Increased rise time of electron temperature during adiabatic plasmon focusing.

ABSTRACT: Decay of plasmons to hot carriers has recently attracted considerable interest for fundamental studies and applications in quantum plasmonics. Although plasmon-assisted hot carriers in metals have already enabled remarkable physical and chemical phenomena, much remains to be understood to engineer devices. Here, we present an analysis of the spatio-temporal dynamics of hot electrons in an emblematic plasmonic device, the adiabatic nanofocusing surface-plasmon taper. With femtosecond-resolution measurements, we confirm the extraordinary capability of plasmonic tapers to generate hot carriers by slowing down plasmons at the taper apex. The measurements also evidence a substantial increase of the "lifetime" of the electron gas temperature at the apex. This interesting effect is interpreted as

SUBMITTER: Lozan O 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5698320 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature