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Metallic nanostructures support resonant oscillations of their conduction band electrons called localized surface plasmon resonances. Plasmons couple efficiently to light and have enabled a new class of technology for the manipulation of light at the nanoscale. Nanostructures that support plasmon resonances have the potential for a wide range of applications such as enhanced optical spectroscopy techniques for chemical- and bio-sensing, cancer diagnosis and therapy, metamaterials, and energy harvesting. As the field of plasmonics has progressed, these applications have become more sophisticated, requiring increasingly complex nanostructures. For example, coupled nanostructures of two or more nanoparticles are used extensively in plasmon-enhanced spectroscopy techniques because they exhibit extremely large optical field enhancements. Asymmetric nanostructures, such as nanocups (metallic semishells), have been shown to support magnetic modes that could be used in metamaterials applications. This class of complex plasmonic nanostructures holds great potential for both the observation of new physical phenomena and practical applications. This thesis will focus on the fabrication and characterization of several examples of these complex nanostructures using darkfield spectroscopy. The plasmon modes of a dimer consisting of two nanoshells are investigated in both the separated and conductively overlapping regimes and are interpreted using the plasmon hybridization model. Next, coupled nanoclusters of seven particles arranged in a hexagonal pattern are studied. It is found that these nanoclusters support Fano resonances due to the coupling and interference of degenerate subradiant and superradiant plasmon modes. These structures are found to have an extremely high sensitivity to the local dielectric environment, making them attractive for biosensing applications. Variations on the nanocluster geometry are then explored, and it is observed that by adding more particles and varying their sizes, the lineshape of the Fano resonance can be precisely engineered. The underlying subradiant and superradiant modes are then analyzed using cathodoluminescence imaging and spectroscopy. Finally the plasmon modes of asymmetric nanostructures are measured. Nanoeggs (nanoshells with an offset core) and nanocups (metallic semishells) are fabricated by electron beam induced ablation, and their plasmon modes are measured. The plasmon modes of nanocups are studied in detail, and nanocups are found to support both electric and magnetic plasmons.

Submitted by Geandra Rodrigues (geandrar@gmail.com) on 2018-09-20T12:04:51Z No. of bitstreams: 1 flaviacamposmarques.pdf: 5444687 bytes, checksum: ee4ddf83c1895a69c8df07fd21fede21 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Adriana Oliveira (adriana.oliveira@ufjf.edu.br) on 2018-10-01T19:24:51Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 flaviacamposmarques.pdf: 5444687 bytes, checksum: ee4ddf83c1895a69c8df07fd21fede21 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-10-01T19:24:51Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 flaviacamposmarques.pdf: 5444687 bytes, checksum: ee4ddf83c1895a69c8df07fd21fede21 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2018-07-26 / O presente trabalho abrange as sínteses e caracterizações nanobastões de ouro (AuNB) e nanopartículas esféricas de ouro e prata (AuNE e AgNE) recobertos por uma camada ultrafina de óxido de manganês, silício ou titânio. Utilizaram-se para caracterização das camadas dielétricas as técnicas UV-VIS, espectroscopia de absorção no infravermelho, difração raio X (XRD), voltametria cíclica (CV) e microscopia eletrônica de transmissão (TEM). As nanoestruturas plasmônicas (NP) utilizadas como substratos nas aplicações espectroscópicas são instável na presença de muitos analitos, o que pode levar à agregação e posteriormente à precipitação do material, inviabilizando a caracterização do adsorbato. O recobrimento das NP por camadas dielétricas aumenta fortemente a sua estabilidade estrutural, conservando suas propriedades plasmônicas. Nesse intuito, o escopo desse trabalho visou recobrir os AuNB por MnO2, SiO2 ou TiO2 e AuNE ou AgNE por TiO2 e verificar a sua aplicabilidade nas técnicas espectroscópicas de superfície. Por meio do deslocamento da banda de ressonância de plasmon de superfície localizado foi possível acompanhar a formação e o aumento da espessura da camada dielétrica adsorvida na interface do metal quando comparados às NP sem recobrimento, que são resultados das mudanças no índice de refração local às NP. A técnica de XRD foi utilizada para confirmar a formação dos materiais híbridos; por essa técnica foram observados halo não-cristalinos atribuídos aos óxidos e picos de difração característicos de nanoestruturas metálicas de Au. Além disso, foi possível caracterizar as NP de Au e Ag com os óxidos por meio da análise por TEM, em que foram observados recobrimentos uniformes das camadas de MnO2, SiO2 ou TiO2 envolvendo o núcleo metálico com espessuras inferiores a 6 nm. O uso da técnica de CV permitiu verificar que as cascas de óxidos não apresentaram orifícios. Os materiais híbridos otimizados foram utilizados como substratos espalhamento Raman intensificado por superfície (SERS) e fluorescência intensificada por superfície (SEF) para análise de adsorção da molécula IR-820. As medidas SERS utilizando as radiações incidentes 633 e 1064 nm mostraram um aumento significativo nas intensidades relativas de alguns modos vibracionais comparado ao espectro Raman da molécula livre, através dos quais foram realizadas as atribuições dos modos vibracionais. Já as medidas SEF obtidas com a radiação incidente 785 nm, observou-se um aumento da intensidade SEF para espessuras maiores de óxido, atribuídas ao aumento da distância entre adsorbato e a superfície condutora do metal. Além disso, foi estudada por SERS a adsorção de ácido 3-mercaptopropiônico (HMP) e ácido 4-mercaptobenzoico (HMB) nessas NP recobertas, e através dos resultados foram atribuídos os modos vibracionais mais significativos. Através dessas atribuições foi possível verificar o sitio de adsorção e a orientação das moléculas HMP e HMB. Os resultados obtidos confirmaram a formação da camada de óxido envolvendo o núcleo metálico. Além disso, as aplicações dos efeitos SERS e SEF mostraram-se bastante promissoras para os substratos sintetizados. / The present work covers the syntheses and characterizations of gold nanorods (AuNR) and gold and silver spherical nanoparticles (AuSN and AgSN) coated with ultrathin layers of manganese, silicon or titanium oxide. Dielectric layers were characterized by UV-Vis, infrared absorption spectroscopy, X ray diffraction (XRD), cyclic voltammetry (CV) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) techniques. Plasmonic nanostructures (PN) which are used as substrates in spectroscopic applications are unstable in the presence of many analytes, thus leading to aggregation and subsequent precipitation. This instability makes the characterization of the adsorbate much more challenging. Coating PN with dielectric layers strongly increases its structural stability, while retaining their plasmonic properties. To this end, the scope of this work was to cover AuNR by ultrathin layers of MnO2, SiO2 or TiO2 and AuNS or AgNS by TiO2 and verify its applicability in surface spectroscopic techniques. By means of displacement of the localized surface plasmon resonance band, it was possible to follow the formation and increase of the thickness of the dielectric layer adsorbed at the interface of the metal when compared to PN without coating, which are results of the changes in the local refractive index to PN. The XRD technique was used to confirm the formation of the hybrid materials. It was observed non-crystalline haloes attributed to the oxides and diffraction peaks characteristic of Au metallic nanostructures. Moreover, it was possible to characterize the Ag and Au PN with oxides by means of analysis by TEM, wherein was possible to confirm the presence of uniform layer coatings of MnO2, SiO2 or TiO2 surrounding the metallic core with a thickness below 6 nm. The use of the CV technique allowed verifying that the oxide shells did not have pinholes. The optimized hybrid materials were used as surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) and surface enhanced fluorescence (SEF) substrates for adsorption analysis of the IR-820 molecule. The SERS measurements using incident radiations at 633 and 1064 nm showed a significant increase in the relative intensities of some vibrational modes compared to the Raman spectrum of the free molecule, through which the assignments of the vibrational modes were performed. The SEF measurements obtained with the incident radiation 785 nm showed an increase in the SEF intensity for higher oxide thicknesses, which was attributed to the increase in the distance between adsorbate and the conductive surface of the metal. Moreover, adsorption of the 3-mercaptopropionic acid (MPA) and 4-mercaptobenzoic acid (MBA) molecules in these NP coated was studied using SERS. It was possible to identify and assign the most significant vibrational modes and confirm the adsorption site of MPA and MBA molecules. The results confirmed the successful formation of the oxide layers surrounding the metallic cores. Finally, the applications of the SERS and SEF effect have shown to be very promising for the synthesized substrates.

This thesis deals with metal nanostructures and their use in detection of biomolecules. A protocol for stabilizing solutions of gold nanoparticles was developed for better usage in biological samples or biochemical processes, where different pH or salt concentrations can be used. A model of optical properties of the nanoparticles was presented and supported by spectroscopic experiments. A possible utilization of plasmonic nanostructures on surfaces for detection of biomolecules was also demonstrated.

Surface Plasmon Polaritons (SPPs) are considered to be attractive components for plasmonics and nanophotonic devices due to their sensitivity to interface changes, and their ability to guide and confine light beyond the diffraction limit. They have been utilized in SPP resonance sensors and near field imaging techniques and, more recently, SPP experiments to monitor and control ultrafast charge carrier and energy relaxation dynamics in thin films. In this thesis, we discuss excitation and propagation properties of ultrafast SPPs on thin extended metal films and SPP waveguide structures. In addition, localized and propagating surface plasmon interactions in functional plasmonic nanostructures will also be addressed. For the excitation studies of ultrafast SPPs, we have done detailed analysis of femtosecond surface plasmon pulse generation under resonant excitation condition using prism coupling technique. Our results show that photon-SPP coupling is a resonant process with a finite spectral bandwidth that causes spectral phase shift and narrowing of the SPP pulse spectrum. Both effects result in temporal pulse broadening and, therefore, set a lower limit on the duration of ultrafast SPP pulses. These findings are necessary for the successful integration of plasmonic components into high-speed SPP circuits and time-resolved SPP sensors. To demonstrate interactions between localized and propagating surface plasmons, we used block-copolymer based self assembly techniques to deposit long range ordered gold nanoparticle arrays onto silver thin films to fabricate composite nanoparticle thin film structures. We demonstrate that these gold nanoparticle arrays interact with SPPs that propagate at the film/nanoparticle interface and therefore, modify the dispersion relation of SPPs and lead to strong field localizations. These results are important and advantageous for plasmonic device applications. For the propagation studies of ultrafast SPPs, we have designed and constructed a home-built femtosecond photon scanning tunneling microscope (fsPSTM) to visualize ultrafast SPPs in photonic devices based on metal nanostructures. Temporal and phase information have been obtained by incorporating the fsPSTM into one arm of a Mach-Zehnder interferometer, allowing heterodyne detection. Understanding plasmon propagation in metal nanostructures is a requirement for implementing such structures into opto-electronic and telecommunication technologies.

Dans cette thèse, nous utilisons différentes nanostructures plasmoniques pour contrôler l'émission de lumière excitée électriquement. Notre émission électrique provient d'une "nanosource STM" qui utilise le courant tunnel inélastique entre la pointe d'un microscope à effet tunnel (STM) et un échantillon métallique, pour exciter localement les plasmons polaritons de surface localisés et propagatifs. L’interaction de notre nanosource STM et d'une lentille plasmonique circulaire (une série de fentes concentriques gravées dans un film d'or épais) produit une microsource radialement polarisée de faible dispersion angulaire (≈ ± 4 °). L'influence des paramètres structuraux sur la propagation angulaire de la microsource résultante est également étudiée. En outre, une faible dispersion angulaire (<± 7 °) pour une grande plage de longueurs d'onde (650-850 nm) est obtenue. Ainsi, cette microsource électrique de lumière presque collimatée a une réponse spectrale large et est optimale sur une large plage d'énergie, en particulier en comparaison avec d'autres structures plasmoniques résonantes telles que les nanoantennes Yagi-Uda. L'interaction de notre nanosource STM et d'une lentille plasmonique elliptique (une seule fente elliptique gravée dans un film d'or épais) est également étudiée. Lorsque l'excitation STM est située au point focal de la lentille plasmonique elliptique, un faisceau lumineux directionnel à faible divergence est acquis. De plus, expérimentalement, nous trouvons qu'en changeant l'excentricité de la lentille plasmique elliptique, l'angle d'émission varie. On constate que plus l'excentricité de la lentille elliptique est grande, plus l'angle d'émission est élevé. Cette étude permet de mieux comprendre comment les nanostructures plasmoniques façonnent l'émission de lumière. L'interaction de SPP excités par STM et d'une structure de pile multicouche planaire plasmonique est également étudiée. Il est démontré qu'en utilisant l'excitation STM, nous pouvons sonder la structure de bande optique de la pile Au-SiO₂-Au. Nous trouvons que l'épaisseur du diélectrique joue un rôle important dans la modification du couplage entre les modes. Nous comparons également les résultats obtenus par excitation laser et STM de la même structure de pile. Les résultats indiquent que la technique STM est supérieure en sensibilité. Ces résultats mettent en évidence le potentiel de la STM en tant que technique de nanoscopie optique sensible pour sonder les bandes optiques des nanostructures plasmoniques. Enfin, l'interaction d'une nanosource STM et d'une plaque triangulaire individuelle est également étudiée. Nous trouvons que lorsque l'excitation STM est centrée sur la plaque triangulaire, il n'y a pas d'émission de lumière directionnelle. Cependant, lorsque la nanosource STM est située sur le bord du triangle, on obtient une émission de lumière directionnelle. Cette étude nous fournit une nouvelle voie pour atteindre l'émission de lumière directionnelle. Nous étudions également l'exploration du LDOS optique du triangle avec la nanosource STM. Ainsi, nos résultats montrent que la manipulation de la lumière est réalisée par des interactions SPP-matière. En utilisant des nanostructures plasmoniques, nous contrôlons la collimation, la polarisation et la direction de la lumière provenant de la nanosource STM. / In this thesis, we use different plasmonic nanostructures to control the emission of electrically-excited light. Our electrical emission is from an “STM-nanosource” which uses the inelastic tunnel current between the tip of a scanning tunneling microscope (STM) and a metallic sample, to locally excite both localized and propagating surface plasmon polaritons. The interaction of our STM-nanosource and a circular plasmonic lens (a series of concentric slits etched in a thick gold film) produces a radially polarized microsource of low angular spread (≈±4°). The influence of the structural parameters on the angular spread of the resulting microsource is also investigated. In addition, a low angular spread (<±7°) for a large wavelength range (650-850 nm) is achieved. Thus this electrically-driven microsource of nearly collimated light has a broad spectral response and is optimal over a wide energy range, especially in comparison with other resonant plasmonic structures such as Yagi-Uda nanoantennas. The interaction of our STM-nanosource and an elliptical plasmonic lens (a single elliptical slit etched in a thick gold film) is also studied. When the STM excitation is located at the focal point position of the elliptical plasmonic lens, a directional light beam of low angular spread is acquired. Moreover, in the experiment we find that by changing the eccentricity of the elliptical plasmonic lens, the emission angle is varied. It is found that the larger the eccentricity of the elliptical lens, the higher the emission angle. This study provides a better understanding of how plasmonic nanostructures shape the emission of light. The interaction of STM-excited SPPs and a planar plasmonic multi-layer stack structure is also investigated. It is demonstrated that using STM excitation we can probe the optical band structure of the Au-SiO₂-Au stack. We find that the thickness of the dielectric plays an important role in changing the coupling between the modes. We also compare the results obtained by both laser and STM excitation of the same stack structure. The results indicate that the STM technique is superior in sensitivity. These findings highlight the potential of the STM as a sensitive optical nanoscopic technique to probe the optical bands of plasmonic nanostructures. Finally, the interaction of an STM-nanosource and an individual triangular plate is also studied. We find that when the STM excitation is centered on the triangular plate, there is no directional light emission. However, when the STM-nanosource is located on the edge of the triangle, directional light emission is obtained. This study provides us a novel avenue to achieve directional light emission. We also study probing the optical LDOS of the triangle with the STM-nanosource. Thus, our results show that the manipulation of light is achieved through SPP-matter interactions. Using plasmonic nanostructures, we control the collimation, polarization, and direction of the light originating from the STM-nanosource.