Light scattering, field localization and local density of states in co-axial plasmonic nanowires

Based on analytical scattering theory, we develop a multipolar expansion method to investigate systematically the near-field enhancement, far-field scattering and Local Density of States (LDOS) spectra in concentric metal-insulator-metal (MIM) cylindrical nanostructures, or coaxial plasmonic nanowires (CPNs). We demonstrate that these structures support distinctive plasmonic resonances with strongly reduced scattering in the far-field zone and significant electric field enhancement in deep sub-wavelength dielectric regions. Additionally, we study systematically the effects of geometrical parameters and dielectric index on the near-field and far-field plasmonic response of CPNs in the visible and near infrared spectral range. Finally, we demonstrate that CPNs provide a convenient approach for engineering strong (almost three orders of magnitude) LDOS enhancement in sub-wavelength dielectric gaps at multiple frequencies. These results enable the engineering of multiband optical detectors and CPNs-based light emitters with simultaneously enhanced excitation and emission rates for nanoplasmonics. (C) 2010 Optical Society of America