Demonstration of Al:ZnO as a plasmonic component for near-infrared metamaterials

Author

• Gururaj V. Naik, Birck Nanotechnology Center, Purdue UniversityFollow
• Jingjing Liu, Birck Nanotechnology Center, Purdue UniversityFollow
• Alexander V. Kildishev, Birck Nanotechnology Center, Purdue UniversityFollow
• Vladimir M. Shalaev, Birck Nanotechnology Center, Purdue University; Russian Quantum CtrFollow
• Alexandra Boltasseva, Birck Nanotechnology Center, Purdue University; Technical University of DenmarkFollow

Abstract

Noble metals such as gold and silver are conventionally used as the primary plasmonic building blocks of optical metamaterials. Making subwavelength-scale structural elements from these metals not only seriously limits the optical performance of a device due to high absorption, it also substantially complicates the manufacturing process of nearly all metamaterial devices in the optical wavelength range. As an alternative to noble metals, we propose to use heavily doped oxide semiconductors that offer both functional and fabrication advantages in the near-infrared wavelength range. In this letter, we replace a metal with aluminum-doped zinc oxide as a new plasmonic material and experimentally demonstrate negative refraction in an Al:ZnO/ZnO metamaterial in the near-infrared range.

Keywords

transparent conducting oxides; heavily doped semiconductors; low-loss metals; NEGATIVE REFRACTIVE-INDEX; SOLID SOLUBILITY LIMITS; OPTICAL HYPERLENS; FILMS; GAAS; SUPERLENS

DOI

10.1073/pnas.1121517109

Citation

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. Vol. 109 no. 23. June 5, 2012

Date of this Version

6-5-2012

Recommended Citation

Naik, Gururaj V.; Liu, Jingjing; Kildishev, Alexander V.; Shalaev, Vladimir M.; and Boltasseva, Alexandra, "Demonstration of Al:ZnO as a plasmonic component for near-infrared metamaterials" (2012). Birck and NCN Publications. Paper 1176.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1121517109