No Arabic abstract
We demonstrate that interacting spasers arranged in a 2D array of arbitrary size can be mutually synchronized allowing them to supperradiate. For arrays smaller than the free space wavelength, the total radiated power is proportional to the square of the number N of spasers. For larger arrays, the radiation power is linear in N. However, the emitted beam becomes highly directional with intensity of radiation proportional to N^2 in the direction perpendicular to the plane of the array. Thus, spasers, which mainly amplify near fields, become an efficient source of far field radiation when they are arranged into an array.
We show that net amplification of surface plasmons is achieved in channel in a metal plate due to nonradiative excitation by quantum dots. This makes possible lossless plasmon transmission lines in the channel as well as the amplification and generation of coherent surface plasmons. As an example, a ring channel spaser is considered.
We theoretically introduce a topological spaser, which consists of a hexagonal array of plasmonic metal nanoshells containing an achiral gain medium in their cores. Such a spaser can generate two mutually time-reversed chiral surface plasmon modes in the $mathbf K$- and $mathbf K^prime$-valleys, which carry the opposite topological charges, $pm1$, and are described by a two-dimensional $E^{prime}$ representation of the $D_{3h}$ point symmetry group. Due to the mode competition, this spaser exhibits a bistability: only one of these two modes generates, which is a spontaneous symmetry breaking. Such a spaser can be used for an ultrafast all-optical memory and information processing
In this paper a surface plasmon polariton laser (spaser), which generates surface plasmons in graphene nanoflake, is considered. The peculiarities of spaser, such as strong material dispersion, require revision of basic laser equations. We provide a full derivation of equations of the spaser dynamics starting from the Maxwell-Bloch equations. Optical Bloch equations and rate equations are obtained and the relation of the equation parameters through the physical ones is given. In the case of graphene realization, the numerical parameter values are estimated.
We study the effect of off-resonant plasmon modes on spaser threshold in nanoparticle-based spasers. We develop an analytical semiclassical model and derive spaser threshold condition accounting for gain coupling to higher-order plasmons. We show that such a coupling originates from inhomogeneity of gain distribution near the metal surface and leads to an upward shift of spaser frequency and population inversion threshold. This effect is similar, albeit significantly weaker, to quenching of plasmon-enhanced fluorescence near metal nanostructures due to excitation of off-resonant modes with wide spectral band. We also show that spaser quenching is suppressed for high gain concentrations and establish a simple criterion for quenching onset, which we support by numerical calculations for spherical geometry.
We demonstrate that when the frequency of the external field differs from the lasing frequency of an autonomous spaser, the spaser exhibits stochastic oscillations at low field intensity. The plasmon oscillations lock to the frequency of the external field only when the field amplitude exceeds a threshold value. We find a region of values of the external field amplitude and the frequency detuning (the Arnold tongue) for which the spaser synchronizes with the external wave.