Open AccessSelective optical-optical switching for planar plasmonic waveguides and nodes
Author(s) -
Michael C. Quong,
A. Y. Elezzabi
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
optics express
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.394
H-Index - 271
ISSN - 1094-4087
DOI - 10.1364/oe.16.008198
Subject(s) - optics , surface plasmon , planar , materials science , diffraction , aperture (computer memory) , plasmon , surface plasmon polariton , numerical aperture , waveguide , reflector (photography) , optoelectronics , physics , wavelength , light source , computer graphics (images) , computer science , acoustics
Two nodes are studied as means to perform selective optical-optical switching of four planar thin surface plasmon waveguides by interfering TEM(10), TEM(01), and TEM(00) light beams incident upon a node. One node uses a flat-apex pyramidal reflector to reflect the incident light toward the waveguides' ends. An alternative node is a simple square aperture, which couples surface plasmons through light diffraction at the aperture's edges. Numerical calculations predict switching contrast, coupling efficiencies, and cross-talk between waveguides. Individually turned-off waveguides are shown to have their coupled surface plasmons attenuated by at least -10 dB and up to -21 dB.