Topology optimization method of metamaterials design for efficient enhanced transmission through arbitrary-shaped sub-wavelength aperture

The electromagnetic wave enhanced transmission(ET)through the sub-wavelength aperture was an unconventional physical phenomenon with great application potential.It was important to find a general design method which can realize efficient ET for arbitrary-shaped apertures.For achieving ET with maximum efficiency at specific frequency through arbitrary-shaped subwavelength aperture,a topology optimization method for designing metamaterials(MTM)microstructure was proposed in this study.The MTM was employed and inserted vertically in the aperture.The description function for the arbitrary shape of the aperture was established.The optimization model was founded to search the optimal MTM microstructure for maximum enhanced power transmission through the aperture at the demanded frequency.Several MTM microstructures for ET through the apertures with different shapes at the demanded frequency were designed as examples.The simulation and experimental results validate the feasibility of the method.The regularity of the optimal ET microstructures and their advantages over the existing configurations were discussed.

Significantly enhanced transmission achieved with double-layered metallic aperture arrays with sub-skin-depth Ag film

We present both theoretical and experimental investigation on significantly enhanced transmission through （Ag/Au） double-layered metallic aperture arrays with sub-skin-depth Ag film due to the coupling role of a surface plasmon polariton at the Ag/Au interface by evanescent waves. The results indicate that the enhanced transmittance is highly dependent on the Ag film thickness. When the Ag film thickness increases, the peak transmit- tance firstly increases and then decreases. Moreover, other metal material properties are also discussed. The highest peak transmittance is obtained when the Ag film thickness is 4 nm. The finite-difference time-domain simulations agree well with the experimental results. This finding provides an effective way to control the enhanced transmis- sion for double-layered metallic aperture arrays, which has potential applications in designing a high-performance plasmonic thermal emitter.

Enhanced optical transmission by V-shaped nanoslit in metal film

In this paper, we reveal that the enhanced transmission through a perforated metal film can be further boosted up by a V-shaped nanoslit, which consists of two connected oblique slits. The maximum transmission at resonance can be enhanced significantly by 71.5% in comparison with the corresponding vertical slit with the same exit width. The value and position of transmission resonance peak strongly depend on the apex angle of the V-shaped slit. The optimum apex angle, at which the transmission is maximal, is sensitive to the slit width. Such phenomena can be well explained by a concrete picture in which the incident wave drives free electrons on the slit walls. Moreover, we also simply analyze the splitting of the transmission peak in the symmetry broken V-shaped slit, originating from the resonances of different parts of the V-shaped slit. We expect that our findings will be used to design the nanoscale light sources based on the metal nanoslit structures.

Role of localised surface plasmon polaritons coupling in optical transmission through double-layer metal apertures

In this paper, we investigate the optical properties of the double-layer metal films perforated with single apertures by analysing the coupling of localized surface plasmon polaritons （LSPPs）. It is found that the amplitude and the wavelength of transmission peak in such a structure can be adjusted by changing the longitudinal interval D between two films and the lateral displacements dx and dy which are parallel and perpendicular to the polarization direction of incident light, respectively. The variation of longitudinal interval D results in the redshift of transmission peak due to the change of coupling strength of LSPPs near the single apertures. The amplitude of transmission peak decreases with the increase of dy and is less than that in the case of dx, which originates from the difference in coupling manner between LSPPs and the localized natures of LSPPs.

Numerical Investigation of Transmission of Low Frequency Sound Through a Smooth Air-water Interface

It is the traditional belief that sound transmission from water to the air is very weak due to a large contrast between air and water impedances. Recently, the enhanced sound transmission and anomalous transparency of air-water interface have been introduced. Anomalous transparency of air-water interface states that the sound generated by a submerged shallow depth monopole point source localized at depths less than 1/10 sound wavelength, can be transmitted into the air with omni-directional pattern. The generated sound has 35 times higher power compared to the classical ray theory prediction. In this paper, sound transmission through air-water interface for a localized underwater shallow depth source is examined. To accomplish this, two-phase coupled Helmholtz wave equations in two-phase media of air-water are solved by the commercial finite element based COMSOL Multiphysics software. Ratios of pressure amplitudes of different sound sources in two different underwater and air coordinates are computed and analyzed against non-dimensional ratio of the source depth （D） to the sound wavelength （λ）. The obtained results are compared with the experimental data and good agreement is displayed.

Electrically tunable resonant terahertz transmission in subwavelength hole arrays

An actively enhanced resonant transmission in a plasmonic array of subwavelength holes is demonstrated by use of terahertz time-domain spectroscopy. By connecting this two-dimensional element into an electrical circuit, tunable resonance enhancement is observed in arrays made from good and relatively poor metals. The tunable feature is attributed to the nonlinear electric response of the periodic hole array film, which is confirmed by its voltage-current behavior. This finding could lead to a unique route to active plasmonic devices, such as tunable filters, spatial modulators, and integrated terahertz optoelectronic components.

Resonance Absorption of Metallic Plate with Subwavelength Hole Array

The optical reflectance by a metallic plate arranged with array consisting of subwavelength periodic square hole is investigated by using the three-dimensional finite-difference time-domain method （3D-FDTD）. There are dips in the reflectivity spectra, which indicate the absorption peaks. The absorption peaks behave differently according to the ratio of hole width and the period of the hole array. Combined with the near fields of the absorption peaks, it is found that the surface plasmon （SP） resonance on the surface of plate and localized SP in the hole play a major role for the two absorptions.

Highly Directional Emission from a Subwavelength Slit in Metal-Dielectric Layered Films

The directional light emission from a single subwavelength slit surrounded by periodic grooves in layered films consisting of Ag and transparent dielectric is analysed numerically by the finite difference time domain method. The results show that the transmission through this structure is strongly confined by the modulation of the dielectric film with grooves on the output side. The role of evanescent waves in this phenomenon is discussed. It is the re-diffraction of the evanescent waves （that are generated by the diffraction of the subwavelength slit） caused by the grooves on the dielectric film that leads to the directional transmission. Some suggestions are given to obtain beaming light with high transmittance.

Membrane-based acoustic metamaterial with near-zero refractive index

We investigate a one-dimensional acoustic metamaterial with a refractive index of near zero（RINZ） using an array of very thin elastic membranes located along a narrow waveguide pipe. The characteristics of the effective density, refractive index, and phase velocity of the metamaterial indicate that, at the resonant frequency fm, the metamaterial has zero mass density and a phase transmission that is nearly uniform. We present a mechanism for dramatic acoustic energy squeezing and anomalous acoustic transmission by connecting the metamaterial to a normal waveguide with a larger cross-section. It is shown that at a specific frequency f1, transmission enhancement and energy squeezing are achieved despite the strong geometrical mismatch between the metamaterial and the normal waveguide. Moreover, to confirm the energy transfer properties, the acoustic pressure distribution, acoustic wave reflection coefficient, and energy transmission coefficient are also calculated. These results prove that the RINZ metamaterial provides a new design method for acoustic energy squeezing,super coupling, wave front transformation, and acoustic wave filtering.