Giant optical nonlinearity of a single plasmonic nanostructure

Area of Science:

• Nanophotonics and Plasmonics
• Nonlinear Optics
• Optical Metamaterials

Background:

• Plasmonic nanostructures offer unique light-matter interactions.
• Enhancing optical nonlinearity in nanoscale devices is crucial for advanced photonic applications.
• Existing nanostructures like nano-holes and nano-rods exhibit limited field enhancement.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce and characterize a novel plasmonic nanostructure, the split hole resonator (SHR).
• To demonstrate the giant optical nonlinearity of a single SHR.
• To showcase the SHR's capability as an efficient nonlinear optical element.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of a single split hole resonator (SHR) by integrating a nano-rod within a nano-hole.
• Utilizing surface plasmon resonance and the lightning-rod effect for field enhancement.
• Experimental demonstration of third harmonic generation and multiphoton luminescence from a single SHR.

Main Results:

• The SHR exhibits significantly enhanced peak field intensity compared to individual nano-rods or nano-holes.
• Giant optical nonlinearity was achieved in a single SHR.
• Efficient generation of third harmonic light and intense multiphoton luminescence were observed from single SHRs.

Conclusions:

• The split hole resonator (SHR) is a highly efficient nonlinear optical element.
• SHRs enable significant enhancement of optical nonlinearities at the nanoscale.
• SHRs hold promise for applications in advanced nonlinear optics and photonics.