Plasmonics on the slope of enlightenment: the role of transition metal nitrides

Abstract

The key problem currently faced by plasmonics is related to material limitations. After almost two decades of extreme excitement and research largely based on the use of noble metals, scientists have come to a consensus on the importance of exploring alternative plasmonic materials to address application-specific challenges to enable the development of new functional devices. Such a change in motivation will undoubtedly lead to significant advancements in plasmonics technology transfer and could have a revolutionary impact on nanophotonic technologies in general. Here, we report on one of the approaches that, together with other new material platforms, mark an insightful technology-driven era for plasmonics. Our study focuses on transition metal nitrides as refractory plasmonic materials that exhibit appealing optical properties in the visible and near infrared regions, along with high temperature durability. We take heat-assisted magnetic recording as a case study for plasmonic technology and show that a titanium nitride antenna satisfies the requirements for an optically efficient, durable near field transducer paving the way to the next-generation data recording systems.

Investigation of electrical and optical properties of low temperature titanium nitride grown by rf-magnetron sputtering

“…Transmittance and reflectance spectra of produced films are shown on figure 5. These data well correlate with the other references [1,2]. Films exhibit a low reflection band in 350-600 nm.…”

Confinement effects on the solar thermal heating process of TiN nanoparticle solutions

“…The Lorentz oscillator strengths are ω L,1 ≈ 6.5 eV and ω L,2 = 1.5033 eV, the Lorentz energies are ω 0,1 = 4.07 eV and ω 0,2 = 2.02 eV, and the Lorentz damping parameters are γ 1 = 1.42 eV and γ 1 = 1.42 eV [25]. The calculated optical spectrum of TiN nanoparticle is relatively close to that of the gold counterpart [11][12][13]. For nanoparticles of 50-nm radius dispersed in water, our numerical calculations show that the resonance wavelength of the surface plasmon of TiN sphere is at about 600 nm, while that of gold sphere is located at approximately 530 nm.…”

Solar-Powered Plasmon-Enhanced Heterogeneous Catalysis

“…Despite the few theoretical models and experimental observations that have recently appeared, a systematic study of the fundamental physics of LSPR and of the interaction between LSPR and a nearby semiconductor or molecule has yet to be provided. In this scenario, we are convinced that time-resolved x-ray spectroscopies, both with synchrotron and free-electron laser source as well as on table top stations, will play a fundamental role in the advancement of the knowledge on energetic carrier distribution and lifetime, and on their interaction with the electronic levels of molecules and semiconductors [58,82,142,143]. Indeed, through this basic information, it will be possible to op- timize the efficiency and selectivity of plasmon-assisted chemical transformations.…”