Efficient localized surface plasmon source enabled by resonant inelastic electron tunneling

Abstract

Electrically-driven localized surface plasmon (LSP) sources is an important component for future plasmonic devices in various fields like on-chip communication and sensing. One major challenge is to incorporate small footprint, high modulation speed, and high energy efficiency into one practical system. We experimentally demonstrate a resonant inelastic electron tunneling (RIET) based LSP source working at visible and near-infrared frequencies with exceptionally high quantum efficiency. We believe this new LSP source will open up various new opportunities in plasmonic applications.