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Title: Coupled Dirac Plasmons in Topological Insulators

Journal Article · · Advanced Optical Materials
 [1];  [1]
  1. Univ. of Delaware, Newark, DE (United States). Dept. of Materials Science and Engineering

Abstract Topological insulators are predicted to house spin‐polarized 2D Dirac plasmons. In topological insulator thin films, Dirac plasmons on the top and bottom surfaces are coupled, giving rise to an unusual dispersion relationship. These plasmons are of interest both for fundamental science as well as applications in terahertz sensing and waveguiding. In this article, conclusive evidence is presented for coupled Dirac plasmons excited in the surface states of topological insulator thin film stripe arrays by investigating how the plasmon frequency depends on both film thickness and stripe width. Bi 2 Se 3 films of thickness 50–200 nm are patterned into periodic stripes of width 1–4 µm to excite plasmons. The plasmon frequency dependence on both film thickness and stripe width is found to be in good agreement with theoretical models for coupling 2D Dirac plasmons. Alternative explanations such as 2D massive plasmons are shown to be inconsistent with data. Finally, effective mode indexes of up to 211 are reported, demonstrating incredible confinement of light in the terahertz frequency range.

Research Organization:
Univ. of Delaware, Newark, DE (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES)
Grant/Contract Number:
SC0017801; DE‐SC0017801
OSTI ID:
1593358
Alternate ID(s):
OSTI ID: 1433553
Journal Information:
Advanced Optical Materials, Vol. 6, Issue 13; ISSN 2195-1071
Publisher:
WileyCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 30 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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