This proposal focuses on electromagnetic transport at optical frequencies in chains of noncontacting metal nanoparticles (NP). These may serve as the basis of novel devices and photonic structures, and to enable additional functionalities in existing devices. The hybrid plasmon-electromagnetic excitations underlying this transport are plasmon polaritons. The project will be carried out in the group of David Citrin at Georgia Tech. The proposed research is of broad interest across several fields of electrical engineering and device physics. The key issues are to identify and study novel effects and to evaluate their suitability for device applications. Intellectual Merit: The proposed work seeks to facilitate the exploitation of nanoplasmonics by enabling new nonlinear devices and by enhancing the functionalities of existing devices. As such, the work may have widespread applicability to enable numerous applications in optoelectronics, photonics, biotechnology, and nanotechnology. The program will fill the gap between fundamental understanding of single NP's and the fabrication of devices. As such, the research will elucidate the mechanisms of electromagnetic transport in structures composed of metal NP's, and then use this knowledge to ascertain the feasibility and performance of novel device concepts.
Broader Impact: Education of graduate and undergraduate students is a priority. The research, uniting nanotechnology with optoelectronics and photonics, provides excellent multidisciplinary training. A key component of the proposed project is to further cooperation between Schools at the Georgia Institute of Technology, including Electrical and Computer Engineering, Material Science and Engineering, and Chemistry. The PI is preparing for a new special topics course he will give Fall 2005 on Optical Nanostructures; metal NP's will form a module for the course. In addition, the work will contribute to the series of "Nanotalks" the PI has started to develop for undergraduates working in the group. We will also leverage off existing multidisciplinary structures, such as the Center for Optical Polymers at Georgia Tech. The results will be widely disseminated; they will be published in the engineering and scientific literature and presented at conferences. The work may enable new classes of linear and nonlinear, passive and active nanoscale photonic and optoelectronic devices. These include more traditional applications, such as interconnects, but also may emnable applications in biology and medicine in which the delivery of optical energy within regions of less than a wavelength is required.
