3D nanopillar optical antenna photodetectors

We demonstrate 3D surface plasmon photoresponse in nanopillar arrays resulting in enhanced responsivity due to both Localized Surface Plasmon Resonances (LSPRs) and Surface Plasmon Polariton Bloch Waves (SPP-BWs). The LSPRs are excited due to a partial gold shell coating the nanopillar which acts as a 3D Nanopillar Optical Antenna (NOA) in focusing light into the nanopillar. Angular photoresponse measurements show that SPP-BWs can be spectrally coincident with LSPRs to result in a x2 enhancement in responsivity at 1180 nm. Full-wave Finite Difference Time Domain (FDTD) simulations substantiate both the spatial and spectral coupling of the SPP-BW / LSPR for enhanced absorption and the nature of the LSPR. Geometrical control of the 3D NOA and the self-aligned metal hole lattice allows the hybridization of both localized and propagating surface plasmon modes for enhanced absorption. Hybridized plasmonic modes opens up new avenues in optical antenna design in nanoscale photodetectors.