Plasmon transport in graphene investigated by time-resolved electrical measurements.

Abstract

Plasmons, which are collective charge oscillations, could provide a means of confining electromagnetic field to nanoscale structures. Recently, plasmonics using graphene have attracted interest, particularly because of the tunable plasmon dispersion, which will be useful for tunable frequency in cavity applications. However, the carrier density dependence of the dispersion is weak (proportional to n(1/4)) and it is difficult to tune the frequency over orders of magnitude. Here, by exploiting electronic excitation and detection, we carry out time-resolved measurements of a charge pulse travelling in a plasmon mode in graphene corresponding to the gigahertz range. We demonstrate that the plasmon velocity can be changed over two orders of magnitude by applying a magnetic field B and by screening the plasmon electric field with a gate metal; at high B, edge magnetoplasmons, which are plasmons localized at the sample edge, are formed and their velocity depends on B, n and the gate screening effect.