Enhanced propagation lengths for surface plasmons in an asymmetric plasmonic waveguide

PHYS 472

Jason M. Montgomery, jmontgomery@anl.gov, Chemical Sciences and Engineering Divsion, Argonne National Laboratory, Bldg. 200, Room R220, 9700 S. Cass Ave., Argonne, IL 60439 and Stephen K. Gray, gray@tcg.anl.gov, Chemistry Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, IL, Argonne, IL 60439.
We study an enhanced propagation length, L, for regenerated surface plasmon polaritons (RSPPs) within an asymmetric waveguide structure. The core of the RSPP waveguide, composed of a fixed thin silver metal layer and a glass layer with thickness d, is surrounded by air. Using the finite-difference time-domain method, we observe an oscillatory type dependence for L as a function of d. An investigation based on a frequency-domain modal analysis suggests the oscillations are due to the tuning of d to the opening of new transverse magnetic waveguide modes. The implications on experimental design are also discussed.
 

PHYS Poster Session - Nanostructured Materials and Nanophotonics
7:30 PM-10:00 PM, Wednesday, April 9, 2008 Morial Convention Center -- Hall A, Poster

Division of Physical Chemistry

The 235th ACS National Meeting, New Orleans, LA, April 6-10, 2008