Dynamic near-field nanofocusing by V-shaped metal groove via a femtosecond laser excitation

The ultrafast dynamics of plasmonic near-field nanofocusing by a V-shaped groove milled on Au film via a femtosecond laser excitation is theoretically studied based on finite element method. The spatiotemporal evolution of the focused e-fields around the V-groove geometry is obtained. It is revealed that the strong nanofocusing at the V-shaped groove occurs at the moderate electron temperature of 3000 K in the electron–phonon uncoupled state via a femtosecond laser pulse excitation. The phenomenon is explained as the electron thermal dynamics manipulation of plasmon resonances due to femtosecond laser fluence modifications. This study provides basic understanding of ultrafast dynamics of near-field nanofocusing in V-shaped geometry for wide applications in the fields such as super-resolution imaging, SERS, and photothermal therapy.