1. Compact antenna for efficient and unidirectional launching and decoupling of surface plasmons
- Author
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Baron, Alexandre, Devaux, Eloïse, Rodier, Jean-Claude, Hugonin, Jean-Paul, Rousseau, Emmanuel, Genet, Cyriaque, Ebbesen, Thomas, and Lalanne, Philippe
- Subjects
Physics - Optics - Abstract
Controlling the launching efficiencies and the directionality of surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) and their decoupling to freely propagating light is a major goal for the development of plasmonic devices and systems. Here, we report on the design and experimental observation of a highly efficient unidirectional surface plasmon launcher composed of eleven subwavelength grooves, each with a distinct depth and width. Our observations show that, under normal illumination by a focused Gaussian beam, unidirectional SPP launching with an efficiency of at least 52% is achieved experimentally with a compact device of total length smaller than 8 \mu m. Reciprocally, we report that the same device can efficiently convert SPPs into a highly directive light beam emanating perpendicularly to the sample., Comment: 18 pages, 4 figures, Accepted for publication in Nano Letters
- Published
- 2011
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