Quantitative analysis of localized surface plasmons based on molecular probing.

Deeb, Claire; Bachelot, Renaud; Plain, Jérôme; Baudrion, Anne-Laure; Jradi, Safi; Bouhelier, Alexandre; Soppera, Olivier; Jain, Prashant K et al. · ACS Nano · 2010

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

We report on the quantitative characterization of the plasmonic optical near-field of a single silver nanoparticle. Our approach relies on nanoscale molecular molding of the confined electromagnetic field by photoactivated molecules. We were able to directly image the dipolar profile of the near-field distribution with a resolution better than 10 nm and to quantify the near-field depth and its enhancement factor. A single nanoparticle spectral signature was also assessed. This quantitative characterization constitutes a prerequisite for developing nanophotonic applications.