MNPBEM - A Matlab toolbox for the simulation of plasmonic nanoparticles

TL;DR

MNPBEM is a flexible Matlab toolbox that employs boundary element methods to simulate the optical properties of metallic nanoparticles across various sizes and dielectric environments.

Contribution

It introduces a modular Matlab class-based toolbox for simulating plasmonic nanoparticles using boundary element methods, adaptable for diverse applications.

Findings

Effective simulation of metallic nanoparticles in optical regimes

Flexible and modular Matlab implementation

Suitable for particles from a few to hundreds of nanometers

Abstract

MNPBEM is a Matlab toolbox for the simulation of metallic nanoparticles (MNP), using a boundary element method (BEM) approach. The main purpose of the toolbox is to solve Maxwell's equations for a dielectric environment where bodies with homogeneous and isotropic dielectric functions are separated by abrupt interfaces. Although the approach is in principle suited for arbitrary body sizes and photon energies, it is tested (and probably works best) for metallic nanoparticles with sizes ranging from a few to a few hundreds of nanometers, and for frequencies in the optical and near-infrared regime. The toolbox has been implemented with Matlab classes. These classes can be easily combined, which has the advantage that one can adapt the simulation programs flexibly for various applications.