High Degree of Optical Tunability of Self-Assembled Photonic-Plasmonic Crystals by Filling Fraction Modification

The optical properties of two-dimensional hybrid photonic-plasmonic crystals are fine-tuned by modifying the dielectric component of the system. The filling fraction of the dielectric component in monolayers of spheres deposited on gold substrates is controlled by means of oxygen-plasma etching. Doing so enables spectral tuning of the optical modes of the system. Experiments are performed on both optically passive and active samples showing the possibility for strong modification of the emission properties of samples containing emitters distributed within the spheres. The change in sphere diameter needed to substantially modify the sample's optical response points to a potential use of these samples as sensors or tunable emitting devices if appropriate polymeric components are employed.