Remarkable zeroth-order resonant transmission of microwaves through a single subwavelength metal slit

A slit in a thick metal plate that is extremely subwavelength will not transmit microwaves polarized parallel to it. It is shown here that cuts perpendicular to the slit allow parallel polarized radiation to resonantly transmit. Furthermore, a zero-order mode may be excited within the slit, the frequency of which, to first order, is independent of the plate depth. Remarkably, for this novel type of resonance, the field in the slit oscillates with a constant phase and little amplitude variation throughout the plate depth, while the resonant wavelength tends to infinity as the slit width approaches zero.     

Resonant transmission of microwaves through a narrow metallic slit

Strong resonant transmission of microwave radiation through a very narrow (much less than the radiation wavelength) metallic slit is recorded. The results show that a set of resonant self-coupled surface plasmons are excited within the small gap, giving a Fabry-Pérot-like behavior in accord with analytical results published earlier [Y. Takakura, Phys. Rev. Lett. 86, 5601 (2001)]. The metallic slit, formed by two thick metal plates spaced apart by tens of microns, is inserted in a wavelength-sized aperture. On resonance the transmissivity through the metal slit is more than 2 orders of magnitude greater than the radiation impinging on the slit area.     

Phase coherent transmission through interacting mesoscopic systems

This is a review of the phase coherent transmission through interacting mesoscopic conductors. As a paradigm we study the transmission amplitude and the dephasing rate for electron transport through a quantum dot in the Coulomb blockade regime. We summarize experimental and theoretical work devoted to the phase of the transmission amplitude. It is shown that the evolution of the transmission phase may be dominated by non-universal features in the short-time dynamics of the quantum dot. The controlled dephasing in Coulomb-coupled conductors is investigated. Examples comprise a single or multiple quantum dots in close vicinity to a quantum point contact. The current through the quantum point contact “measures” the state of the dots and causes dephasing. The dephasing rate is derived using widely different theoretical approaches. The Coulomb coupling between mesoscopic conductors may prove useful for future work on electron coherence and quantum computing.     

Surface-plasmon-polariton-induced suppressed transmission through ultrathin metal disk arrays

We report surface-plasmon-polariton-induced suppressed transmission through two-dimensional arrays of isolated metal disks with a thickness comparable to optical skin depth of the metal. A transmittance dip of -17.5 dB is achieved at the resonant wavelength of 1524 nm, compared to -12 dB for closed film. Coupling the light into the surface-plasmon polariton results in enhanced absorption, which is potentially interesting in solar cell applications.     

Transmission of microwaves through thin disks

Anomalous transmission of microwaves through thin metal disks is considered. It is related to the attenuation of microwaves in a semi-infinite metal.     

Transmission of microwaves through magnetoactive plasma

The possibility of transmission of microwaves through the plasma layer with an electron concentration of more than critical value is considered. The problem is solved by consideration of the interaction of a microwave with the plane layer of magnetoactive plasma. The problem is formulated by such a way as to obtain the estimation of the greatest lower bound of microwave transmission coefficient through the plasma layer. The results of numerical parametric investigations are applied for the transparency conditions of the shock wave plasma in space communication. The possibility of stable (without interruptions) microwave communication through the shock wave plasma is demonstrated     

Laser annealing of dielectrics with metal nanoparticles

The effect of nanosecond excimer laser pulses on a composite layer of sodium-calcium silicate glass with silver nanoparticles has been investigated. Nanoparticles were synthesized by ion implantation. Based on measuring the optical absorption and reflection spectra of the composite layers, it is found that an increase in the number of laser pulses leads to a monotonic decrease in the size of silver nanoparticles. However, laser irradiation with a longer duration leads to the growth of nanoparticles with their subsequent destruction. The effects observed are discussed in terms of heating a glass composite layer as a result of the effective absorption of laser radiation.     

Search for anomalous transmission of ultracold neutrons through metal foils

Results are presented on the search for anomalous transmission of ultracold neutrons (UCNs) through beryllium (thickness ∼0.14 mm), stainless steel (0.05 and 0.015 mm), and copper (0.01 and 0.018 mm) foils. This anomalous transmission is considered to be a possible reason for the disappearance of UCNs from beryllium bottles, an effect which was discovered in experiments at the St. Petersburg Nuclear Physics Institute and which was recently observed in the experiment of V. E. Varlamov et al., JETP Lett. 66, 336 (1997). No transmission was found in our measurements at the 10⁻⁷ level except in the case of copper foils, which we attribute to the presence in the UCN flux of an admixture of neutrons with energies higher than the boundary energy for copper. Pis’ma Zh. éksp. Teor. Fiz. 67, No. 7, 440–444 (10 April 1998) Published in English in the original Russian journal. Edited by Steve Torstveit.     

基底对亚波长金属双环结构太赫兹透射性质的影响

太赫兹波通过人工金属亚波长结构开口共振环(SRRs)可以产生共振吸收, 目前普遍采用LC振荡电路和线性振子模型来解释. 利用太赫兹时域光谱系统测得并无开口的亚波长金属双环和反双环结构阵列透射的太赫兹波, 结果仍然观察到在太赫兹透射谱中存在吸收峰. 分析得出此吸收峰的出现可以用线性振子模型解释. 此外, 研究发现若将此结构制作到石英基底上, 当以样品表面法线方向为轴旋转样品时其太赫兹透射时域波形和频谱均会随旋转角度出现明显的周期性变化, 而以硅为基底并不出现此现象. 本文将其原因归结为石英基底的双折射效应对亚波长金属双环结构太赫兹透射性质的影响. 本文主要目的是分析造成这种影响的物理过程.     

Laser-assisted activation of dielectrics for electroless metal plating

2 O₃, SiC, diamond, ZrO₂, etc. are presented. The activation of the dielectric surface can be achieved in a wide range of laser wavelengths and is stable in time. This activation allows selective deposition of various metals (Cu, Ni, Pt, Pd, etc.) with lateral dimensions of several μm. The model of the activation process is discussed. This deals with the modification of the band gap of the dielectric, which involves the appearance of a non-zero density of electronic states in the vicinity of the potential of electroless metal reduction. These electronic states can arise either from the formation of point defects in the ablated surface (for example, F centers in Al₂O₃, CeO₂, or ZrO₂) or from the band bending of the dielectric caused by residual mechanical stresses left in the material after laser ablation (SiC or diamond). The data on the activation of dielectrics by mechanical indentation are qualitatively consistent with the model. Received: 5 January 1998/Accepted: 7 January 1998     

Phase change associated with resonant surface plasmon polariton-assisted transmission in nanohole arrays

We report FDTD simulation results demonstrating that the optical phase change of surface plasmon polariton-assisted transmission through nanohole arrays in a metal film undergoes a sharp change under resonant conditions. The phenomenon can be explained by various resonant modes between the nanoholes. We further explore the possibility of using this effect for phase-sensitive surface plasmon resonance biosensing applications.     

Role of shape in middle-infrared transmission enhancement through periodically perforated metal films

We report experimental results on the role of aperture shape in middle-infrared enhanced transmission through a metal film perforated with a periodic aperture array. The transmission spectrum is highly dependent on the aperture shape. When the aperture shape changes from circular to cross-dipole or the cross-dipole arm length increases, the transmission spectrum exhibits a large redshift. The enhanced transmission is proposed to be an interplay of surface plasmon polaritions at the metal surface and localized surface plasmons (LSPs) inside the apertures. The shift of the transmission bands is proposed to be due to the redshift of the LSP resonance spectrum of the individual apertures. The role of shape in enhanced transmission in the cascaded structure is also studied.     

Control of extraordinary light transmission through perforated metal films using liquid crystals

We calculate the effective dielectric tensor of a metal film penetrated by cylindrical holes filled with a nematic liquid crystal (NLC). We assume that the director of the NLC is parallel to the film, and that its direction within the plane can be controlled by a static magnetic field, via the Freedericksz effect. To calculate the effective dielectric tensor, we consider both randomly distributed holes (using a Maxwell-Garnett approximation) and a square lattice of holes (using a Fourier technique). Both the holes and the lattice constant of the square lattice are assumed small compared to the wavelength. The films are found to exhibit extraordinary light transmission at special frequencies related to the surface plasmon resonances of the composite film. Furthermore, the frequencies of peak transmission are found to be substantially split when the dielectric in the holes is anisotropic. For typical NLC parameters, the splitting is of order 5–10% of the metal plasma frequency. Thus, the extraordinary transmission can be controlled by a static magnetic or electric field whose direction can be rotated to orient the director of the NLC. Finally, as a practical means of producing the NLC-filled holes, we consider the case where the entire perforated metal film is dipped into a pool of NLC, so that all the holes are filled with the NLC, and there are also homogeneous slabs of NLC on both sides of the film. The transmission in this geometry is shown to have similar characteristics to that in which the NLC-filled screen is placed in air.     

Light transmission through metal films perforated with arrays of asymmetric cross-shaped hole

The transmission characteristics of metallic film perforated with an array of asymmetric cross-shaped hole are studied by using the three-dimensional finite difference time-domain method. We find that the wavelengths and intensities of transmission peaks depend strongly on the asymmetric parameters of the cross-shaped hole. The transmission peaks in the structure of asymmetric cross-shaped hole array originate from the splitting of the transmission peak in the corresponding one of symmetric cross-shaped hole array. Moreover, it is also found that the transmission spectra can be adjusted by changing other geometrical parameters of asymmetric cross-shaped hole due to the their effect on the distribution of the oscillating charges on metal surfaces.     

Localized surface plasmons-based transmission enhancement of terahertz radiation through metal aperture arrays

The extraordinary transmission spectrum of a copper film pierced by a periodic array of subwavelength rectangular holes is measured by the terahertz time-domain spectroscopy. The transmission coefficient is strongly dependent on the angle between the polarization of terahertz electric field and the latitudinal direction of the periodic apertures. When the angle increases from 0^o to 90^o, a peak becomes stronger and another peak reduces. The transmission is proposed to be the contributions of localized surface plasmons inside the apertures. The finite-difference-time-domain (FDTD) simulation results are in good agreement with experimental observations.     

Observation of transmission of 45 GHz microwaves through a thin Mo-disk with and without the presence of a magnetic field

Transmission of microwaves of a frequency of 45 GHz through a high-purity, plane-parallel, single-crystalline molybdenum sample of a thickness of 0.15 mm and 0.27 mm, respectively, has been observed, both in the presence of a magnetic field and without a magnetic field. Azbel-Kaner type cyclotron resonance was seen in the signal transmitted through the sample.     

Reflection and transmission of circularly polarized waves in nonlinear dielectrics

A time-sinusoidal circularly polarized plane standing wave solution is obtained for isotropic lossless dielectric media with arbitrary nonlinearity. The spatial variation of the standing wave depends on the nonlinearity and is found by solving a problem of centralforce motion in which the electric complementary energy density furnishes the potential and the spatial coordinate has the role of time. Two special nonlinear dielectric response laws-cubic and quintic-are treated, and explicit solutions for the spatial variation of the wave amplitude and phase are obtained in terms of elliptic functions and elliptic integrals, respectively. The standing-wave solution is applied to give steady state solutions of two reflection/transmission problems (a) reflection from, or resonance modes between, ideally conducting planes and (b) reflection and transmission at a plane interface between two nonlinear dielectric media.