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Energy transport in metal nanoparticle plasmon waveguides

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 February 2011

Stefan A. Maier
Affiliation:
Thomas J. Watson Laboratory of Applied Physics, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA
Pieter G. Kik
Affiliation:
Thomas J. Watson Laboratory of Applied Physics, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA
Luke A. Sweatlock
Affiliation:
Thomas J. Watson Laboratory of Applied Physics, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA
Harry A. Atwater
Affiliation:
Thomas J. Watson Laboratory of Applied Physics, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA
J. J. Penninkhof
Affiliation:
FOM Institute for Atomic and Molecular Physics, Kruislaan 407, 1098 SJ Amsterdam, The Netherlands
A. Polman
Affiliation:
FOM Institute for Atomic and Molecular Physics, Kruislaan 407, 1098 SJ Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Sheffer Meltzer
Affiliation:
Laboratory for Molecular Robotics, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089, USA
Elad Harel
Affiliation:
Laboratory for Molecular Robotics, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089, USA
Ari A.G. Requicha
Affiliation:
Laboratory for Molecular Robotics, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089, USA
Bruce E. Koel
Affiliation:
Laboratory for Molecular Robotics, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089, USA
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Abstract

We investigate the optical properties of arrays of closely spaced metal nanoparticles in view of their potential to guide electromagnetic energy with a lateral mode confinement below the diffraction limit of light. Finite-difference time-domain simulations of short arrays of noble metal nanospheres show that electromagnetic pulses at optical frequencies can propagate along the arrays due to near-field interactions between plasmon-polariton modes of adjacent nanoparticles. Near-field microscopy enables the study of energy transport in these plasmon waveguides and shows experimental evidence for energy propagation over a distance of 0.5 νm for plasmon waveguides consisting of spheroidal silver particles fabricated using electron beam lithography.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2003

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