Effective energy coupling and preservation in a surface plasmon–light emitter coupling system on a metal nanostructure

The simulation results of the coupling of a radiation dipole with a surface plasmon (SP), which is induced on a metal/dielectric interface of a single groove (SG) plus a grating structure, are demonstrated. With the SG structure, the dipole can effectively couple energy into an SP feature, which has a mixed nature of localized surface plasmon (LSP) and surface plasmon polariton (SPP). The SPP energy is confined by a grating structure with a well designed grating period and position. With such a cavity configuration, the SPP energy can be well preserved. Both the dipole-SP coupling behaviors in the frequency and time domains are numerically illustrated. The results are useful for designing a metal/dielectric interface nanostructure for implementing a SPASER (surface plasmon amplification by stimulated emission of radiation) system.