Hybrid material based on plasmonic nanodisks decorated ZnO and its application on nanoscale lasers

Plasmonic noble metal nanodisks with regular (triangular or hexagonal) shapes have been epitaxially formed on ZnO nanorods' (0002) surfaces. The composite material's crystal structures, epitaxial relationships between metal nanodisks, and ZnO host crystals were fully investigated. The effects from metal nanodisks on lasing characteristics of two types of ZnO nanoscale cavities (Fabry-Perot and Whispering Gallery Mode cavity) were studied. The results suggest that metal nanodisks can effectively enhance the lasing performance by lowering the lasing threshold in the ZnO Whispering Gallery Mode nanoplate laser, whereas the Fabry-Perot ZnO nanorods lasers were much less affected by the metal decoration. The plasmonic enhancement mechanism for the ZnO nanoplate cavities was further studied using numerical simulations as well as spatially resolved photoluminescence measurement.