Spoof-like plasmonic behavior of plasma enhanced atomic layer deposition grown Ag thin films

The plasmonic behavior of Ag thin films produced by plasma enhanced atomic layer deposition (PEALD) has been investigated. We show that as-deposited flat PEALD Ag films exhibit unexpected plasmonic properties, and the plasmonic enhancement can differ markedly, depending on the microstructure of the Ag film. Electromagnetic field simulations indicate that this plasmonic behavior is due to air gaps that are an inherent property of the mosaic-like microstructure of the PEALD-grown Ag film, suggesting that this is a metamaterial with behavior very similar to what would be expected in spoof plasmonics where gaps are fabricated in films to create plasmonic-like resonances. (C) 2012 American Institute of Physics. [doi:10.1063/1.3679106]