Gap surface plasmon polaritons enhanced by a plasmonic lens

We numerically investigate the optical field enhancement based on gap surface plasmon polaritons (GSPPs) that are enhanced by propagating surface waves launched by a circular slit at a metal-dielectric interface. The optical field enhancement originates not only from multiple scattering and coupling of GSPPs in the spacer region between two metal layers but also from propagating surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) launched by a circular plasmonic lens. We find that the combination of the GSPPs and the propagating SPPs launched by the plasmonic lens can achieve extremely strong field confinement, and we find that the surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) enhancement factor can be up to 10(15) at the tip of the equilateral triangular nanostructures. The structure proposed here is expected to find promising applications where strong field enhancement is desired, such as optical sensing with the SERS effect.     

Beam focusing through a tapered subwavelength aperture surrounded by dielectric surface gratings

A novel plasmonic nanolens formed by a tapered subwavelength metal slit surrounded by surface dielectric gratings is proposed and demonstrated numerically. By patterning surface corrugations on the output surface, the beam can be focused, by regulating the aperture, the focal length can be controlled effectively. Numerical simulations using Finite-Difference Time-Domain (FDTD) method coupled with anisotropic perfectly matched layer (APML) boundary conditions verify that the proposed metallic lens can focus the radiation on the scale of a wavelength below the substrate and the method is effective for the design of nano-optical devices such as optical microprobes.     

Systematic study on visible light collimation by nanostructured slits in the metal surface

We present a systematic experimental investigation on visible light collimation by a nanostructured slit flanked with a pair of periodic array of grooves in gold thin film. A wide variety of aspects are considered, such as the polarization state, the transport path of incident light, the groove--groove spacing, the groove width and depth. Our results clearly show that the relationship between the collimation wavelength and the periodicity of the slit-groove structure accords well with the surface plasmon dispersion model proposed by previous researchers. Furthermore, the surface plasmon wave phase retardation effect induced by the surface structure is also verified via the measurement for samples with different groove widths and depths. These results indicate that the detailed geometry of the groove structure has obvious impacts on the collimation effect and the angular distribution of the diffraction light in the subwavelength plasmonic system.     

介质填充型二次柱面等离激元透镜的亚波长聚焦

本文提出了一种亚波长聚焦的表面等离激元透镜,该透镜由二氧化硅填充金膜纳米狭缝阵列组成,金膜的出射表面为二次柱面.表面等离激元在狭缝入口处激发并沿狭缝传输,在狭缝出口转变为带有一定相位延迟的自由空间传播的光波.通过对透镜结构参数的控制,可以调节来自各狭缝的光波间的相对相位,使它们在设定的焦点处进行相长干涉,从而实现聚焦效果.本文用时域有限差分法数值计算了二次柱面等离激元透镜的聚焦特性.数值模拟结果表明,所设计的孔径为2μm的透镜,能够实现微米级焦距和焦深、且焦斑半高宽低至0.4倍波长的亚波长聚焦.该表面等离激元透镜结构简单紧凑、尺寸小,有利于光子器件的集成,在集成光学、光学微操纵、超分辩率成像、光存储、生化传感等相关领域有潜在的应用价值.     

Focusing surface plasmons on Er3+ ions through gold planar plasmonic lenses

Gold plasmonic lenses consisting of a planar concentric rings-groove with different periods were milled with a focused gallium ion beam on a gold thin film deposited onto an Er³⁺-doped tellurite glass. The plasmonic lenses were vertically illuminated with an argon ion laser highly focused by means of a 50× objective lens. The focusing mechanism of the plasmonic lenses is explained using a coherent interference model of surface plasmon-polariton (SPP) generation on the circular grating due to the incident field. As a result, phase modulation can be accomplished by the groove gap, similar to a nanoslit array with different widths. This focusing allows a high confinement of SPPs that can excite the Er³⁺ ions of the glass. The Er³⁺ luminescence spectra were measured in the far-field (500?C750?nm wavelength range), where we could verify the excitation yield via the plasmonic lens on the Er³⁺ ions. We analyze the influence of the geometrical parameters on the luminescence spectra. The variation of these parameters results in considerable changes of the luminescence spectra.     

Estimation of field intensity distribution and its wavelength dependence in a flat focusing nanolens

The application of surface plasmonic effects in engineering of a wavelength-tunable silver nanolens for the beam focusing is considered. Its design includes flat nanoslits for phase and amplitude modulation of light beams. Initially its operation has been checked for light beams with a wavelength of about 1.3 µm by observing the variance in the focal point distance with respect to alterations in structural parameters, such as the metal thickness, slit width, and pitch. The near-field intensity with respect to deviation in the focal point and deflection from the mean power for an optical 100-nm window is estimated for other popular optical communication wavelengths (0.85 and 1.55 µm) using the finite-difference timedomain method with boundary conditions for anisotropic, perfectly matched layers. The novelty in the proposed lens is its capability to function satisfactorily for a tolerance range of ±2.5% in the design parameters for the wavelengths under consideration.     

Transmission enhancement through a metallic slit assisted by low scattering loss corrugations

A method to obtain large transmission of light through a nano-metallic slit bordered by nano trenches is demonstrated theoretically. The model is based on the composite diffraction of evanescent waves (CDEW) theory and utilizes a single trench design to effectively convert free-space light into surface plasma waves (SPW). The effectiveness is confirmed by the finite difference time domain (FDTD) method. The SPW loss due to scattering by the trench is also analyzed. It is found that when the width of the trench is slightly larger than λ_spp/2, the SPW becomes localized and resonates at the bottom edges performing as a dipole-like radiation source. At this time, the propagating SPW suffers from high scattering loss. Trenches can be used to enhance the transmission of a nano-scaled slit while simultaneously preserving high conversion efficiency and low scattering loss. A nano-scaled slit bordered by 10 pairs of trenches can be enhanced by a factor as high as 16. It is determined that a device designed to have a large clear aperture of 15 μm would have an advantage in terms of alignment.     

Plasmonic splitter based on the metal-insulator-metal waveguide with periodic grooves

In this paper, we have proposed a plasmonic splitter which is composed of a subwavelength slit and two different metal-insulator-metal (MIM) waveguides with periodic grooves. The slit is used to excite surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) at certain wavelengths. By setting the SPPs resonance wavelengths of the slit as the Bragg wavelengths of MIM waveguides, the SPPs of different wavelengths are able to be confined and guided in the two different MIM waveguides. The numerical results of two-dimensional finite difference time domain (2D-FDTD) demonstrate that our proposed structure is capable of splitting light into two MIM waveguides.     

Tunable On‐Chip Sources with Aperiodic Metasurface

Surface plasmons show tremendous capability in integrated communication, quantum computing and sensing. Excitations and manipulations of surface plasmons are essential in developing integrated photonic devices. Here, a systematic study of tunable emission of surface plasmons with an eightfold quasicrystal metasurface, which acts as an on‐chip source, is presented. It is shown that the quasicrystal structure can switch on or off the surface plasmons propagation channels in the desired direction. Meanwhile, such a quasicrystal structure can be polarization‐dependent or polarization‐independent based on different constituent slit pairs. The proposed quasicrystal design provides more freedom for steering surface plasmons in the launching process. Thus, it may significantly simplify the design and fabrication of integrated plasmonic devices.     

狭缝衍射中的偏振效应

在狭缝的夫琅和费衍射中,由振动平行和垂直于缝边的偏振光的衍射条纹得到的缝宽值不同。本文介绍这种偏振效应的实验结果,并用边界衍射波对其物理原因进行分析,理论与实验结果符合很好。 关键词：     

Bidirectional surface wave splitter at visible frequencies

We experimentally demonstrate a metal-film bidirectional surface wave splitter for guiding light at two visible wavelengths in opposite directions. Two nanoscale gratings were patterned on opposite sides of a subwavelength slit. The metallic surface grating structures were tailored geometrically to have different plasmonic bandgaps, enabling each grating to guide light of one wavelength and prohibit propagation at the other wavelength. The locations of the bandgaps were experimentally confirmed by interferometric measurements. Based on these design principles, a green-red bidirectional surface wave splitter is demonstrated, and the observed optical properties are shown to agree with theoretical predictions.     

Tunable terahertz plasmonic planar lens based on InSb micro-slit array

Optical Review - A plasmonic planar lens operating at terahertz (THz) region based on InSb micro-slit array with varying dielectric slit width is designed and numerically investigated. Dielectric...     

等厚型平板菲涅尔透镜设计与研究

针对当前曲面菲涅尔透镜普遍存在的加工工艺复杂、面型精度难于控制、制作成本较高等问题,在研究非等厚型平板菲涅尔透镜设计方法的基础上,提出一种中心透镜为球面、外侧环带为倾斜面的等厚型平板菲涅尔透镜的设计方法,给出了具体的设计实例,并进行了建模和光学仿真,模拟结果表明:该菲涅尔透镜设计的光学效率达到90.7%。     

基于纳米天线的多通道高强度定向表面等离子体波激发

设计了一种带有纳米天线的金属微腔结构, 以实现高强度表面等离子的定向激发. 在利用双狭缝结构实现表面等离子体波定向激发的基础上, 分别结合共振增强和干涉相长原理, 在传统结构的入射端面上添加纳米天线结构, 并增加狭缝通道数, 实现了定向激发的表面等离子体波的能量增强. 基于纳米天线的多通道高强度定向表面等离子体波激发装置结构简单, 系统紧凑, 并能够有效提高定向传播的表面等离子体波的能量密度和传播距离, 其对微纳光学传输和高密度光学集成领域等方面的研究具有重要意义.     

基于金属狭缝阵列的各向异性偏振分束器

在金属-电介质结构的基础上提出了一种基于金属狭缝阵列的各向异性偏振分束器,并采用有限元法研究了横磁(TM)和横电(TE)偏振光入射后结构所表现出的负反射和镜面反射等特性.计算结果表明,当偏振光的入射角设定在20?—70?时,入射的TM光发生强烈的负反射,而TE光的负反射很弱,并随着波长的增加而急剧下降.分析可得偏振分束光栅的理想负反射点和反射面的完美对称响应效果.通过仿真得到了理想负反射点的取值范围.结合严格耦合波法软件,计算不同偏振光入射时负反射和镜面反射条件下的反射率,其消光比高达10~6.     

Subwavelength beam manipulation via multiple-metal slits coupled by disk-shaped nanocavity

A novel plasmonic structure consisting of three nano-scaled slits coupled by nano-disk-shaped nanocavities is pro- posed to produce subwavelength focusing and beam bending at optical frequencies. The incident light passes through the metal slits in the form of surface plasmon polaritons （SPPs） ,and then scatters into radiation fields. Numerical simulations using finite-difference time-domain （FDTD） method show that the transmitted fields through the design example can gener- ate light focusing and deflection by altering the refractive index of the coupled nanocavity. The simulation results indicate that the focal spot is beyond the diffraction limit. Light impinges on the surface at an angle to the optical axis will add an extra planar phase front that interferes with the asymmetric phase front of the plasmonic lens, leading to a larger bending angle off the axial direction. The advantages of the proposed plasmonic lens are smaller device size and ease of fabrication. Such geometries offer the potential to be controlled by using nano-positior!i0g systems for applications in dynamic beam shaping and scanning on the nanoscale.     

实际光栅系统的分辨本领

本文指出了传统的光栅分辨本领Ｒ＝ｋＮ只是在光源狭缝无限细的情况下的极限值。当光源狭缝还有一定宽度Ｗ时，衍射条纹将增宽，相应最小分辨角Δθｋ将增大，实际光栅系统的分辨本领将减小。文章运用衍射理论，给出了实际光栅系统分辨本领的修正公式。在实验中，在不同光栅宽度Ｄ的情况下，用ｋ＝１级衍射条纹，当测量恰能分辨钠黄光的双线结构的光源缝宽Ｗ时，这时光栅系统的分辨本领是λ／δλ≈１０００，与修正公式计算的理论值一致。     

Method for decomposing observed line shapes resulting from multiple causes; Application to plasma charge-exchange-neutral spectra

A method is given for decomposing the widths of observed spectral lines resulting from unresolved line splitting, additive kinetic processes of different types, instrumental broadening (slit function), Doppler broadening, etc. all superimposed. The second moments are used as measures of the various widths involved. The method is not applicable if dispersion type (Lorentz) broadening occurs. Application is made to plasma charge-exchange-neutral spectra of hydrogen, deuterium, and helium.     

Density profiles and solvation force for a liquid in a slit

Computer simulations and density functional theory results are reported for a Lennard-Jones liquid in a slit or pore formed by two parallel hard walls. Both density profiles and solvation forces are computed. Two classes of calculation are performed. In the first class, a high bulk density is selected and, starting from a high temperature, the temperature is reduced until the temperature corresponding to bulk liquid—vapour coexistence is reached. For small slit widths or exceedingly large widths, the density in the slit decreases continuously until the slit is virtually empty or ‘dry’. When the slit width is somewhat larger than a molecular diameter, but still finite, the density in the slit decreases continuously as the temperature is decreased until there is an abrupt change in the density in the slit. Below this temperature, the density is smaller. Further decreases in the temperature, result in a continuous decrease in the slit density until the slit is virtually empty. In the second class, the density and temperature for bulk coexistence are chosen and the bulk density is increased. At the temperature and bulk density for bulk coexistence, the slit is virtually empty and remains so for all widths that we consider. As the bulk density is increased at constant temperature, the slit remains empty as the width is increased until some specific width is reached and then starts to fill abruptly. The agreement of the density functional and simulation results is qualitative but good.     

Beam bending through compound structure with two subwavelength metallic slits in each period

To provide a more practical, easy-to-implement method to achieve directional modulation with a plasmonic lens, beam manipulation method via compound metallic gratings with two subwavelength slits filled with different dielectrics inside each period is proposed and numerically investigated by finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method. Compared with conventional metal-grating based structures, phase retardation is tuned by the Fabry-Pérot (FP) resonant condition and light bending is achieved by constructing a carefully designed, curved phase front for the plasmonic lenses. Our designs have advantages in ease of fabrication and capability to perform in the far field. With these advantages, the designs are expected to be valuable in applications such as plasmonic circuits and photonic communication.