Subwavelength propagation and localization of light using surface plasmons: A brief perspective

Surface plasmons at the metal–dielectric interface have emerged as an important candidate to propagate and localize light at subwavelength scales. By tailoring the geometry and arrangement of metallic nanoarchitectures, propagating and localized surface plasmons can be obtained. In this brief perspective, we discuss: (1) how surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) and localized surface plasmons (LSPs) can be optically excited in metallic nanoarchitectures by employing a variety of optical microscopy methods; (2) how SPPs and LSPs in plasmonic nanowires can be utilized for subwavelength polarization optics and single-molecule surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) on a photonic chip; and (3) how individual plasmonic nanowire can be optically manipulated using optical trapping methods.     

扫描近场光学显微镜的光耦合偶极子模型

为了研究扫描近场光学显微镜中探针和粗糙样品表面的耦合相互作用,提出了一种光耦合偶极子模型.在该模型中,探针和样品突起都由光极化偶极子表示,在准静态电磁场近似的情况下样品表面的诱导极化效应由影像偶极子表示,应用偶极子辐射理论可以得到系统的自洽场方程.此模型提供了一种直观分析扫描近场光学显微镜中探针和样品相互作用机理的方法.在此基础上,进一步讨论了金属样品的近场成像特点和其特有的局域光学共振现象.数值结果表明：不同于一般的介质样品,金属样品的近场图像与入射光频率直接相关,改变入射光的频率,获得的样品近场图像的形状和对比度都会发生变化.特别是当入射光频率处于样品极化共振范围内时,金属纳米粒子的极化率会出现光极化共振,这样就可以获得样品粒子的最大有效尺寸,为提高系统的分辨率提供了一条重要途径.     

电子束诱导的纳米颗粒表面等离激元激发模拟

本文基于离散偶极子近似方法,发展出了一套计算任意纳米结构材料的电子能量损失谱的方法和程序. 模拟了在单个银纳米颗粒附近不同入射位置下的电子能量损失谱,其计算结果与实验能谱非常吻合. 虽然离散偶极子近似法早在很多年前就已经被应用到处理外加光场激发的情形,但这套方法才真正提供了一个研究电子束诱导金属纳米颗粒局域表面等离激元激发的计算工具.     

Polarization properties of single metallic nano-spheroid using 3-D boundary element method

The polarization properties of an individual metallic nano-spheroid illuminated by the linearly polarized light are studied based on 3-D boundary element method. The scattering cross sections and the local field enhancements are investigated in detail when the incident lights are with different polarization directions and wavelengths. The numerical results show that the polarization direction of the incident light can strongly influence the scattering spectrum and the enhanced field distribution of the metallic nano-spheroid. The incident light with polarization direction parallel or perpendicular to the major axis can inspire longitudinal or transversal local surface plasmons resonance modes, respectively. The electric field enhancement and distribution around the nano-spheroid can be conveniently tuned by carefully selecting the polarization direction and wavelength of the incident light.     

Light scattering from anisotropic particles: propagation,localization, and nonlinearity

Plasmon resonances and extraordinary light scatterings of a nanoparticle with radial anisotropy are studied and summarized. The coupling between localized surface plasmons and far‐field quantities is discussed. It is found that the presence of radial anisotropy redistributes the localization of plasmons and also results in certain novel phenomena in the far zone, which provide the possibility of scattering control such as electromagnetic transparency, enhanced scattering cross section, etc. The nonlinear optical response is explored in order to yield deeper physical insight into the interaction between plasmons and incident light.     

Phase propagation of localized surface plasmons probed by time-resolved photoemission electron microscopy

In combining time-resolved two-photon photoemission (TR-2PPE) and photoemission electron microscopy (PEEM) the ultra-fast dynamics of collective electron excitations in silver nanoparticles (localized surface plasmons – LSPs) is probed at fs and nm resolution. Here we demonstrate that the sampling of the LSP dynamics by means of time-resolved PEEM enables detailed insight into the propagation processes associated with these excitations. In phase-integrated as well as phase-resolved measurements we observe spatio-temporal modulations in the photoemission yield from a single nanoparticle. These modulations are assigned to local variations in the electric near field as a result of the phase propagation of a plasmonic excitation through the particle. Furthermore, the control of the phase between the fs pump and probe laser pulses used for these experiments can be utilized for an external manipulation of the nanoscale electric near-field distribution at these particles. PACS 78.47.+p; 78.67.Bf; 79.60.-i; 73.20.Mf     

Tunable optical force on nonlinear graphene-wrapped nanoparticles

We investigate the optical force on the nonlinear graphene-wrapped nanoparticle by using the Maxwell's stress tensor together with the mean-field methods. We demonstrate the bistable optical force on the present nanoparticle which is due to the strong localized electric field in graphene at the plasmonic resonant wavelength. To further investigate the critical incident electric field for the up and down transistors, we find that the required switching-up threshold field is highly dependent on the permittivity of the nanoparticle, surrounding medium and Fermi energy instead of the relaxation time, with which one could achieve tunable nonlinear optical force on such graphene-wrapped nanoparticle to satisfy some practical purpose. Our results might supply an alternative way to manipulate nanoparticles and give the guideline for achieving the optical switching in nanoscale.     

Light focusing in linear arranged symmetric nanoparticle trimer on metal film system

Benefiting from the induced image charge on film surface,the nanoparticle aggregating on metal exhibits interesting optical properties.In this work,a linear metal nanoparticle trimer on metal film system has been investigated to explore the novel optical phenomenon.Both the electric field and surface charge distributions demonstrate the light is focused on film greatly by the nanoparticles at two sides,which could be strongly modulated by the wavelength of incident light.And the influence of nanoparticle in middle on this light focusing ability has also been studied here,which is explained by the plasmon hybridization theory.Our finding about light focusing in nanoparticle aggregating on metal film not only enlarges the novel phenomenon of surface plasmon but also has great application prospect in the field of surface-enhanced spectra,surface catalysis,solar cells,water splitting,etc.     

Tunable local surface plasmon resonance in liquid-crystal-coated Ag nanoparticles

The far-field and near-field properties of a spherical nematic liquid crystal (NLC) coated metal nanoparticle (NPs) have been investigated in an external field, basing on the quasistatic theory. The resonant wavelength is tunable by varying metallic material of core, anisotropy extent and thickness of liquid crystals (LCs). The field enhancement is along the incident polarization near the outer surface of the shell. The direction of field is reverse in the inner surface comparing with the one if outer shell. In contrast to isotropy shell, the surface plasmon resonance (SPR) shows an obvious red shift and field enhancement near outer surface of the shell always is stronger.     

金属纳米球-纳米圆盘结构中表面等离激元共振模式的电磁场增强研究

表面等离激元自诞生以来已有一百多年的历史,并逐渐形成了一门新的学科——表面等离激元光子学.位于金属纳米结构中的局域表面等离激元可产生非常显著的近表面电场增强,并成功应用于诸多研究领域当中,而对局域表面等离激元与外界入射光中磁场的相互作用的研究则相对较少.该研究在前期已有的研究基础之上模拟计算了金属纳米球-纳米圆盘结构间...     

Local field distribution and configuration of CO molecules adsorbed on the nanostructure platinum surface

This paper shows that the local electric field distribution near the nanostructure metallic surface is obtained by solving the Laplace equation, and furthermore, the configuration of CO molecules adsorbed on a Pt nanoparticle surface is obtained by using Monte Carlo simulation. It is found that the uneven local electric field distribution induced by the nanostructure surface can influence the configuration of carbon monoxide (CO) molecules by a force, which drags the adsorbates to the poles of the nanoparticles. This result, together with our results obtained before, may explain the experimental results that the nanostructure metallic surface can lead to abnormal phenomena such as anti-absorption infrared effects.     

Comment on ‘Resonant electric field enhancement in the vicinity of a bare metallic grating exposed to s-polarized light by A.A. Maradudin and A. Wirgin’: Anomalous light absorption by lamellar metallic gratings

Anomalously high light absorption by deep lamellar metallic gratings in TE polarization (electric field vector parallel to the grooves) is found numerically. When the grating period is small enough to support only the specular reflected order, almost the entire amount of incident light can be absorbed, provided that the grooves are deep and the lamellae are thin.     

微带线电路板端口对入射电磁波的电压响应

 在考虑电磁波与电子设备的耦合时,屏蔽腔中电路板端口对入射电磁波的电压响应是一个重要的参数。分别计算了微带线电路板端口在自由空间和在屏蔽腔内这两种不同情况下的电压响应,以及屏蔽腔内耦合系数的变化。对所得结果进行了比较分析,结果表明,在自由空间时,响应电压频谱为连续的变化,而在屏蔽腔内时,只有在本征模的频率处才会激励起端口电压,频谱分布变为分立的。当屏蔽腔上开有窄缝时,窄缝方向和入射场极化方向对激励起来的端口电压都有影响,而电场极化方向和微带线方向之间的关系,是决定端口激励电压大小的关键因素。     

微带线电路板端口对入射电磁波的电压响应

在考虑电磁波与电子设备的耦合时,屏蔽腔中电路板端口对入射电磁波的电压响应是一个重要的参数。分别计算了微带线电路板端口在自由空间和在屏蔽腔内这两种不同情况下的电压响应,以及屏蔽腔内耦合系数的变化。对所得结果进行了比较分析,结果表明,在自由空间时,响应电压频谱为连续的变化,而在屏蔽腔内时,只有在本征模的频率处才会激励起端口电压,频谱分布变为分立的。当屏蔽腔上开有窄缝时,窄缝方向和入射场极化方向对激励起来的端口电压都有影响,而电场极化方向和微带线方向之间的关系,是决定端口激励电压大小的关键因素。     

熔石英和磷酸盐钕玻璃表面三角形微裂纹对入射光的散射分析

采用时域有限差分方法(FDTD)模拟了石英玻璃和掺钕磷酸盐激光玻璃表面三角形微裂纹对入射光调制后的分布。TE模式光波入射,最大调制电场幅值出现在玻璃体内部;TM模式光波入射,最大调制电场幅值则发生在裂纹的缝隙中。两种入射光模式下,后表面的调制电场幅值增大倍数在相同裂纹条件下均比前表面大。TE模式入射时,当入射光在裂纹和玻璃表面相继发生全反射时,得到的调制电场幅值最大;后表面最大调制电场幅值随着裂纹在界面投影长度的增加、开口宽度的变大及裂纹深度的增加而分别增大。     

Ultrathin plasmonic metamaterial for spoof localized surface plasmons

The multipolar spoof localized surface plasmons (LSPs) on a planar textured metallic disk are proposed and experimentally demonstrated at microwave frequencies. Based on ultrathin metal film printed on a thin dielectric substrate, the designed plasmonic metamaterial clearly shows multipolar plasmonic resonances, including the dipole, quadrupole, hexapole, octopole, decapole, dodecapole, and quattuordecpole modes. Both numerical simulations and experiments are in good agreement. It is shown that the spoof LSP resonances are sensitive to the disk's geometry and local dielectric environments. Hence, the ultrathin textured metallic disk may be used as plasmonic sensors and find potential applications in the microwave and terahertz frequencies.     

The quantum yield of a metallic nanoantenna

The local-field factor and quantum yield of a metallic nanoantenna are studied to identify its enhancement of an emitter’s emission within the feed gap. For simplicity, a two-dimensional model, an Au nanoantenna with an emitter at the center, is studied. The electromagnetic field is solved by a set of surface integral equations. An incident plane wave irradiating the nanoantenna is modeled to simulate the excitation of the emitter by illuminating light, and the local-field factor is used to evaluate the amplification of the electric field in the feed gap of the metallic nanoantenna. Once the emitter becomes excited, a model of an electric dipole interacting with the nanoantenna is used for calculating the radiative and nonradiative powers to obtain the quantum yield of the excited emitter in the presence of the nanoantenna. The numerical results of quantum yield indicate that an Au nanoantenna acts as a low-pass filter for the emission of the emitter. Moreover, the smaller the feed gap, the larger the local-field factor but the less the quantum yield. PACS 78.67.-n; 33.80.-b; 33.50.-j; 42.30.-d; 42.50.Hz; 81.07.Pr     

Circularly polarized localized near-field radiation at the nanoscale

Diffraction-limited circularly polarized electromagnetic radiation has been widely used in the literature for various applications at both optical and microwave frequencies. With advances in nanotechnology, emerging plasmonic nano-optical applications, such as all-optical magnetic recording, require circularly polarized electromagnetic radiation beyond the diffraction limit. In this study, a plasmonic cross-dipole nano-antenna is investigated to obtain a circularly polarized near-field optical spot with a size smaller than the diffraction limit of light. A cross-dipole nano-antenna is composed of four metallic nano-rods placed at a perpendicular orientation with respect to each other. The performance of the nano-antenna is investigated through numerical simulations. In the first part of this study, the nano-antenna is illuminated with a diffraction-limited circularly polarized radiation. An optimal antenna geometry is specified to obtain an intense optical spot that satisfies two necessary conditions for circular polarization: a phase difference of 90° and a unit amplitude ratio between the electric field components in the vicinity of the antenna gap. In the second part of this study, the nano-antenna is illuminated with diffraction-limited linearly polarized radiation. It is shown that the phase difference between the electric field components can be adjusted by selecting either different antenna lengths or different gap distances in the vertical and horizontal directions. Due to the relatively short wavelength of surface plasma waves on the antenna, it is demonstrated that the phase difference can be sufficient to obtain circularly polarized light. An optimal physical configuration for the nano-antenna and the polarization angle of the incident light is identified to obtain a circularly polarized optical spot beyond the diffraction limit from diffraction-limited linearly polarized radiation.     

Control the polarization state of light with symmetry-broken metallic metastructures

Controlling the polarization state, the transmission direction, the amplitude and the phase of light in a very limited space is essential for the development of on-chip photonics. Over the past decades, numerous sub-wavelength metallic microstructures have been proposed and fabricated to fulfill these demands. In this article, we review our efforts in achieving negative refractive index, controlling the polarization state, and tuning the amplitude of light with two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) microstructures. We designed an assembly of stacked metallic U-shaped resonators that allow achieving negative refraction for pure magnetic and electric responses respectively at the same frequency by selecting the polarization of incident light. Based on this, we tune the permittivity and permeability of the structure, and achieve negative refractive index. Further, by control the excitation and radiation of surface electric current on a number of 2D and 3D asymmetric metallic metastructures, we are able to control the polarization state of light. It is also demonstrated that with a stereostructured metal film, the whole metal surfaces can be used to construct either polarization-sensitive or polarization-insensitive prefect absorbers, with the advantage of efficient heat dissipation and electric conductivity. Our practice shows that metamaterials, including metasurface, indeed help to master light in nanoscale, and are promising in the development of new generation of photonics.     

Magnetic field effects on the optical response of a film with a rough surface: Voigt geometry

Using the Rayleigh–Fano modal approach we investigate the optical response of a metallic film with a deterministic rough surface taking into account an external magnetic field in the Voigt geometry. For P-polarized light incident onto a deterministic rough surface we calculate the specular and first-order scattered field amplitudes. We also explore the nonreciprocity property and the coupling of the incident light with the surface magnetoplasmons. It is obtained that the magnetic field strength may increase the gap between two minima produced by the splitting of the minima of the zero-field specular reflection. The dispersion relations of the surface magnetoplasmons predict the possible experimental excitation and detection of these modes.