Resonant-tunnelling-assisted crossing for subwavelength plasmonic slot waveguides

We theoretically investigate properties of crossing for two perpendicular subwavelength plasmonic slot waveguides. In terms of symmetry consideration and resonant-tunnelling effect, we design compact cavity-based crossing structures for nanoplasmonic waveguides. Our results show that the crosstalk is practically eliminated and the throughput reaches the unity on resonance. Simulation results are in agreement with those from coupled-mode theory. Taking the material loss into account, the symmetry properties of the modes are preserved and the crosstalk remains suppressed, while the throughput is naturally lowered. Our results may open a way to construct nanoscale crossings for high-density nanoplasmonic integration circuits. (C) 2008 Optical Society of America.