Harvesting the loss: surface plasmon-based hot electron photodetection

Although the nonradiative decay of surface plasmons was once thought to be only a parasitic process within the plasmonic and metamaterial communities, hot carriers generated from nonradiative plasmon decay offer new opportunities for harnessing absorption loss. Hot carriers can be harnessed for applications ranging from chemical catalysis, photothermal heating, photovoltaics, and photodetection. Here, we present a review on the recent developments concerning photodetection based on hot electrons. The basic principles and recent progress on hot electron photodetectors are summarized. The challenges and potential future directions are also discussed.