Mode matching for optimal plasmonic nonlinear generation

ORAL

Abstract

Nanostructures and metamaterials have attracted interest in the nonlinear optics community due to the possibility of engineering their nonlinear responses; however, the underlying physics to describe nonlinear light generation in nanostructures and the design rules to maximize the emission are still under debate. We study the geometry dependence of the second harmonic and third harmonic emission from gold nanostructures, by designing arrays of nanostructures whose geometry varies from bars to split ring resonators. We fix the length (and volume) of the nanostructure on one axis, and change the morphology from a split ring resonator on the other axis. We observed that the optimal second harmonic generation does not occur at the morphology indicated by a nonlinear oscillator model with parameters derived from the far field transmission and is not maximized by a spectral overlap of the plasmonic modes; however, we find a near field overlap integral and mode matching considerations accurately predict the optimal geometry.

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Authors

  • Kevin O'Brien

    • NSF Nano-scale Science and Engineering Center (NSEC), University of California, Berkeley, California

  • Haim Suchowski

    • NSF Nano-scale Science and Engineering Center (NSEC), University of California, Berkeley, California
    • NSF Nano-scale Science and Engineering Center (NSEC), University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, USA

  • Jun Suk Rho

    • NSF Nano-scale Science and Engineering Center (NSEC), University of California, Berkeley, California

  • Boubacar Kante

    • NSF Nano-scale Science and Engineering Center (NSEC), University of California, Berkeley, California
    • NSF Nanoscale Science and Engineering Centre, 3112 Etcheverry Hall, University of California, Berkeley

  • Xiaobo Yin

    • UC Berkeley
    • NSF Nano-scale Science and Engineering Center (NSEC), University of California, Berkeley, California
    • University of California, Berkeley

  • Xiang Zhang

    • UC Berkeley
    • NSF Nano-scale Science and Engineering Center (NSEC), University of California, Berkeley, California
    • University of California, Berkeley
    • University of California-Berkeley