We present our investigations on the enhancement of magneto-optical (MO) effects in nanocomposite Au–Co thin films. All the samples in this study were obtained by cosputter deposition varying the relative Au:Co composition and the growth temperature. A strong enhancement of the transverse MO activity is observed when surface plasmons are excited in the Kretschmann configuration. The correlation between the nanocomposite films' microstructure, morphology, composition, and their optical response under surface plasmon resonance excitation and their MO enhancement is discussed.
Silver nanowires (Ag NWs) have received considerable attention for flexible transparent conductive films (TCFs) since they provide a relatively low sheet resistance at a high transmittance. However, the diffuse light scattering, haze, has been regarded as a hurdle to achieve clarity of films. Here we revisit the Mie scattering theory to calculate the extinction and scattering coefficients of Ag NWs which were employed to estimate haze of TCFs. The theory predicted a decrease in haze with a decrease in Ag NW diameter which was supported by experimental investigations carried out using Ag NWs with 5 different diameters (17.6, 19.9, 22.5, 24.3, and 29.6 nm). Overall, excellent properties of TCFs (haze = 0.21%-1.8%, transmittance = 95.33%-98.45%, sheet resistance = 20.87-81.76 Ω sq) were obtained. Ag NWs with a diameter of 17.6 nm provided minimum haze values at equivalent sheet resistances (e.g., haze = 0.21%, transmittance = 98.45%, sheet resistance = 77.36 Ω sq) compared with ones with lager diameters and the controls in literatures. This work investigated the interdependence between haze and NW diameter and might provide a design guide for flexible Ag NW TCFs.
Metallic nanoparticles ͑NPs͒ are suitable platforms for miniaturized biosensing based on their optical and magneto-optical properties. It is possible to enhance the sensitivity of specific kinds of NPs by exploiting their optical and magneto-optical properties under suitable external magnetic field modulation. Here, the magneto-optical properties of Fe-Ag core-shell ferromagnet-noble metal NPs have been investigated as a function of the incident light frequency. For Fe-Ag NPs with a concentration ratio around 25:75, an optical absorption band centered at 3 eV due to localized surface plasmon resonance ͑LSPR͒ excitation is observed. A strong enhancement of the Faraday rotation is also observed, greatly exceeding the value estimated for pure Fe NPs, also associated with the LSPR excitation. Our findings open up the possibility of highly sensitive miniaturized magneto-optically modulated biosensing.
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