Surface plasmon assisted electron acceleration in photoemission from gold nanopillars

Nagel, Phillip M.; Robinson, Joseph S.; Harteneck, B.; Pfeifer, Thomas; Abel, Mark J.; Prell, James S.; Neumark, Daniel M.; Kaindl, Robert A.; Leone, Stephen R.

doi:10.1016/j.chemphys.2012.03.013

Cited by 43 publications

(36 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…investigations with metallic nanoparticles have shown similar extracted field enhancements 12,13,17,18 and peak fields 9,12,13 , and these high peak fields could lead to nanoparticle damage via electromigration or field evaporation 17,31 . However, over 10 min of continuous illumination, we observe current fluctuations of only ≈2%, and subsequent inspection of the emitters reveals minimal damage.…”

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confidence: 94%

“…When a laser pulse illuminates a metallic nanoparticle, the incident field can resonantly drive collective oscillations of the particle's conduction electrons 23,24 . These localized surface plasmon resonances yield dramatically enhanced local fields, and similar to nanotips, metallic nanoparticles have shown strong-field behaviours in their photoemission currents and energy spectra 9,12,13,[16][17][18] . Here, we report the first measurements of CEP-sensitive, strongfield photoemission from metallic nanoparticles.…”

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confidence: 99%

“…For instance, when an intense laser pulse interacts with an atomic gas, individual cycles of the incident electric field ionize gas atoms and steer the resulting attosecond-duration electrical wavepackets 1,2 . Such field-controlled light-matter interactions form the basis of attosecond science and have recently expanded from gases to solid-state nanostructures [3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18] . Here, we extend these field-controlled interactions to metallic nanoparticles supporting localized surface plasmon resonances.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Optical-field-controlled photoemission from plasmonic nanoparticles

et al. 2016

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At high intensities, light-matter interactions are controlled by the electric field of the exciting light. For instance, when an intense laser pulse interacts with an atomic gas, individual cycles of the incident electric field ionize gas atoms and steer the resulting attosecond-duration electrical wavepackets 1,2 . Such field-controlled light-matter interactions form the basis of attosecond science and have recently expanded from gases to solid-state nanostructures [3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18] . Here, we extend these field-controlled interactions to metallic nanoparticles supporting localized surface plasmon resonances. We demonstrate strong-field, carrier-envelope-phase-sensitive photoemission from arrays of tailored metallic nanoparticles, and we show the influence of the nanoparticle geometry and the plasmon resonance on the phase-sensitive response. Additionally, from a technological standpoint, we push strong-field light-matter interactions to the chip scale. We integrate our plasmonic nanoparticles and experimental geometry in compact, microoptoelectronic devices that operate out of vacuum and under ambient conditions.Moving from low to high optical intensity, photoemission goes from photon-driven to field-controlled. Consider illuminating a metallic surface with an infrared femtosecond laser pulse with electric field F(t) = F 0 A(t) cos(ωt + ϕ), where F 0 is the peak field, A(t) is the normalized pulse envelope, ω is the carrier frequency, and ϕ is the carrier-envelope phase (CEP). When the pulse interacts with the metallic surface, electrons are excited out of the metal and into the surrounding vacuum. At typical incident intensities, this photoemission process is photon-driven: emission is dictated by the pulse's photon energy, that is, ω, and photon flux, that is, the pulse's intensity envelope ∝ |F 0 A(t)| 2 . At high intensities, this photoemission process resembles field-controlled tunnelling. The strong electric field of the pulse deflects the binding potential of the metallic surface and drives electron tunnelling through the distorted barrier. This tunnelling occurs over a timescale τ t = √ 2mW F /eF 0 , where W F is the workfunction of the surface, m is the electron mass, and e is its charge 19,20 . With sufficiently strong F 0 , τ t becomes shorter than the characteristic cycle time of the exciting laser light (τ t < τ cyc = 1/ω), and individual cycles of the driving electric field eject subcycle electrical bursts from the metal and steer these ultrafast currents through the surrounding vacuum 6,8 ; in this strongfield regime, photoemission is controlled by the driving optical electric field and, accordingly, by the CEP, ϕ.In recent years, metallic nanotips have emerged as platforms to non-destructively investigate photoemission in the strong-field regime. When a nanotip is illuminated by a femtosecond laser pulse, the incident field is locally enhanced at the apex of the tip. Due primarily to the tip's sharp geometry, the field enhancement is typically <10, and th...

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Optical-field-controlled photoemission from plasmonic nanoparticles

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“…These non-linear regimes are reached for strong laser pulses with intensities typically just below the damage threshold of the materials. Such interactions can give rise to (sub-optical-cycle) electron emission and acceleration from isolated nanotips [9,10] and nanospheres [11] and from nanostructured surfaces [12,13], the laser-field-driven semi-metallization of dielectrics [14,15] and metals [16], and can induce currents across nanoscale junctions [7]. In all these cases, the highest laser intensity that can be applied to the material depends on parameters such as material composition and quality and the pulse duration.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Optical damage threshold of Au nanowires in strong femtosecond laser fields

Summers¹,

Ramm²,

Paneru³

et al. 2014

Opt. Express

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Ultrashort, intense light pulses permit the study of nanomaterials in the optical non-linear regime, potentially leading to optoelectronics that operate in the petahertz domain. These non-linear regimes are often present just below the damage threshold thus requiring the careful tuning of laser parameters to avoid the melting and disintegration of the materials. Detailed studies of the damage threshold of nanoscale materials are therefore needed. We present results on the damage threshold of Au nanowires when illuminated by intense femtosecond pulses. These nanowires were synthesized with the directed electrochemical nanowire assembly (DENA) process in two configurations: (1) free-standing Au nanowires on W electrodes and (2) Au nanowires attached to fused silica slides. In both cases the wires have a single-crystalline structure. For laser pulses with durations of 108 fs and 32 fs at 790 nm at a repetition rate of 2 kHz, we find that the free-standing nanowires melt at intensities close to 3 TW/cm 2 and 7.5 TW/cm 2 , respectively. The Au nanowires attached to silica slides melt at slightly higher intensities, just above 10 TW/cm 2 for 32 fs pulses. Our results can be explained with an electron-phonon interaction model that describes the absorbed laser energy and subsequent heat conduction across the wire. 4702-4705 (1995). 30. G. Easley, "Generation of nonequilibrium electron and lattice temperatures in copper by picosecond laser pulses," Phys. Rev. B 33, 2144-2145 (1986). 31. Z. Lin, L. Zhigilei, and V. Celli, "Electron-phonon coupling and electron heat capacity of metals under conditions of strong electron-phonon nonequilibrium," Phys. Rev. B 77, 075133 (2008). 32. S. I. Anisimov, B. Kapeliovich, and T. Perel'man, "Electron emission from metal surfaces exposed to ultrashort laser pulses," Sov. Phys. JETP 39, 375-377 (1975

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“…In order to achieve the necessary asymmetric electric field, ponderomotive electron acceleration has been studied using a variety of platforms including: strong-field laser electron acceleration in vacuum [141][142][143], surface plasmon electron acceleration on metallic films and nanostructures [144][145][146], and within nanoplasmonic semiconductor devices [147,148]. For the purpose of this review, the focus is on nanoscale devices as the other methods are inherently macroscale and require high-intensity amplified laser pulses (I ≥ 10 12 W/cm 2 ).…”

Section: Ponderomotive Electron Accelerationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Integrated nanoplasmonic waveguides for magnetic, nonlinear, and strong-field devices

et al. 2016

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Abstract:As modern complementary-metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) circuitry rapidly approaches fundamental speed and bandwidth limitations, optical platforms have become promising candidates to circumvent these limits and facilitate massive increases in computational power. To compete with high density CMOS circuitry, optical technology within the plasmonic regime is desirable, because of the sub-diffraction limited confinement of electromagnetic energy, large optical bandwidth, and ultrafast processing capabilities. As such, nanoplasmonic waveguides act as nanoscale conduits for optical signals, thereby forming the backbone of such a platform. In recent years, significant research interest has developed to uncover the fundamental physics governing phenomena occurring within nanoplasmonic waveguides, and to implement unique optical devices. In doing so, a wide variety of material properties have been exploited. CMOS-compatible materials facilitate passive plasmonic routing devices for directing the confined radiation. Magnetic materials facilitate time-reversal symmetry breaking, aiding in the development of nonreciprocal isolators or modulators. Additionally, strong confinement and enhancement of electric fields within such waveguides require the use of materials with high nonlinear coefficients to achieve increased nonlinear optical phenomenon in a nanoscale footprint. Furthermore, this enhancement and confinement of the fields facilitate the study of strong-field effects within the solid-state environment of the waveguide. Here, we review current stateof-the-art physics and applications of nanoplasmonic waveguides pertaining to passive, magnetoplasmonic, nonlinear, and strong-field devices. Such components are essential elements in integrated optical circuitry, and each fulfill specific roles in truly developing a chip-scale plasmonic computing architecture.

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Surface plasmon assisted electron acceleration in photoemission from gold nanopillars

Cited by 43 publications

References 31 publications

Optical-field-controlled photoemission from plasmonic nanoparticles

Optical-field-controlled photoemission from plasmonic nanoparticles

Optical damage threshold of Au nanowires in strong femtosecond laser fields

Integrated nanoplasmonic waveguides for magnetic, nonlinear, and strong-field devices

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