Hybrid Plasmonic Waveguides: Theory and Applications

Muhammed Alam

The Edward S. Rogers Sr. Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (Photonics)

Abstract:

Surface plasmons (SP) are a type of surface wave that can exist at a metal-dielectric interface. SPs have some unique features: they are highly concentrated at the metal-dielectric interface and they can guide light in a very compact manner not possible by other means.  There are many areas where SPs can be useful: integrated optics, bio-sensing, nano-lithography and cancer treatment to mention a few. At optical regime, metal has a complex permittivity and as a result SPs suffer very large attenuation. This is the main factor that SPs from becoming a more useful technology.  

To overcome this problem, we have proposed a hybrid waveguide that consists of a metal surface separated from a high index slab by a low index spacer. The waveguide provides a better compromise between loss and confinement compared to previously reported plasmonics guides. This new wave guiding scheme has attracted a lot of interest in the past few years. Many different applications of these guides have been suggested, such as nano-scale lasers, power dividers, couplers, polarizers and biosensors. In this talk, potential applications of the hybrid waveguide along with its advantages and limitations will be discussed.

Biography:

Muhammad Alam obtained his B. Sc. Engg. degree from Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology in 2000 and his M. A. Sc. degree from University of Victoria in 2004. He is currently a Ph. D. candidate in Photonics Group. His research interests include integrated optics, plasmnonics and optical sensing.