arXiv subjects

Roderick B. Davidson II

Publications and source records attributed to Roderick B. Davidson II.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2017

Spatially and spectrally resolved orbital angular momentum interactions in plasmonic vortex generators

Understanding the near-field electromagnetic interactions that produce optical orbital angular momentum (OAM) is central to the integration of twisted light into nanotechnology. Here, we examine the cathodoluminescence (CL) of plasmonic vortices carrying OAM generated in spiral nanostructures through scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM). The nanospiral geometry defines the photonic local density of states (LDOS) sampled by STEM-CL, which provides access to the phase and amplitude of the plasmonic vortex with nanometer spatial and meV spectral resolution. We map the full spectral dispersion of the plasmonic vortex in the spiral structure and examine the effects of increasing topological charge on the plasmon phase and amplitude in the detected CL signal. The vortex is mapped in CL over a broad spectral range, and deviations between the predicted and detected positions of near-field optical signatures of as much as 5 per cent are observed. Finally, enhanced luminescence is observed from concentric spirals of like handedness compared to that from concentric spirals of opposite handedness, indicating the potential to couple plasmonic vortices to chiral nanostructures for sensitive detection and manipulation of optical OAM.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2016

Ultrafast Plasmonic Control of Second Harmonic Generation

Efficient frequency conversion techniques are crucial to the development of plasmonic metasurfaces for information processing and signal modulation. In principle, nanoscale electric-field confinement in nonlinear materials enables higher harmonic conversion efficiencies per unit volume than those attainable in bulk materials. Here we demonstrate efficient second-harmonic generation (SHG) in a serrated nanogap plasmonic geometry that generates steep electric field gradients on a dielectric metasurface. An ultrafast pump is used to control plasmon-induced electric fields in a thin-film material with inversion symmetry that, without plasmonic enhancement, does not exhibit an an even-order nonlinear optical response. The temporal evolution of the plasmonic near-field is characterized with ~100as resolution using a novel nonlinear interferometric technique. The ability to manipulate nonlinear signals in a metamaterial geometry as demonstrated here is indispensable both to understanding the ultrafast nonlinear response of nanoscale materials, and to producing active, optically reconfigurable plasmonic devices

physics.optics↗

arXiv2015

Efficient Forward Second-Harmonic Generation from Planar Archimedean Nanospirals

The enhanced electric field at plasmonic resonances in nanoscale antennas can lead to efficient harmonic generation, especially when the plasmonic geometry is asymmetric on either inter-particle or intra-particle levels. The planar Archimedean nanospiral offers a unique geometrical asymmetry for second-harmonic generation (SHG) because the SHG results neither from arranging centrosymmetric nanoparticles in asymmetric groupings, nor from non-centrosymmetric nanoparticles that retain a local axis of symmetry. Here we report forward SHG from planar arrays of Archimedean nanospirals using 15 fs pulse from a Ti:sapphire oscillator tuned to 800 nm wavelength. The measured harmonic-generation efficiencies are 2.6*10-9, 8*10-9 and 1.3*10-8 for left-handed circular, linear, and right-handed circular polarizations, respectively. The uncoated nanospirals are stable under average power loading of as much as 300 uW per nanoparticle. The nanospirals also exhibit a selective conversion between polarization states. These experiments show that the intrinsic asymmetry of the nanospirals results in a highly efficient, two-dimensional harmonic generator that can be incorporated into metasurface optics.

physics.optics↗