Ellipsometry Techniques and Its Advanced Applications in Plasmonics

Abstract

Ellipsometry is a versatile optical measurement technique which uses polarized light as a probe to characterize various properties of materials viz. film thickness, dielectric functions, uniformity, etc. by detecting the change in the polarization state. In spite of the basic applications, ellipsometry technique is highly used in advanced plasmonic applications like characterization of plasmonic -waveguides, -switches, -tweezers, -circuits, metamaterials, etc. In this chapter, we present the sub-wavelength plasmonic response of Ag and Au nanoparticle-nanowire arrays and nanodot patterns which can be characterized using spectroscopic, generalized, and Mueller matrix ellipsometry modes. In particular, probing local surface plasmon resonance (LSPR), tuning LSPR by varying size, shape, particle number density, or interparticle-gap along or across the nanoparticle arrays, probing ordering of metal nanoparticles along the arrays, detecting in-plane or out-of-plane optical anisotropies, optical modelling of anisotropic systems, directional dielectric functions of anisotropic arrangement of metal nanoparticles, annealing-dependent lost-of-anisotropy are of prime interest. Introduction to Optics and Spectroscopic EllipsometryA branch of physics which deals with the light and sight is called optics. The nature and properties of light including their interaction with matter is studied under optics