Polarization properties of surface plasmon polaritons at the boundary of topological insulators with the axion effect

Properties of surface plasmon polariton waves are theoretically studied in structures containing topological insulators with the axion effect. The effect of axion properties on dispersion, localization, and polarization of plasmon polaritons is analyzed. A possibility of determining the axion effect from the variation in the plasmon-polariton polarization is shown, and conditions for enhancement of polarization effects are revealed in waveguide structures of the dielectric?metal?dielectric type.     

Resonant three-dimensional photonic crystals

The theory of the exciton-polariton band structure of a resonant three-dimensional photonic crystal is developed for an arbitrary dielectric contrast and an arbitrary effective mass of an exciton excited in a composite material. The calculation is performed for a periodic array of semiconductor balls embedded in a dielectric matrix. The position of the lower polariton dispersion branches is shown to depend monotonically on the exciton effective mass and to be governed by the interaction of light with the first several states of a mechanical exciton quantum-confined within each ball. The effect of excitonic states on the band gap of a photonic crystal in the [001] direction is considered analytically in terms of a two-wave approximation.     

Applications of the expanded basis method to study the properties of photonic crystals with frequency-dependent dielectric functions and dielectric losses

Band structures of two-dimensional photonic crystals (PCs) made of polar material with frequency-dependent dielectric constant are calculated by using an expanded basis method. The effect of the polariton gap (PG) of polar material on the photonic band gaps (PBGs) is explored. It is found that the PBGs are significantly modified near the PG, where the abrupt change of the dielectric constant appears. The feature of electromagnetic (EM) field is revealed when the frequency is located in the flat band. We display the equifrequency-surface configuration of the localized field and the spacial distributions of field. We observe the existence of several equi-ω curves for a specified frequency and the localized field distribution exhibiting various different patterns, dependent of the mode index. We also study the influence of the dielectric losses of the polar material on dispersion and find that the change of the real part of the Bloch wave vector is crucially related to the real part of the dielectric constant and the attenuated length is determined by its imaginary part.     

Fast electron beam–plasma interaction in single-walled carbon nanotubes

A theoretical study on the plasmon-polariton modes coupled with a fast electron beam inside a metallic single-walled carbon nanotube is presented. The Maxwell’s equations coupled with a linearized hydrodynamic model for the nanotube’s charge oscillations are used. By considering the electron beam effects, general expression of dispersion relation of electromagnetic modes on nanotube’s surface is obtained. It is shown numerically that by considering the electron beam effects, the polariton frequency shifts to lower values.     

Magneto-phonon polaritons in two-dimension antiferromagnetic/ion-crystalic photonic crystals

Magneto-phonon polaritons in a two-dimension photonic crystal (PC) are discussed. This PC is constructed by embedding a periodical square lattice of ionic-crystal cylinders into an antiferromagnet. The two media are dispersive, with their individual resonant frequencies near each other. We first set up an effective-medium method to obtain the effective magnetic permeability and dielectric permittivity of the PC, followed by the dispersion relations of surface and bulk polaritons. There are a number of new surface polaritons, and two new distinctive bulk polariton bands in which the negative refraction and left-handedness can appear. The numerical calculations are based on the example, FeF₂/TlBr PC.     

Radiative plasmon polaritons in multilayer structures with a two-dimensional electron gas

Two-dimensional plasmon polaritons are analyzed for a typical experimental configuration in which a layer of two-dimensional electrons with a finite mobility lies on the top of a dielectric waveguide formed by the substrate (a wafer of finite thickness). Two-dimensional plasmons couple strongly to the radiative modes of this dielectric waveguide. It is shown that, as a result of the competition between collisional and radiative processes, a family of eight quasi-stationary normal modes arises. Six of them decay carrying energy to infinity. The two remaining plasmon-polariton modes are nonradiative. One of these modes, the TM-type plasmon polariton, in the limiting case where retardation is disregarded corresponds to the conventional longitudinal two-dimensional plasmon. The other mode, the TE-type plasmon polariton, exists only for a finite thickness of the substrate. All of them are characterized by different dispersion relations of the complex frequency ω(q) = Reω + iImω and differ in both polarization (longitudinal and transverse) and symmetry with respect to the direction of decay (symmetric and asymmetric). The latter modes decay slowly, propagating into free space to plus or minus infinity. The conditions under which the Q factors of certain modes are arbitrarily high are found. In this case, Imω(q ₀) = 0, and dissipative losses in the two-dimensional electron gas are compensated by external sources. As a result, the reflection coefficient for a plane wave whose angle of incidence is determined by the vector q ₀ vanishes.     

Photonic Thermal Rectification with Composite Metamaterials

We demonstrate strong photonic thermal rectification effect between polar dielectrics plate and the composite metamaterials containing nonspherical polar dielectric nanoparticles with small volume fractions.Thermal rectification efficiency is found to be adjusted by the volume fractions and the nanoparticles’shape,and it can be as large as 80%when the polar dielectric nanoparticles are spherical in shape and are in the dilute limit with the volume fraction f=0.01.Physically,there exists strong electromagnetic coupling between the surface phonon polariton mode of polar dielectrics plate and the localized surface phonon polariton mode around polar dielectric nanoparticles.The results provide alternative new freedom for regulating energy flow and heat rectification efficiency in the near field,and may be helpful for design of multiparameter adjustable thermal diodes.     

Field expulsion and reconfiguration in polaritonic photonic crystals

We uncover a rich set of optical phenomena stemming from the incorporation of polar materials exhibiting transverse phonon polariton excitations into a photonic crystal structure. We identify in the frequency spectrum two regimes in which the dielectric response of the polaritonic medium can induce extreme localization of the electromagnetic energy. Our analysis of the effect of polarization and the interaction between the polariton and photonic band gaps on the Bloch states leads to a pair of mechanisms for sensitive frequency-controlled relocation and/or reconfiguration of the fields.     

Strong light‐matter coupling between a molecular vibrational mode in a PMMA film and a low‐loss mid‐IR microcavity

Microcavity devices exhibiting strong light‐matter coupling in the mid‐infrared spectral range offer the potential to explore exciting open physical questions pertaining to energy transfer between heat and light and can lead to a new generation of efficient wavelength tunable mid‐infrared sources of coherent light based on polariton Bose‐Einstein Condensation. Vibrational transitions of organic molecules, which often have strong absorption peaks in the infrared and considerably narrower linewidths than organic excitonic resonances, can generate polaritonic states in the mid‐infrared spectral range using microcavity devices. Here, narrow linewidth polaritonic resonances are exhibited in the mid‐infrared by coupling the carbonyl stretch vibrational transition of a polymethyl methacrylate film to the photonic resonance of a low optical‐loss mid‐infrared microcavity, which consisted of two Ge/ZnS dielectric Bragg reflectors. Rabi‐splitting of 14.3 meV is observed, with a 4.4 meV polariton linewidth at anti‐crossing. The large Rabi‐splitting relative to linewidth indicates efficient impedance‐matching between the bare vibrational and photonic states, and suggests molecular‐vibration polaritons incorporated in dielectric microcavities can be an enabling step towards realizing polariton optical switching and polariton condensation in the mid‐infrared spectral range.     

Ultrafast interferometric measurements of plasmonic transport in photonic crystals

We present a novel time-domain experimental approach to the study of the dynamics of surface electromagnetic wave propagation in a two-dimensional photonic crystal. A surface plasmon polariton is launched by ultrafast laser pulses and propagates into a photonic crystal, the dynamics of which are measured by an interferometric cross-correlation method. Plasmon photonic stopgaps are characterized by a single measurement. The dispersion around the stopgaps is determined with a series of angle-resolved measurements.     

Back-propagating surface polaritons of a one-dimensional photonic crystal containing single negative metamaterials

The existence of the surface polaritons at the interface separating a semi-infinite uniform left-handed metamaterial and a one-dimensional photonic crystal composed of alternating layers of two kinds of single-negative materials is theoretically investigated. The dispersion characteristics of the surface polaritons are analyzed and demonstrated that in the presence of metamaterial, the surface polaritons are sensitive to light polarization, so that there exist only backward TM-polarized (or TE-polarized) kind of the surface polaritons depending on the ratio of the thicknesses of the two periodic stacking layers. The existence regions of the surface polariton modes are determined for both TM-polarized and TE-polarized surface polariton modes.     

The effect of the nonparabolicity of the free carriers dispersion law on the propagation of surface polaritons in a semiconductor-metal structure

The results of a study on the influence of the nonparabolicity of the free carriers dispersion law on the propagation of surface polaritons (SPs) located near the interface between an n-type semiconductor and a metal arc reported. The semiconductor plasma is assumed to be warm and nonisothermal. The nonparabolicity of the electron dispersion law has two effects. The first one is associated with nonlinear self-interaction of the SPs. The nonlinear dispersion equation and the nonlinear Schrodinger equation for the amplitude of the SP envelope are obtained. The nonlinear evolution of the SP is studied on the base of the above mentioned equations. The second effect results in third harmonics generation. Analysis shows that these third harmonics may appear as a pure surface polariton, a pseudosurface polariton, or a superposition of a volume wave and a SP depending on the wave frequency, electron density and lattice dielectric constant.     

Dispersion relation of LT mixed mode polaritons

Simple equations are presented for polariton dispersion relations in anisotropic medium for an arbitrary direction of wave vector, where LT (longitudinal-transverse) mixed modes occur in general. The use of the polarizability tensor defined for pure external (not for the total) field is essentially important to obtain the simple result. The relation between all the tensor components of the polarizability and dielectric function is also explicitly given. The result can be used for any elementary excitations relevant to dielectric function. In the case of multi-component excitons of LT mixed mode character, the dispersion equation is rewritten in a matrix form, which is useful to obtain the allowed values of polariton wave vector for a given frequency.     

Waveguide-plasmon polaritons: strong coupling of photonic and electronic resonances in a metallic photonic crystal slab

Strong coupling between localized particle plasmons and optical waveguide modes leads to drastic modifications of the transmission of metallic nanowire arrays on dielectric waveguide substrates. The coupling results in the formation of a new quasiparticle, a waveguide-plasmon polariton, with a surprisingly large Rabi splitting of 250 meV. Our experimental results agree well with scattering-matrix calculations and a polariton-type model. The effect provides an efficient tool for photonic band gap engineering in metallodielectric photonic crystal slabs. We show evidence of a full one-dimensional photonic band gap in resonant plasmon-waveguide structures.     

Analysis of surface and guided wave plasmon polariton modes in insulator–metal–insulator planar plasmonic waveguides

Theoretical and experimental study of the surface plasmon–polariton and guided wave plasmon polariton modes is presented for the Sapphire/Ag/Polycarbonate/Air structure. Theoretical results are obtained by solving complex multilayer eigenvalue equations as well as the reflectivity equation for this structure. It is proposed that the mode attenuation can be significantly reduced by inserting a low index dielectric buffer between the metal and the guiding dielectric layer. The dispersion and attenuation curves are generated. Both the surface plasmon and guided wave plasmon polariton modes are studied experimentally. The experimental values of the effective refractive indices agree well with the theoretical values. The electric field profiles are generated and used to examine the nature of modes. After optimization of various parameters the condition for low loss single mode guiding is obtained for the proposed structure. Effect of metal thickness on surface plasmon mode is also discussed. It is inferred that in a properly optimized plasmonic waveguide, the losses can be reduced by a factor of 4.     

The dispersion curves of the excitonic polariton and the excitonic molecule in CdS and their interaction

By means of the two-photon Raman scattering (TPRS) process we investigate the dispersion relation of the excitonic polariton in the energetic regions around the A-exciton resonance and near half the bi-exciton energy in CdS. In a high resolution experiment an anomaly is observed due to two-polariton transitions to the excitonic molecule (biexciton) state. This anomaly is explained on the basis of a previously developed theory of the intensity dependent dielectric function. Excitation spectroscopy of the TPRS-lines yields information about the damping of the excitonic molecule. Luminescence assisted two polariton spectroscopy (LATS) experiments are performed to determine the eigenenergy of the biexciton as well as its dispersion curve.     

Dielectric waveguide model for guided surface polaritons

Although surface polariton modes supported by finite-width interfaces can guide electromagnetic energy in three dimensions, we demonstrate for the first time to our knowledge that such modes can be modeled by the solutions of two-dimensional dielectric slab waveguides. An approximate model is derived by a ray-optics interpretation that is consistent with previous investigations of the Fresnel relations for surface polariton reflection. This model is compared with modal solutions for metal stripe waveguides obtained by full vectorial magnetic-field finite-difference methods. The field-symmetric modes of such waveguides are shown to be in agreement with the normalized dispersion relationship for analogous TE modes of dielectric slab waveguides. Lateral confinement is investigated by comparison of power-density profiles, and implications for the diffraction limit of guided polariton modes are discussed.     

Effects of a constant electric field in the polariton spectrum of a 1D magnetic photonic crystal with antiferromagnetic interlayer exchange

The effect of a constant external electric field was analyzed and the contribution of the volume fractions of magnetic and nonmagnetic phases to the polariton dynamics of a one-dimensional easy-axial fer-romagnet-nonmagnetic dielectric photonic crystal with a magnetic compensation point was determined using the effective medium method.     

Femtosecond surface plasmon pulse propagation

We analyze ultrafast surface plasmon-polariton pulse reshaping effects and nonlinear propagation modes for metal/dielectric plasmon waveguides. It is found that group velocity and loss dispersion effects can substantially modify both pulse duration (broadening/narrowing) and intensity decay (acceleration/retardation) by as much as several tens of percentage points in the short-pulse regime and that metallic nonlinearities alone may support soliton, self-focusing, and self-compressing modes.     

Extremely long range surface polaritons in a thin corrugated metal film

The essential increase of propagation length of a long range surface plasmon polariton in a thin symmetrically corrugated plasmon-carrying film embedded in a dielectric medium is theoretically predicted. The calculations are based on the differential formalism for the system of Maxwells equations where the solution for electromagnetic fields is written as a superposition of partial plane waves in the presentation of a curvilinear non-orthogonal coordinates system for simplifying the boundary conditions. The spectral and angular dependencies of p-polarized light transmittance/reflectance demonstrate that the in-plane shift between both profiles of corrugated film drastically changes the surface plasmon polariton propagation length from minimum of the asymmetric profile to maximum of the symmetric one. The obtained results were qualitatively explained using the model of weakly coupled photonic wells.