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Determination of the Excitation and Coupling Rates Between Light Emitters and Surface Plasmon Polaritons
Published on: July 21, 2018
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Stimulated plasmon polariton scattering.
C Wolff1, N A Mortensen2,3,4
1Center for Nano Optics, University of Southern Denmark, Campusvej 55, Odense M, DK-5230, Denmark. cwo@mci.sdu.dk.
Nature Communications
|August 14, 2020
Summary
We introduce stimulated plasmon polariton scattering (SPPS) to observe 2D polaritons. This new method amplifies and detects these particles across the THz-range using visible light, overcoming previous limitations.
Area of Science:
- Condensed Matter Physics
- Materials Science
- Nanophotonics
Background:
- Two-dimensional (2D) and van-der-Waals materials exhibit plasmon and phonon polaritons of significant scientific interest.
- Observing these polaritons is challenging due to strong confinement, low frequency, and longitudinal mode symmetry in linear response.
Purpose of the Study:
- To propose and validate a novel method for exciting, amplifying, and detecting 2D plasmon and phonon polaritons.
- To overcome the limitations of linear response techniques for studying these quasiparticles.
Main Methods:
- Development of a nonlinear resonant scattering technique termed stimulated plasmon polariton scattering (SPPS), analogous to stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS).
- Utilizing optical components in the near-infrared or visible range to interact with THz-range polaritons.
- Formulation of a coupled-mode theory framework to analyze SPPS.
Main Results:
- SPPS enables the excitation, amplification, and detection of 2D plasmon and phonon polaritons across the entire THz-range.
- The method requires only near-IR or visible light optical components, simplifying experimental setups.
- SPPS demonstrates power gains at least an order of magnitude higher than state-of-the-art on-chip SBS.
Conclusions:
- SPPS offers a powerful new tool for fundamental studies of 2D materials.
- This technique has the potential to significantly advance THz spectroscopy and information technology by bridging the 'THz gap'.
