Long-range surface plasmon polaritons at THz frequencies in thin semiconductor layers

We present a theoretical investigation of THz long-range surface plasmon polaritons propagating on thin layers of InSb.The metallic behavior of doped semiconductors at THz frequencies allows the excitation of surface plasmon polaritons with propagation and confinement lengths that can be actively controlled.This control is achieved by acting on the free carrier density,which can be realized by changing the temperature of InSb.     

Resonant optical transmission through a one-dimensional photonic crystal adjacent to a thin metal film

We theoretically and experimentally reveal that the large resonant optical transmission (ROT) can be realized through a one-dimensional photonic crystal adjacent to a thin metal film, at a frequency in the original band-gap of the photonic crystal (PC). The influence of periodic number of PC and the thickness of the adjacent metal on the transmission frequency and intensity is studied in detail. An optimum design is given to reach the maximum transmission efficiency, meanwhile a mechanism underlining the ROT phenomenon is proposed. An effective admittance-matching theory is proposed to understand this effect and quantitatively determine the operating frequency, which matches very well with the simulated and measured results. The effects might be very useful to realize some optical filters and sensor devices since the structure is easy for mass production and is matured technically to be prepared in industry.     

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.     

Long-range surface plasmon polaritons propagating on a dielectric waveguide support

In the traditional long-range surface plasmon geometry, an ultrathin metal film is sandwiched between two layers having identical dielectric constants. Here we demonstrate the long-range surface plasmon polariton (LRSPP) properties for a new structure where a thin layer with a dielectric constant exceeding that of the surroundings is inserted within the sandwich, provided the layer thickness d satisfies the condition k(⊥)d=mπ where k(⊥) is the component of the guide wavevector perpendicular to the layer and m is an integer. The resulting plasmon modes have smaller losses and nearly the same phase velocity as the original LRSPP. This provides a strategy to support silver films having thicknesses of 10's of nanometers to create plasmonic devices for sensor applications.     

Waveguide plasmon polaritons in metal-dielectric photonic crystal slabs

The optical properties of arrays of metallic (gold) nanowires deposited on dielectric substrates are studied both theoretically and experimentally. Depending on the substrate, Wood’s anomalies of two types are observed in the transmission spectra of such planar metal-dielectric photonic crystals. One of them is diffraction (Rayleigh) anomalies associated with the opening of diffraction channels to the substrate or air with an increase in the frequency of the incident light. The other type of Wood’s anomaly is resonance anomalies associated with excitation of surface quasi-guided modes in the substrate. Coupling of the quasi-guided modes with individual nanowire plasmons brings about the formation of waveguide plasmon polaritons. This effect is accompanied by a strong rearrangement of the optical spectrum and can be utilized to control the photonic bands of metal-dielectric photonic crystal slabs.     

Effects of a one-dimensional surface defect on designer surface plasmon polaritons

By using a finite difference time domain(FDTD) method,the effects of a one-dimensional(1D) surface defect on designer surface plasmon polaritons(designer SPPs) supported by a 1D metallic grating in THz domain are investigated.When the size of the defect is in a special range which is not too large,the designer SPPs reflected and scattered by the defect are weak enough to be neglected.The defect only induces a disturbance in the energy distribution of the designer SPP supported by the whole defect grating.If the defect size exceeds the said range,the reflecting and scattering are dominant in the influences of the defect on designer SPPs.Our analysis opens opportunities to control and direct designer SPPs by introducing a 1D defect,especially in low frequency domain.     

Effect of anisotropy on the photonic band gap and surface polaritons of a one-dimensional single-negative photonic crystal

The effect of anisotropy on the photonic band structure and surface polaritons of a one-dimensional photonic crystal made of uniaxially anisotropic epsilon-negative (ε<0,μ>0) and mu-negative (ε>0,μ<0) metamaterials is theoretically investigated. Two different cases of uniaxially anisotropic epsilon-negative and mu-negative metamaterials are considered. It is found out that for one case of anisotropy, one-dimensional photonic crystal does not have any single-negative band gap. As a result, it can not support the surface polaritons. While, for another case, the structure shows single-negative band gaps. So, the surface polaritons can be excited at the interface of such a photonic crystal. However, these surface polaritons, unlike the isotropic case, are not omnidirectional and they are restricted to a limited rang of the propagation constant.     

Surface plasmon polaritons mediated by surface modes in a metal-based photonic crystal complex structure

A hybrid metal–organic–photonic crystal (PC), a gold film with a SU8 film on its top followed by a three-dimensional (3D) PC, was designed to exercise additional control upon the photon behaviors. Attenuated total reflection measurements demonstrate that the 3D PC plays a crucial role in the formation of significant optical properties of the metal-based hybrid and the reflectivity minimum in its reflectivity curve is, mostly, a result of synergetic action of the coupling of surface plasmon polaritons to surface modes and additional guided modes yielded in the resonant cavity composed of the gold film and the PC.     

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.     

Long-range surface polaritons in a supported thin metallic slab

It is shown that a thin metallic slab supported by a thick transparent slab may guide infrared surface polaritons (SP) with propagation lengths larger than those of SP in a semi-infinite metals. These long-range SP are “virtual” in the sense that their electromagnetic field is oscillatory across the supporting slab.     

Observation of propagation of surface plasmon polaritons along line defects in a periodically corrugated metal surface

Propagation of surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) excited in the wavelength range 720-830 nm at a corrugated gold-film surface with areas of 150-nm-wide and 45-nm-high scatterers arranged in a 380-nm-period triangular lattice containing line defects is investigated by use of near-field optical microscopy. We demonstrate that the SPP at 740-750 nm propagates along 2.2-microm -wide and 16-microm -long line defects with ~50% loss, whereas its propagation along narrower line defects is strongly damped and in periodically corrugated areas is inhibited. We observe significant deterioration of these effects for both longer and shorter wavelengths and conclude that the SPP guiding occurs as a result of the SPP bandgap effect in the structures.     

Tamm plasmon polaritons in composite structures composed of the metal film and truncated photonic crystals

Tamm plasmon polaritons (TPPs) are studied theoretically and experimentally in heterostructures and sandwiched structures with the metallic film and truncated photonic crystals. Different from conventional surface plasmon polaritons, TPPs can be realized in both the transverse electric (TE) and transverse magnetic (TM) polarizations, and they can be excited from a free space. Because of nonreciprocal electromagnetic field distributions of TPPs, the structures possess strongly nonreciprocal absorption and reflection. Moreover, two tunneling peaks or a narrow transmission band can be realized in sandwiched structures for both polarizations due to the coupling effect between two TPPs.     

Wave propagation in a one-dimensional photonic crystal with metamaterial

This paper deals with the study of the transmission of electromagnetic waves through a one-dimensional multilayer periodic structure consisting of alternating slabs of negative- and positive-index media. It also focuses on the behavior of the transmission with the angle of incidence for both polarizations. The proposed structure works as a tunable p-polarization filter i.e. a filter which completely blocks the s-polarized wave but partially allows the p-polarized wave to pass through it for an angle of incidence greater than 20 ^°. For angles of incidence less than 50 ^° the structure works as a tunable edge filter.     

Long-range surface plasmon polaritons with subwavelength mode expansion in an asymmetrical system

Long-range surface plasmon polariton (LRSPP) modes in an asymmetrical system, in which the thin metal film is sandwiched between a semi-infinite substrate and a high permittivity polymer film with a finite thickness, are theoretically calculated and analyzed. Due to the high permittivity of the polymer film, at proper polymer film thicknesses, the index-matching condition of the dielectrics at both sides of the metal can be satisfied for supporting LRSPP modes, and the electromagnetic field above the metal can be localized well. It is found that these LRSPP modes have both long propagation lengths and subwavelength mode expansion above the metal at the optimal polymer film thicknesses. Furthermore, the requirements on the refractive index and the thickness of the polymer film to support LRSPP modes at the optimal thicknesses are found to be not critical.     

基于金属表面等离子激元控制光束的新进展

表面等离子激元(Surface plasmon polaritons,SPPs)是一种在金属-介质界面上激发并耦合电荷密度起伏的电磁振荡,具有近场增强、表面受限、短波长等特性,在纳米光子学的研究中扮演着重要角色。近年来表面等离子光学和基于SPPs的纳米光子器件的研究引起了国际上科学家们的广泛关注。讨论了SPPs的基本原理和在亚波长结构下的光学特性,介绍了基于亚波长金属结构的表面等离子激元在空间光束准直与聚焦、平面内光束聚焦与传导和在近场纳米光束的控制等方面的研究情况,以及在纳米光子学器件中的潜在应用。     

Femtosecond optical pulse compression in a one-dimensional thin photonic crystal

The effect of femtosecond laser pulse compression is discovered, described, and experimentally studied for a one-dimensional 4.8-μm-thick photonic crystal.     

Photorefractive control of surface plasmon polaritons in a hybrid liquid crystal cell

We present a photorefractive hybrid liquid crystal system that allows strong photorefractive effects on surface plasmon polaritons. We demonstrate its capability to couple energy between two 1.03 eV surface plasmon polariton modes with an efficiency of 25.3±2.3%. We present the energy and grating pitch dependence of the diffraction and a model that can qualitatively explain them.     

Normal-incidence scattering of surface plasmon polaritons by one-dimensional nanoindentations: a multimodal description

In this paper a theoretical study is made on the scattering of surface plasmon polaritons by a finite periodic array of one-dimensional rectangular grooves. Our approach is based on a multimodal expansion technique. We have found that the geometrical parameters of the array can be properly tuned to achieve optimal performance of the structure either as a Bragg reflector or as a converter of surface plasmon polaritons into light. Most importantly, such functionalities can be fully achieved with a relatively small number of grooves. PACS  73.20.Mf; 78.67.-n; 41.20.Jb     

Hybrid surface plasmon polaritons guided by ultrathin metal films

Hybrid surface plasmon polaritons propagating in a new configuration comprising an ultrathin metal film bounded by a positive birefringent crystal on one side and a glass material on the other side are investigated. The results show that the conditions for existence of such hybrid surface plasmon polaritons have a strong dependence on the structure parameters. This feature opens the way for a new type of optical sensor with directional sensitivity.