Magneto-optical transmission in magnetic nanoparticle suspensions for different optical applications: a review

Abstract

Abstract Recently, the magneto-optical properties of magnetic nanofluids have received increasing attention due to their wide range of applications in solar energy conversions and also as smart fluids in tunable photonic devices, optical switch, optical fiber sensor, etc. This review discusses up-to-date developments in magneto-optical transmission in ferrofluids. The magnetic nanoparticle would undergo various structural transitions under external magnetic field, including chainlike formation and lateral coalescence which, in turn, leads to various interesting light transmission phenomena. It is thus possible to alter the properties of the transmitted light by adjusting the orientation of the magnetic field with respect to that of the incident light. The polarization direction of light has a negligible effect on the magneto-optical transmission while light passing along the magnetic field. However, it makes a significant difference for light normal to the field direction. These characteristics are comprehensively reviewed, and their potential applications are presented. It is supposed to provide a general view on the research trends, existing problems and future work for the investigation of magneto-optical transmission in magnetic nanofluids.