In this work, the structural and optical properties of metal nanoparticles fabricated on various substrates have been investigated. The particles were fabricated by electron beam lithography (EBL) and dewetting of a thin metal film. The advantages and disadvantages of these two fabrication techniques are discussed by considering the properties of the nanoparticles and the applicability to large area substrates. Being a practical fabrication method, dewetting can be applied to any substrate with either small or large surfaces. For comparison between different sample types, some process parameters such as film thickness, annealing temperature and duration were fixed during the whole study. Gold (Au) and silver (Ag) were preferred for nanoparticle formation because of their superior optical properties for solar cell applications. We used silicon (Si), silicon nitride (Si3N4), silicon dioxide (SiO2) and indium tin oxide (ITO) on glass, and textured Si as the substrate for the particle formation. These substrates are commonly used in solar cell technology for different purposes. The formation of the metal nanoparticles, their size and size distribution were monitored by Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). We performed a dimension analysis on the SEM images using a program called Gwyddion. We observed that the substrate type greatly affects particle mean size, suggesting a dependence of the dewetting process on the interface properties. Moreover, the effect of the annealing temperature was found to be a function of the substrate type. Scattering measurements have been carried out in order to observe the localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) conditions. The effect of the particle size and the dielectric environment was observed as a shift in the plasmon resonance peak position along the wavelength axis. As expected from the theory, the resonance peaks shift to longer wavelengths with increasing particle size and dielectric constant. In order to compare the experimental results with the theory, Mie theory was applied to calculate the plasmon resonance peaks. We obtained fairly well agreement between the experimental and theoretical results. In this study, nanoparticles were assumed to be in contact with more than one medium, namely air and the underlying substrate. Finally, we have reached a successful methodology and knowledge accumulation for the metal particle formation on variety of substrates by the dewetting technique. It is clear that this knowledge can form basis for the photovoltaic applications.

In this study, optical behavior of metal nanoparticles having dimensions smaller than the wavelength of visible light is studied experimentally and numerically. Gold (Au) and silver (Ag) nanoparticles are studied due to their superior optical properties when compared to other metals. A compact code based on Discrete Dipole Approximation (DDA) is developed to compute extinction efficiencies of nanoparticles with various different properties such as material, dimension and geometry. To obtain self consistent nanoparticle arrays with well defined geometries and dimensions, Electron Beam Lithography (EBL) technique is mainly used as the manufacturing method. Dose parameters required to produce nanoparticles with dimensions down to 50 nm over substrates with different electrical conductivities are determined. Beam current is found to affect the doseV size relation. The use of thin Au films as antistatic layer for e-beam patterning over insulating substrates is considered and production steps, involving instabilities due to contaminants introduced to the system during additional removal steps, are clarified. 4 nm thick Au layer is found to provide sufficient conductivity for e-beam patterning over insulating substrates. An optical setup capable of performing transmittance and reflectance measurements of samples having small areas patterned with EBL is designed. Sizes of the metal nanoparticles are determined by scanning electron microscope (SEM) and spectral data obtained using the optical setup is analyzed to find out the parameters affecting the localized surface plasmon resonances (LSPR). Arrays of particles with diameters between 50 &ndash / 200 nm are produced and optically analyzed. Size and shape of the nanoparticles are found to affect the resonance behavior. Furthermore, lattice constants of the particle arrays and surrounding medium are also shown to influence the reflectance spectra. Axes with different lengths in ellipsoidal nanoparticles are observed to cause distinguishable resonance peaks when illuminated with polarized light. Peak intensities obtained from both polarizations are observed to decrease under unpolarized illumination. Binary systems consisting of nanosized particles and holes provided better contrast for transmitted light.

Diplomová práce se zabývá fotoluminiscencí polovodičových materiálů zesílené plazmonovými polaritony. Je popsána základní teorie interakce mezi lokalizovanými povrchovými plazmonovými polaritony a fotoluminiscenčními látkami. Dva mechanismy, které mohou vést k fotoluminiscenci zesílené plazmonovými polaritony jsou diskutovány. Následně je popsán návrh aparatury pro měření fotoluminiscence a způsob její realizace. Funkčnost aparatury je ověřena měřením fotoluminiscenčních spekter objemového GaN, nanokrystalického Si a CdTe kvantových teček. Nakonec je zkoumána metoda přípravy vzorků sestávajících z kovových nanokuliček a fotoluminiscenčně aktívních CdTe kvantových teček.

"There is plenty of room at the bottom." This bold and prophetic statement from Nobel laureate Richard Feynman back in 1950s at Cal Tech launched the Nano Age and predicted, quite accurately, the explosion in nanoscience and nanotechnology. Now this is a fast developing area in both science and technology. Many think this would bring the greatest technological revolution in the history of mankind. To understand electronic and optical properties of nanostructures, the following problems have been studied. In particular, intensity of mid-infrared light transmitted through a metallic diffraction grating has been theoretically studied. It has been shown that for s-polarized light the enhancement of the transmitted light is much stronger than for p-polarized light. By tuning the parameters of the diffraction grating enhancement can be increased by a few orders of magnitude. The spatial distribution of the transmitted light is highly nonuniform with very sharp peaks, which have the spatial widths about 10 nm. Furthermore, under the ultra fast response in nanostructures, the following two related goals have been proved: (a) the two-photon coherent control allows one to dynamically control electron emission from randomly rough surfaces, which is localized within a few nanometers. (b) the photoelectron emission from metal nanostructures in the strong-field (quasistationary) regime allows coherent control with extremely high contrast, suitable for nanoelectronics applications. To investigate the electron transport properties of two dimensional carbon called graphene, a localization of an electron in a graphene quantum dot with a sharp boundary has been considered. It has been found that if the parameters of the confinement potential satisfy a special condition then the electron can be strongly localized in such quantum dot. Also the energy spectra of an electron in a graphene quantum ring has been analyzed. Furthermore, it has been shown that in a double dot system some energy states becomes strongly localized with an infinite trapping time. Such states are achieved only at one value of the inter-dot separation. Also a periodic array of quantum dots in graphene have been considered. In this case the states with infinitely large trapping time are realized at all values of inter-dot separation smaller than some critical value.

The diploma thesis deals with the optical response of resonant infrared antennas on silicon dioxide thin film. At first, theory of electromagnetism at metal/dielectric interfaces is described. In the next part, experimental and numerical methods used in the thesis are described and strong coupling between two systems is explained. In the final part of the thesis, the optical response of resonant infrared antennas on a silicon dioxide thin film is studied by Fourier transform Infrared Spectroscopy and FDTD simulations which both show the strong coupling between localized plasmons and phonons in silicon dioxide.

The presented diploma thesis is focused on the Localized Surface Plasmons (LSP). The far-field optical response of the colloidal solutions of gold nanoparticles caused by LSP was investigated and compared with the numerical calculations. For the simulations, the Discrete Dipole Approximation (DDA) and Finite-Difference Time Domain (FDTD) techniques were employed. In particular, the shape and size effects of spherical particles and nanorods were studied. The simulations performed by both methods are in a good agreement for the spheres. For the nanorods, the resonance was found to be affected markedly by their geometry. Also, broader resonance peaks were found. This effect was assigned to the sample size distribution and its influence is discussed by comparing the simulations with experiments. In addition, synthesis of nanorods was carried out as well. Finally, the results on the study of optical properties of silver clusters formed under equilibrium conditions are presented.

This report examines the cross sections of silver microresonators subjected to an incident light with different polarization. The microresonators had different geometries with and without broken symmetries. Cross section profiles for different microresonator configurations are interesting for the division of Material Physics, Uppsala University, when designing metamaterials to tune the optical response of the material. The goal is to form an insight of how the optical response can be tuned by choosing different geometries, varying the size and polarization of the incident light. In this project computer simulations in COMSOL were made to simulate the optical response of different microresonators. When the incident light interact with the silver microresonators plasmonic excitations is generated which in turn interacts with the light changing the phase and therefore the optical response. By increasing the radius of the disk silver microresonantors the resonance was found to shift to lower energies. For a geometry with a disk microresonator inside a ring microresonator the Fano resonances were dependent of the radius of the disk microresonator.

Tato práce se zabývá mikroskopickými technikami využívajícími elektronový a iontový svazek pro přípravu a charakterizaci plazmonických nanostruktur. Analytická elektronová mikroskopie je představena se zaměřením na aplikace v oblasti plazmoniky. Důraz je kladen na spektroskopii energiových ztrát elektronů (EELS) a katodoluminiscenci. Dále je diskutována výroba plazmonických vzorků pro transmisní elektronovou mikroskopii, přičemž je kladen důraz na litografii iontovým svazkem a na přípravu vzorků za použití chemicky syntetizovaných částic ve vodném roztoku. Hlavní výzkumné výsledky práce jsou rozděleny do čtyř částí. První část se věnuje komparativní studii plazmonických antén vyrobených elektronovou a iontovou litografií. Přestože obě techniky jsou vhodné pro výrobu plazmonických antén, elektronová litografie by měla být upřednostňována před iontovou litografií díky lepší kvalitě výsledných antén a jejich silnější plazmonické odezvě. Antény vyrobené iontovou litografií mají neostré okraje, vykazují výrazné kolísání tloušťky a jsou také silně kontaminovány nejen organickými kontaminanty, ale také rezidui po iontové litografii včetně implantovaných iontů z iontového svazku a atomů titanové adhezivní vrstvy. Ve druhé části je zkoumán Babinetův princip komplementarity pro plazmonické nanostruktury na sérii zlatých diskových antén a komplementárních apertur ve zlaté vrstvě s různými průměry. Komplementarita je potvrzena pro základní plazmonické vlastnosti jako rezonanční energie, ale rozdíly způsobené omezenou platností Babinetova principu jsou patrné například pro prostorové rozložení blízkého pole plazmonových polaritonů. Třetí část shrnuje studii nanostruktur s funkčními vlastnostmi souvisejícími s lokálním zesílením elektrického a magnetického pole. Obzvlášť silné lokální zesílení pole vykazují plazmonické antény tvaru bowtie a diabolo, a to jak ve formě částic, tak ve formě apertur. Naše studie umožnila identifikovat několik módů lokalizovaných povrchových plazmonů v těchto anténách a charakterizovat jejich vlastnosti včetně energie módu, rozložení elektrické a magnetické složky blízkého pole módu, a kvalitativní rozložení uzlů náboje a proudu souvisejících oscilací elektronového plynu. Dále jsme studovali laditelnost energií módů v blízké infračervené a viditelné spektrální oblasti a zaměřili jsme se na Babinetovskou komplementaritu mezi přímými a invertovanými anténami. Poslední část je zaměřena na stříbrný amalgám, nový a velmi perspektivní plazmonický materiál. Změnou velikosti stříbrných amalgámových nanostruktur může být jejich plazmonová rezonance laděna od oblasti ultrafialového záření přes celou viditelnou až po infračervenou oblast. Jelikož stříbrný amalgám je dobře prozkoumán v oblasti elektrochemie, stříbrné amalgámové nanočástice otevírají možnost kombinovat plazmoniku a elektrochemii dohromady.

The diploma thesis deals with plasmonic nanostructures for visible eventually near-infrared region of electromagnetic spectrum. At first, there are discussed basic terms which are necessary for description of plasmonic nanostructures and their properties. Then the resonant properties of gold nanoantennas on a fused silica substrate and in proximity of nanocrystalline diamond are addressed. FDTD simulations are used for an assesment of resonant properties and local electric field enhancement of these nanostructures. Possible manufacturing methods of the antennas and techniques for the measurement of their properties are mentioned at the end of the thesis.

Malgré leurs contribution dans plusieurs domaines, les biopuces à lecture plasmonique conventionnelles basées sur l'utilisation d’un film métallique plan d'or, sont limitées en terme de sensibilité surtout quand il s'agit de détecter des molécules de faible masse molaire à l’état de trace.Dans ce cadre, nous étudions numériquement et expérimentalement le potentiel de détection d’interactions biomoléculaires d’une nouvelle génération de biopuces à lecture plasmonique intégrant un film métallique micro-nano-structurée en réseau rectangulaire 1D. L’étude numérique développée met en œuvre une méthode hybride, basée sur la combinaison de deux méthodes classiques : la méthode des éléments finis et la méthode modale de Fourier. Grâce à ce nouvel outil numérique, nous présentons une cartographie exhaustive du potentiel de détection d’une couche biologique, en variant les paramètres de la structuration liés aux dimensions du réseau. La réponse de la biopuce à l’accrochage de biomolécules est ensuite interprétée théoriquement par les différents phénomènes plasmoniques notamment les «points chauds» et les bandes plasmoniques interdites. Nos calculs soulignent l'importance de l’exploitation du confinement de la lumière à travers la structuration sub-longueur d’onde des surfaces plasmoniques. Ceci permet non seulement d’optimiser les paramètres géométriques afin d’améliorer la sensibilité vis-à-vis de la réponse d’une biopuce conventionnelle, mais aussi de mettre en évidence la transition entre le régime où les plasmons propagatifs dominent et le régime où les plasmons localisés dominent. De nouvelles figures de mérite sont introduites pour évaluer les performances des biopuces structurées.Cette étude montre également que de nouvelles opportunités pour améliorer davantage la bio-sensibilité sont offertes, si la localisation de biomolécules peut être effectuée dans les régions où le champ électrique est amplifié et confiné. / Surface plasmons resonance imaging with continuous thin metallic films have become a central tool for the study of biomolecular interactions. However, in order to extend the field of applications of surface plasmons resonance systems to the trace detection of biomolecules having low molecular weight, a change in the plasmonic sensing methodology is needed. In this study, we investigate theoretically and experimentally the sensing potential of 2D nano- and micro- ribbon grating structuration on the surface of Kretschmann-based surface plasmon resonance biosensors when they are used for detection of biomolecular binding events. Numerical simulations were carried out by employing a fast and novel model based on the hybridization of two classical methods, the Fourier Modal Method and the Finite Element Method. Our calculations confirm the importance of light manipulation by means of structuration of the plasmonic thin film surfaces on the nano- and micro- scales. Not only does it highlight the geometric parameters that allow the sensitivity enhancement, and associated figures of merit, compared with the response of the conventional surface plasmon resonance biosensor based on a flat surface, but it also describes the transition from the regime where the propagating surface plasmon mode dominates to the regime where the localized surface plasmon mode dominates. An exhaustive mapping of the biosensing potential of the nano- and micro- structured biosensors surface is presented, varying the structural parameters related to the ribbon grating dimensions. New figures of merit are introduced to evaluate the performance of the structured biosensors. The structuration also leads to the creation of regions on biosensor chips that are characterized by strongly enhanced electromagnetic fields. New opportunities for further improving the bio-sensitivity are offered if localization of biomolecules can be carried out in these regions of high electromagnetic fields enhancement and confined.