Plasmonic spectral tunability of conductive ternary nitrides
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Ioannina, GR-45110 Ioannina (Greece)
- Institut Pprime, Département Physique et Mécanique des Matériaux, Université de Poitiers-CNRS-ENSMA, 86962 Chasseneuil-Futuroscope (France)
Conductive binary transition metal nitrides, such as TiN and ZrN, have emerged as a category of promising alternative plasmonic materials. In this work, we show that ternary transition metal nitrides such as Ti{sub x}Ta{sub 1−x}N, Ti{sub x}Zr{sub 1−x}N, Ti{sub x}Al{sub 1−x}N, and Zr{sub x}Ta{sub 1−x}N share the important plasmonic features with their binary counterparts, while having the additional asset of the exceptional spectral tunability in the entire visible (400–700 nm) and UVA (315–400 nm) spectral ranges depending on their net valence electrons. In particular, we demonstrate that such ternary nitrides can exhibit maximum field enhancement factors comparable with gold in the aforementioned broadband range. We also critically evaluate the structural features that affect the quality factor of the plasmon resonance and we provide rules of thumb for the selection and growth of materials for nitride plasmonics.
- OSTI ID:
- 22590665
- Journal Information:
- Applied Physics Letters, Vol. 108, Issue 26; Other Information: (c) 2016 Author(s); Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0003-6951
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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