Enhancing surface plasmon polariton propagation lengths via coupling to asymmetric waveguide structures

Jason M. Montgomery and Stephen K. Gray
Phys. Rev. B 77, 125407 – Published 10 March 2008

Abstract

We determine and analyze the properties of regenerated surface plasmon polaritons (R-SPPs) in an asymmetric waveguide structure [T.-W. Lee and S. K. Gray, Appl. Phys. Lett. 86, 141105 (2005)]. Both finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) calculations and frequency-domain modal analysis are employed. The FDTD results, which explicitly include excitation via attenuated total reflection, show an oscillatory dependence of the R-SPP propagation length Lx as a function of core layer thickness d, with maxima corresponding to 30-fold propagation enhancements. For fixed incident light wavelength and angle, a variety of thicknesses can therefore be used to excite very long propagating SPPs. Modal analysis shows that the oscillations are due to tuning d through the opening of new transverse magnetic waveguide modes. In addition to increased propagation lengths, surface confinement is not significantly deteriorated and large intensity enhancements in the propagation region can also be achieved.

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  • Received 27 November 2007

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.77.125407

©2008 American Physical Society

Authors & Affiliations

Jason M. Montgomery and Stephen K. Gray

  • Chemical Sciences and Engineering Division and Center for Nanoscale Materials, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, Illinois 60439, USA

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Issue

Vol. 77, Iss. 12 — 15 March 2008

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