Surface Plasmon Damping Quantified with an Electron Nanoprobe
Résumé
Fabrication and synthesis of plasmonic structures is rapidly moving towards sub-nanometer accuracy in
control over shape and inter-particle distance. This holds the promise for developing device components
based on novel, non-classical electro-optical effects. Monochromated electron energy-loss spectroscopy
(EELS) has in recent years demonstrated its value as a qualitative experimental technique in nano-optics and
plasmonic due to its unprecedented spatial resolution. Here, we demonstrate that EELS can also be used
quantitatively, to probe surface plasmon kinetics and damping in single nanostructures. Using this
approach, we present from a large (.50) series of individual gold nanoparticles the plasmon Quality factors
and the plasmon Dephasing times, as a function of energy/frequency. It is shown that the measured general
trend applies to regular particle shapes (rods, spheres) as well as irregular shapes (dendritic, branched
morphologies). The combination of direct sub-nanometer imaging with EELS-based plasmon damping
analysis launches quantitative nanoplasmonics research into the sub-nanometer realm.
Origine | Fichiers éditeurs autorisés sur une archive ouverte |
---|
Loading...