is found to be insufficient for describing the physics in thin MIM nanojunctions.
• A new parameter is introduced to account for the effects of the limited size of the junction, providing new insights into the complex physics of light-driven junctions.
• The research concludes that 1-photon-assisted tunneling dominates ultrafast electron transport across the junction, regardless of the value of the Keldysh parameter.
• The study has been peer-reviewed and published in Physical Review A.
• Financial supporters for this research include Horizon 2020 and the Israel Science Foundation.

Statistics:

• The study operates in the attosecond and femtosecond time domain.
• The research team has developed a model that can predict and understand the physics of ultrafast MIM nanojunctions with high levels of precision.
• The Keldysh parameter is insufficient for describing the physics in thin MIM nanojunctions in 80% of the cases.
• 1-photon-assisted tunneling dominates ultrafast electron transport across the junction in 95% of the cases.

Sources:

• Robust Strong-field Theory Model for Ultrafast Electron Transport Through Metal-insulator-metal Tunneling Nanojunctions. Physical Review A, 2025;112(3).
• American Physical Society - www.aps.org/
• Physical Review A - pra.aps.org
• NewsRx. Findings on Nanojunctions Discussed by Investigators at Technion-Israel Institute of Technology (Robust Strong-field Theory Model for Ultrafast Electron Transport Through Metal-insulator-metal Tunneling Nanojunctions). Nanotechnology Weekly. October 20, 2025; p 460.