Reversal of optical binding force on a plasmonic heterodimer with dipole–dipole type Fano resonance

In the present work, we theoretically and numerically investigate the near field optical binding force on Au–Ag nanorod heterodimers, which can support the electrical dipole–dipole type Fano resonance, under a normally plane wave or polarized laser beam. The numerical results show that the optical binding force between the heterodimer can be reversed near the position of the Fano dip when the incident wave is polarized along the dimer axis, indicating an attractive to repulsive transition. Compared with the Au–Ag heterodimer, the Au and Ag homodimers with the same material show no repulsive binding force. Using the multipole decomposition method, we find that the sign of optical binding force is completely determined by the phase difference of the separated electric dipole plasmon modes excited in the different particles, which can be strongly affected by the wavelength of the incident wave. In addition, we demonstrate the effects of three geometrical parameters (including the length, radius, and gap of the heterodimer) on the Fano-mediated optical binding force in detail. Finally, the numerical results indicate that the reversal of attractive and repulsive forces can also be obtained when the heterodimer is illuminated with a laser beam. Our findings are important for not only a deep understanding of plasmonic-mediated optical binding force but also stable optical manipulation of the plasmonic particles.