Photonics concerns the generation, transport, processing and detection
of light. It underlies a large amount of industrial activity, mainly
devoted to information technology, telecommunications, environmental
monitoring, biomedical science and instrumentation.
The field has received a powerful impetus recently with the introduction
of nanoscale concepts. Moreover, organic materials now appear as key
components in photonic devices such as light-emitting diodes, integrated
lasers, or photovoltaic cells. Organic molecular systems offer unique
opportunities in nanophotonics since both top-down and bottom-up
strategies can be pursued towards the nanoscale.
This book gathers the proceedings of the NATO advanced research workshop
on "Organic Nanophotonics", held in Aix-en-Provence, France, August
25-29, 2002. It constitutes a snapshot of the state of the art in the
novel, emerging research area of nanophotonics based on organic
molecules and materials.