Efficient hot electron collection, detection, and amplification in plasmon field-effect transistor

Plasmon field-effect transistor is a hybrid device using nanostructures to detect the plasmonic energy. This device efficiently transfers plasmonic hot electrons from the metal nanostructures to the semiconductor. The transported hot electrons to the electron channel increases transistor drain current. We investigate the efficiency of plasmonic hot carrier harvesting between metal and semiconductor. We analyzed the effect of gold nanoparticle (NP) density and distribution on plasmon FET spectral response. Then, we studied electric field-assisted hot electron transfer and transport using different device structures. The position of plasmonic structures plays an important role in plasmonic energy detection efficiency because the gradient of electric field seen by induced hot electrons varies depending on the distance between drain and source. Both the experimental and simulation results confirm that by fabricating the gold NPs close to source the spectral response increases by 31% in comparison with having gold NPs close to the drain. Our simulation and experimental data suggest important design considerations to improve hot electron collection and conversion using metallic nanostructures for plasmonic energy harvesting.