Surface quality and surface waves on subwavelength-structured silver films

G. Gay*, O. Alloschery, J. Weiner, H. J. Lezec, C. O'Dwyer, M. Sukharev, T. Seideman

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

21 Scopus citations

Abstract

We analyze the physical-chemical surface properties of single-slit, single-groove subwavelength-structured silver films with high-resolution transmission electron microscopy and calculate exact solutions to Maxwell’s equations corresponding to recent far-field interferometry experiments using these structures. Contrary to a recent suggestion the surface analysis shows that the silver films are free of detectable contaminants. The finite-difference time-domain calculations, in excellent agreement with experiment, show a rapid fringe amplitude decrease in the near zone (slit-groove distance out to 3â€"4 wavelengths). Extrapolation to slit-groove distances beyond the near zone shows that the surface wave evolves to the expected bound surface plasmon polariton (SPP). Fourier analysis of these results indicates the presence of a distribution of transient, evanescent modes around the SPP that dephase and dissipate as the surface wave evolves from the near to the far zone.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Article number016612
JournalPhysical Review E - Statistical, Nonlinear, and Soft Matter Physics
Volume75
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - 2007

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Condensed Matter Physics
  • Statistical and Nonlinear Physics
  • Statistics and Probability

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