Structure of plasmonic aerogel and the breakdown of the effective medium approximation

A method for making aerogel doped with gold nanoparticles (GNPs) produces a composite material with a well-defined localized surface plasmon resonance peak at 520 nm. The width of the extinction feature indicates the GNPs are well dispersed in the aerogel, making it suited to optical study. A simple...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Optics letters 2011-02, Vol.36 (3), p.358-360
Main Authors: GROGAN, Michael D. W, HECK, Susannah C, HOOD, Katie M, MAIER, Stefan A, BIRKS, Tim A
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Exact sciences and technology
Fundamental areas of phenomenology (including applications)
Optics
Physics
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Summary:A method for making aerogel doped with gold nanoparticles (GNPs) produces a composite material with a well-defined localized surface plasmon resonance peak at 520 nm. The width of the extinction feature indicates the GNPs are well dispersed in the aerogel, making it suited to optical study. A simple effective medium approximation cannot explain the peak extinction wavelengths. The plasmonic field extends on a scale where aerogel cannot be considered isotropic, so a new model is required: a 5 nm glass coating on the GNPs models the extinction spectrum of the composite material, with air (aerogel), methanol (alcogel), or toluene filling the pores.
ISSN:0146-9592
1539-4794
DOI:10.1364/OL.36.000358