Plasmonic Applications Research Articles

Numerically efficient full-vectorial rational Chebyshev pseudo-spectral modal analysis for optical Waveguides

In this paper, an efficient full-vectorial modal analysis based on the rational Chebyshev pseudo-spectral method (V-RCPSM) is introduced to analyze 3 dimensional (3D) structures that are invariant along one spatial variable. Such structures are essential in silicon photonics and plasmonics applications where permittivity profiles with high-index contrast need precise treatment of the interface boundary conditions. Besides, such structures are open in general. Hence, good domain truncation is important. Our method handles these challenges via hybrid usage of the domain decomposition technique where the electromagnetic field is expanded in terms of Chebyshev functions in homogeneous regions, while the rational Chebyshev functions are used for semi-infinite homogeneous domains. The boundary conditions are rigorously imposed along the interfaces, a step that maintains the known exponential convergence rate of Chebyshev functions. Chebyshev functions have the ability to capture the correct rapid variation of the electromagnetic fields at the interfaces of the high-index-contrast waveguides using only a few basis functions; a critical feature for accurate mode computation. To show the accuracy and efficiency of our new approach, we studied rib and plasmonic waveguides and compared the results with those obtained using other full-vectorial approaches such as the finite elements method (FEM). Our developed approach has achieved a huge reduction in computational resources over the FEM.

Metal-organic framework template-guided electrochemical lithography on substrates for SERS sensing applications

The templating method holds great promise for fabricating surface nanopatterns. To enhance the manufacturing capabilities of complex surface nanopatterns, it is important to explore new modes of the templates beyond their conventional masking and molding modes. Here, we employed the metal-organic framework (MOF) microparticles assembled monolayer films as templates for metal electrodeposition and revealed a previously unidentified guiding growth mode enabling the precise growth of metallic films exclusively underneath the MOF microparticles. The guiding growth mode was induced by the fast ion transportation within the nanochannels of the MOF templates. The MOF template could be repeatedly used, allowing for the creation of identical metallic surface nanopatterns for multiple times on different substrates. The MOF template-guided electrochemical growth mode provided a robust route towards cost-effective fabrication of complex metallic surface nanopatterns with promising applications in metamaterials, plasmonics, and surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) sensing fields.

Silver-based plasmonic nanoparticles and their application as biosensor

The silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) exhibit unique and tunable plasmonic properties. The size and shape of these particles can manipulate their localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) property and their response to the local environment. The LSPR property of nanoparticles is exploited by their optical, chemical, and biological sensing. This is an interdisciplinary area that involves chemistry, biology, and materials science. In this paper, a polymer system is used with the optimization technique of blending two polymers. The two polymer composites polystyrene/poly (4-vinylpyridine) (PS/P4VP) (50:50) and (75:25) were used as found suitable by their previous morphological studies. The results of 50, 95, and 50, 150 nm thicknesses of silver nanoparticles deposited on PS/P4VP (50:50) and (75:25) were explored to observe their optical sensitivity. The nature of the polymer composite embedded with silver nanoparticles affects the size of the nanoparticle and its distribution in the matrix. The polymer composites used are found to have a uniform distribution of nanoparticles of various sizes. The optical properties of Ag nanoparticles embedded in suitable polymer composites for the development of the latest plasmonic applications, owing to their unique properties, were explored. The sensing capability of a particular polymer composite is found to depend on the size of the nanoparticle embedded in it. The optimum result has been found for silver nanoparticles of 150 nm thickness deposited on PS/P4VP (75:25).

Controlled Dispersion and Transmission-Absorption of Optical Energy through Scaled Metallic Plate Structures.

The dispersive feature of metals at higher frequencies has opened up a plethora of applications in plasmonics. Besides, Extraordinary Optical Transmission (EOT) reported by Ebbesen et al. in the late 90's has sparked particular interest among the scientific community through the unprecedented and singular way to steer and enhance optical energies. The purpose of the present paper is to shed light on the effect of the scaling parameter over the whole structure, to cover the range from the near-infrared to the visible, on the transmission and the absorption properties. We further bring specific attention to the dispersive properties, easily extractable from the resonance frequency of the drilled tiny slits within the structure. A perfect matching between the analytical Rigorous Coupled Wave Analysis (RCWA), and the numerical Finite Elements Method (FEM) to describe the underlying mechanisms is obtained.

Optical Characterisation of Plasmonic Indium Lattices Fabricated Via Electrochemical Deposition

Indium is an emerging plasmonic material that offers to extend the plasmonic applications given by gold and silver from the visible to the ultraviolet spectral range, with applications in imaging, sensing, and lasing. However, due to the high-vapor pressure/low melting temperature of indium, nanofabrication of pre-defined metallic indium nanostructures is non-trivial.In this work, we show the potential of selective area electrochemical deposition for the manufacturing of large-area arrays of indium pillars, which can be used for plasmonic applications. We combine electrochemical deposition with substrate-conformal imprint lithography to realize these large-scale indium nanoparticle arrays, having well-defined dimensions. This template growth results into well-defined hexagonal array of pillars with a mean height of 235 nm having a standard deviation of 60 nm.To highlight the potential of this electrochemical-based technique for plasmonic applications, we have performed angle-dependent extinction measurements using s-polarized light and using a RI matching oil. We found that these indium nanopillar arrays exhibit a strong plasmonic response due to the coupling to the plasmonic surface lattice resonances (SLRs). Furthermore, we have simulated the optical response of this indium nanopillar array using finite difference time domain (FDTD) simulations. In these simulations, we included the morphology obtained from SEM and the electrical permittivity of elemental indium. We found that the simulated extinction spectra agree well with the experimentally obtained spectra at 0˚ and 8˚ incidence, despite the polydispersity of the indium pillar height and defects in the hexagonal array.Our results therefore demonstrate the possibility of realizing large-area fabrication of indium plasmonic nanoparticles, which can be used for plasmonic applications. Given the low-cost and scalable nature of this technique, this work opens new possibilities in the design and fabrication of large-area plasmonic metasurfaces that operate in the UV spectral range. Future extensions of this work may leverage the indium mask-constrained growth to tailor even further the shape of the nanoparticle and hence give a powerful tuning knob to tailor plasmonic resonances.

Dual-Dewetting Process for Self-Assembled Nanoparticle Clusters in Wafer Scale.

Plasmonic molecules, which are geometrically well-defined plasmonic metal nanoparticle clusters, have attracted significant attention due to their enhancement of light-matter interactions owing to a stronger electric field enhancement than that by single particles. High-resolution lithography techniques provide precise positioning of plasmonic nanoparticles, but their fabrication costs are excessively high. In this study, we propose a lithography-free, self-assembly fabrication method, termed the dual-dewetting process, which allows the control of the size and density of gold nanoparticles. This process involves depositing a gold thin film on a substrate and inducing dewetting through thermal annealing, followed by a second deposition and annealing. The method achieves a uniform distribution of particle size and density, along with increased particle density, across a 6-inch wafer. The superiority of the method is confirmed by a 30-fold increase in the signal intensity of surface-enhanced Raman scattering following the additional dewetting with an 8 nm film, compared to single dewetting alone. Our findings indicate that the dual-dewetting method provides a simple and efficient approach to enable a variety of plasmonic applications through efficient plasmonic molecule large-area fabrication.

Tailoring the bound states in the multi-channel nonlinear plasmonic metasurfaces

Metasurfaces offer a paradigm shift in the nonlinear optics, controlling and enhancing of nonlinear effects at the nanoscale, and offering new opportunities for applications in nonlinear optics, plasmonics and electromagnetics. Particularly, nonlinear optical conversion efficiency is limited due to the inherent losses in metallic materials. Nonlinear metasurfaces based on bound states in the continuum(BIC) can effectively increase the Q value and are expected to further enhance the nonlinear efficiency. In this paper, a tri-capacitance-like metasurface supporting both Friedrich–Wintgen quasi-BIC and symmetry-protected quasi-BIC is proposed to generates multiple high-Q resonances in the spectrum. The coupling between perfect BIC and quasi-BIC mode in the multi-channel optical system corresponds to the storage and release of electromagnetic waves, respectively. At the same time, the electromagnetic field is further enhanced at the resonant frequency, which can significantly improve the second order nonlinear efficiency. In addition, due to the different generation mechanism, the frequency and amplitude of the two resonances are easy to tune independently, which facilitates the sum and difference frequency generation (SFG and DFG). Therefore, the proposed nonlinear metasurfaces in this paper are of wide research value in the fields of nonlinear optics, multi-channel communication and memory.

Photoinduced edge-specific nanoparticle decoration of two-dimensional tungsten diselenide nanoribbons

Metallic nanoparticles are widely explored for boosting light-matter coupling, optoelectronic response, and improving photocatalytic performance of two-dimensional (2D) materials. However, the target area is restricted to either top or bottom of the 2D flakes. Here, we introduce an approach for edge-specific nanoparticle decoration via light-assisted reduction of silver ions and merging of silver seeds. We observe arrays of the self-limited in size silver nanoparticles along tungsten diselenide WSe2 nanoribbon edges. The density of nanoparticles is tunable by adjusting the laser fluence. Scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, and Raman spectroscopy are used to investigate the size, distribution, and photo-response of the deposited plasmonic nanoparticles on the quasi-one-dimensional nanoribbons. We report an on-surface synthesis path for creating mixed-dimensional heterostructures and heterojunctions with potential applications in opto-electronics, plasmonics, and catalysis, offering improved light matter coupling, optoelectronics response, and photocatalytic performance of 2D materials.

Magnetoplasmons in magic-angle twisted bilayer graphene

The magic-angle twisted bilayer graphene (MATBLG) has been demonstrated to exhibit exotic physical properties due to the special flat bands. However, exploiting the engineering of such properties by external fields is still in it infancy. Here we show that MATBLG under an external magnetic field presents a distinctive magnetoplasmon dispersion, which can be significantly modified by transferred momentum and charge doping. Along a wide range of transferred momentum, there exist special pronounced single magnetoplasmon and horizontal single-particle excitation modes near charge neutrality. We provide an insightful discussion of such unique features based on the electronic excitation of Landau levels quantized from the flat bands and Landau damping. Additionally, charge doping leads to peculiar multiple strong-weight magnetoplasmons. These characteristics make MATBLG a favorable candidate for plasmonic devices and technology applications.

Monolayer Capping Provides Close to Optimal Resistance to Laser Dewetting of Au Films.

Next-generation heat-assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) relies on fast, localized heating of the magnetic medium during the write process. Au plasmonic near-field transducers are an attractive solution to this challenge, but increased thermal stability of Au films is required to improve long-term reliability. This work compares the effect of nanoscale Al, AlOx, and Ta capping films on Au thin films with Ti or Ta adhesion layers for use in HAMR and other high-temperature plasmonic applications. Thermal stability is investigated using a bespoke laser dewetting system, and SEM and AFM are extensively used to interrogate the resulting dewet areas. The most effective capping layers are found to be 0.5-1 nm of Al or AlOx, which can eliminate dewetting under certain conditions. Even one monolayer of AlOx is shown to be highly effective in reducing dewetting. In the case of thicker capping layers of Ta and AlOx, the Au film can easily dewet underneath, leaving an intact capping layer. It is concluded that thinner capping layers are most effective against dewetting as the Au cannot dewet without breaking them and pulling them apart during the dewetting process. A simple model based on energetics considerations is developed, which explains how thinner capping layers can more effectively protect the metal from pore or fissure creation. The model provides some convenient guidelines for choosing both the substrate and capping layer, for a given metal, to maximize the resistance to laser-induced damage.

Inverse Design of Plasmonic Nanohole Arrays by Combing Spectra and Structural Color in Deep Learning

Herein, deep learning (DL) is used to predict the structural parameters of Ag nanohole arrays (NAs) for spectrum‐driving and color‐driving plasmonic applications. A dataset of transmission spectra and structural parameters of NAs is generated using finite‐difference time‐domain (FDTD) calculations and is converted to vivid structural colors using the corresponding transmission spectrum. A bidirectional neural network is used to train the transmission spectrum and structural color together. The accuracy of predicting the structural parameters using a desired spectrum is tested and found to be up to 0.99, with a determination coefficient of reproducing the desired spectrum and color to be 0.97 and 0.96, respectively. These values are higher compared to those when only training for spectrum, but requiring less training time. This strategy is able to inverse design the NAs in less than 1 s to maximize surface‐enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) enhancement by matching transmission resonance and laser excitation wavelength, and accurately regenerate colored images in 7.5 s, allowing for nanoscale printing at a resolution of approximately 100 000 dots in−1. This work has important implications for the efficient design of nanostructures for various plasmonic applications, such as plasmonic sensors, optical filters, metal‐enhanced fluorescence, SERS, and super‐resolution displays.

Demonstration of the plasmonic THz phase shifter at room temperature

We experimentally demonstrate that above 300 GHz, the plasmonic phase shifter can operate at up to room temperature. We investigate the temperature-dependent behavior of the phase shift introduced by a two-dimensional electron system in a GaAs/AlGaAs heterostructure. We find that the temperature-effected changes in the relaxation time and effective mass contribute most to the phase shifter performance. The physical model developed in the study shows good agreement with the experimental data. The results open up the prospects for the practical applications of plasmonics in the terahertz frequency gap.

Granular metals with SiN x dielectrics

Understanding and controlling nanoscale interface phenomena, such as band bending and secondary phase formation, is crucial for electronic device optimization. In granular metal (GM) studies, where metal nanoparticles are embedded in an insulating matrix, the importance of interface phenomena is frequently neglected. We demonstrate that GMs can serve as an exemplar system for evaluating the role of secondary phases at interfaces through a combination of x-ray photoemission spectroscopy (XPS) and electrical transport studies. We investigated SiN x as an alternative to more commonly used oxide-insulators, as SiN x -based GMs may enable high temperature applications when paired with refractory metals. Comparing Co-SiN x and Mo-SiN x GMs, we found that, in the tunneling-dominated insulating regime, Mo-SiN x had reduced metal-silicide formation and orders-of-magnitude lower conductivity. XPS measurements indicate that metal-silicide and metal-nitride formation are mitigatable concerns in Mo-SiN x . Given the metal-oxide formation seen in other GMs, SiN x is an appealing alternative for metals that readily oxidize. Furthermore, SiN x provides a path to metal-nitride nanostructures, potentially useful for various applications in plasmonics, optics, and sensing.

Ultrafast Laser‐Induced Plasmonic Modulation of Optical Properties of Dielectrics at High Resolution

AbstractThe size‐ and shape‐dependent localized surface plasmon properties of metallic nanoparticles (NPs) enable nanoscale‐enhanced near‐field applications in a wide range of fields, including spectroscopy, nonlinear optics, and sensing. Orderly assembled NPs can construct plasmonic metamaterials for light manipulation at a subwavelength scale, exhibiting new collective properties in resonant modes regulated by plasmon coupling between their fundamental components. Despite the recognition of its significant advantages in photonics integration, plasmonic‐based tailored optical responses for practical applications have remained elusive due to limitations in scaling up processes, as neither etching nor assembly can design and fabricate embedded plasmonic devices into functional devices/structures. Here, the assembly of plasmonic NPs is demonstrated by ultrafast laser‐induced writing‐on‐demand inside solids, tailoring their distribution and sizes. By controlling the laser scanning speed, the in situ redistribution of NPs is observed. Plasmon mediated local energy deposition is considered as the main mechanism driving nano‐patterning at a subwavelength range. A direct nano‐printing is realized by utilizing the resonant optical response of laser‐modified NP structures/patterns. This work paves the way for directly induced NP composite structures inside transparent materials at a well‐defined and controlled depth for plasmonic applications.

Nanorod vs Nanotriangle: Which is Better for Infrared Plasmonic Applications?

Nanorod vs Nanotriangle: Which is Better for Infrared Plasmonic Applications?

Robust sub-5 nanometer bis(diarylcarbene)-based thin film for molecular electronics and plasmonics.

In miniaturized electronic and optoelectronic circuits, molecular tunnel junctions have attracted enormous research interest due to their small footprint, low power consumption, and rich molecular functions. However, the most popular building blocks used in contemporary molecular tunnel junctions are thiol molecules, which attach to electrode surfaces via a metal-thiolate (M-S) bond, showing low stability and usually quick degradation within several days. To pave the way for more widely applicable and stable molecular tunnel junctions, there is a need to develop new molecular anchoring groups. Here, wedemonstrate robust and air-stable molecular tunnel junctions with a sub-5 nanometer bis(diarylcarbene)-based thin film as the tunnelling barrier, which anchors to the electrode surface via a Au-C bond. The bis(diarylcarbene)-based molecular tunnel junctions exhibit high thermal stability against heating up to 200°C and long storage lifetime over 5 months in an ambient environment. Both electrical and optical performance of these bis(diarylcarbene)-based molecular junctions werecharacterized systematically, showing similar behaviours to thiol-based junctions as well as largely improved emission stability. This research highlights the excellent performance of bis(diarylcarbene)-based molecular tunnel junctions, which couldbe useful for applications in molecular electronics and plasmonics. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Titanium nitride based plasmonic nanoparticles for photovoltaic application

The plasmonic light trapping mechanism is an excellent way of improving solar cell efficiency. In this paper, our primary goal was to design and assess plasmonic nanosystems using TiN as an alternative material for photovoltaic application through theoretical simulations. To establish TiN’s functionality as a plasmonic material, we conducted a comparative analysis with noble metals, Ag and Au. We demonstrated, utilizing TiN-based plasmonic nanostructures, that the fraction of light scatter into the substrate can be tuned by varying the shape, size, thickness, dielectric thickness, and varying source angle. Moreover, total scattering in the wavelength range of the solar spectrum was modulated. The scattering performance improved for the thicker dielectric layer. Among the nanostructures, the bowtie shape showed a better light absorption cross-section. TiN nanostructures enhanced path length with a maximum scattering cross-section of 4.58 Wm−2 for bowtie-shaped nanoplate on 30 nm Si3N4. The maximum light absorption efficiency obtained for TiN plasmonic nanostructure was ∼ 30%. Moreover, absorption enhancement was achieved for TiN in visible and infrared wavelength regions.

Engineering Substrate-Mediated Localized Surface Plasmons in Gold Nanodiscs

A variety of nanostructures capable of generating strong local electromagnetic fields (hot spots) in interaction with radiation have been under intensive investigation towards plasmonic applications in surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS), biosensing, broadband absorbers, thermophotovoltaics, photocatalysis, etc. In many cases, these nanostructures are formed on a surface or embedded into a near-surface layer of the dielectric substrate, making some part of the field dissipate into the bulk and not contribute to the desired plasmonic functionality. To reduce such losses, the interface between the metallic nanostructures and the dielectric environment should be engineered. In the current work, Au nanodiscs are fabricated on Si posts of very small diameter (pin-shaped structures), enabling them to decouple the strong optical near fields localized at the nanodiscs from the bulk Si substrate. The Si post diameter is optimized by adjusting the gas flow rates in reactive-ion etching, resulting in a minimum post diameter of 20 nm at the nanodisc interface. The effect of this diameter on the localized surface plasmon resonance of the nanodisc is investigated with linear optical spectroscopic measurements, where a significant spectral blue shift of the resonance band is noticed compared to similar discs formed on bulk Si surface. The experimental results are compared with modelling where a 3-fold increase in the electric field enhancement is demonstrated. The fabricated pin-shaped nanostructures are tested in SERS measurements showing a significant increase in the enhancement factor in the order of 106. Thus, this work suggests a way of engineering 3D morphology to tune the substrate influence on the plasmonic properties of nanostructures and to develop efficient nanofabrication technologies.

Impact of bimetallic interface design on heat generation in plasmonic Au/Pd nanostructures studied by single-particle thermometry

Localized surface plasmons are lossy and generate heat. However, accurate measurement of the temperature of metallic nanoparticles under illumination remains an open challenge, creating difficulties in the interpretation of results across plasmonic applications. Particularly, there is a quest for understanding the role of temperature in plasmon-assisted catalysis. Bimetallic nanoparticles combining plasmonic with catalytic metals are raising increasing interest in artificial photosynthesis and the production of solar fuels. Here, we perform single-particle thermometry measurements to investigate the link between morphology and light-to-heat conversion of colloidal Au/Pd nanoparticles with two different configurations: core–shell and core-satellite. It is observed that the inclusion of Pd as a shell strongly reduces the photothermal response in comparison to the bare cores, while the inclusion of Pd as satellites keeps photothermal properties almost unaffected. These results contribute to a better understanding of energy conversion processes in plasmon-assisted catalysis.

Halide-assisted differential growth of chiral nanoparticles with threefold rotational symmetry

Enriching the library of chiral plasmonic nanoparticles that can be chemically mass-produced will greatly facilitate the applications of chiral plasmonics in areas ranging from constructing optical metamaterials to sensing chiral molecules and activating immune cells. Here we report on a halide-assisted differential growth strategy that can direct the anisotropic growth of chiral Au nanoparticles with tunable sizes and diverse morphologies. Anisotropic Au nanodisks are employed as seeds to yield triskelion-shaped chiral nanoparticles with threefold rotational symmetry and high dissymmetry factors. The averaged scattering g-factors of the l- and d-nanotriskelions are as large as 0.57 and − 0.49 at 650 nm, respectively. The Au nanotriskelions have been applied in chiral optical switching devices and chiral nanoemitters. We also demonstrate that the manipulation of the directional growth rate enables the generation of a variety of chiral morphologies in the presence of homochiral ligands.