Resonant-Plasmon-Assisted Subwavelength Ablation by a Femtosecond Oscillator

Abstract

``Bowtie'' nanoantennas are not unusual in the field of plasmonics, yet they still can be used in unusual ways. Harnessing the near-field enhancement due to locally resonant surface plasmons, the authors demonstrate material ablation and concurrent deposition of high-quality film at the subwavelength scale, all driven by a bowtie-based oscillator, rather than a laser. This gentle ablation is mediated by hot-electron emission and electrostatic acceleration---a different mechanism than for thermal ablation or optical breakdown. This mechanism can be made to work for either metallic or dielectric materials, rendering this approach even more appealing for nanotechnology.